The Biggest Lessons From a 3x Founder

In this episode of The DTC Insider, Brian Roisentul sits down with Josh Sprague, founder of Orange Mud, Seven Clay, and Anvil & Acre, to discuss what it really takes to build and grow successful DTC brands in an ecommerce landscape that never stops evolving.Josh shares the lessons he's learned after launching three companies across different eras of ecommerce, explaining why strong business fundamentals, customer understanding, and operational excellence matter far more than chasing the latest marketing trends or growth hacks.They dive into the realities of paid media, attribution, Amazon, customer retention, and why founders should fully understand their business before investing in advertising. Josh also explains how he built a community of nearly 1,000 brand ambassadors, dramatically reduced product returns through customer education, and why testing and continuous optimization remain essential for long-term growth.Plus, they discuss AI, direct mail, email automation, scaling ecommerce brands, and what Josh would do differently if he were starting a brand from scratch today.--This episode is brought to you by ⁠⁠⁠BSR⁠⁠⁠.⁠⁠⁠BSR⁠⁠⁠ helps 7-figure+ brands build and optimize strategic growth systems that unlock hidden revenue and scale profitably, without adding chaos, channels, or unnecessary spend.To learn more about BSR, ⁠⁠⁠visit their website⁠⁠⁠ or book a ⁠⁠⁠call⁠⁠⁠.