Well Made

Narvar CEO and founder Amit Sharma tracks the past decade of rising consumer expectations, the importance of supply chain transparency, and Narvar's exciting new acquisition — Lumi ☺️.

Climate reporter Kendra Pierre Louis's bylines follow the impacts of climate change in all forms — from caterpillar plagues to wildfire season. To solve climate change, she's shifting the lens from consumers to companies and regulators.

"I think Gin Lane's impact got a lot larger once we quit Gin Lane." After building the brand identity for dozens of iconic modern brands, Gin Lane founder Emmett Shine is scaling a new home brands collaborative — Pattern Brands.

While building Sudowrite — AI for writers block — Amit Gupta is also writing sci-fi that bucks the trend of doomed gloom dystopias.

Reggie James is questioning the role of our online identities and the platforms that contain them. As the CEO and founder of Eternal, he’s challenging product language with inspiration from game design, iconic futurists, and sci-fi.

Tyler Mincey is a Partner at Bolt where he's always thinking about the long view of new products. With a decade of product experience, he's envisioning a future of tech that's more integrated and ambient than ever before.

After a record year of ecommerce, Shippo CEO Laura Behrens Wu returns with an update on the current state of shipping. Customers want more choice and transparency at checkout, and mega shippers' shortcomings are making way for more fragmented, hyperlocal logistics.

As a futurist, purveyor of tech tools, and the founding executive editor of Wired, Kevin Kelly has spent a lot of time thinking about the future. But his latest project is a 50-year visual anthology that cherishes the past while bringing a more long-term vision into focus.

As the natural food market has boomed, Thrive Market's Jeremiah McElwee has learned that scaling a healthy, sustainable supply chain takes patience and a constant pursuit of perfection.

The price, time commitment, and vocabulary involved in self-care can leave consumers stranded and overwhelmed. With Golde, Trinity Mouzon Wofford is determined to make healthy changes — in business and body — more accessible.

"I'm still the person that just wanted to make beautiful things and that hasn't changed." Jenna Lyons is diving back into creative with full force: launching a new lash brand, hosting a TV show, and designing a new hotel.

On average, each person in the US sends 70 pounds of textiles to a landfill each year. For Days founder Kristy Caylor is building a textile recovery stream to close the loop and build a supply chain fueled by fashion waste.

It’s been two years since Vogue Business editor Hilary Milnes was on the show to share her DTC retail predictions. One year into the pandemic, trend trajectories have spiked, forcing brands to accelerate faster than anyone predicted.

Sustainability is not binary. Returning guest reporter Alden Wicker is breaking down what we talk about when we talk about sustainability and exposing common red herrings.

Ian Montgomery, founder and Creative Director of Guacamole Airplane is merging environmental science and design to push the limits of how we think about sustainable packaging.

What does it take to make a shoe recyclable and how do you get customers to recycle it? Caspar Copetti and his team at On are testing their hypotheses with a whole new supply chain for a subscription based shoe.

Designer Kristy Tillman has no time to waste. Between her roles at Slack and Facebook, she took a sabbatical to launch a fellowship for underrepresented design talent.

What does it take to be the first big blanket brand in the past couple centuries? Fresh off his Shark Tank pitch, Wylie Robinson is sharing his plan to make Rumpl a household name.

“Whether you plan to be transparent or not, transparency is going to find you.” With end-to-end control of the supply chain, Boll & Branch is building a business that’s better for people and the planet.

Bellroy CEO and Co-founder Andy Fallshaw is debunking status quo for profit, purpose and product design, and evolving to meet the needs of our planet.

Schoolhouse is revitalizing American manufacturing to build the next generation of heirlooms.

When Shopify acquired Tictail, Carl Rivera took the lead on Shop — Shopify's shopping app that boosts brand discovery and lowers acquisition costs.

From logo to mission statement, it's become easy to create a cookie-cutter brand. Emily Singer, author of Chips + Dips, explores how to break the mold.

Céline Semaan, founder of Slow Factory, is bringing us up to speed. This episode is a lesson on unlearning the systems we know and getting familiar with the discomfort of change.

At peak pandemic panic buying, Who Gives a Crap sold 28 rolls per second. Co-founder and CPO Danny Alexander shares how rapid scaling has led to their biggest donation ever — $4m.

The pandemic has drastically changed how we shop, at least for now. The New Consumer Editor-in Chief Dan Frommer shares his insights and predictions for the surge of ecommerce.

Food equity starts in the supply chain. Diaspora Co. founder Sana Javeri Kadri is disconnecting Indian spices from the influence of Western colonization.

In the midst of a pandemic-induced ecommerce boom, Ithaca Hummus is doing just fine in grocery stores’ deli sections. Founder Chris Kirby talks about the experiential role of retail, staying smart and flexible, and separating trends from universal truths.

What does it mean to be an "intersectional environmentalist" and how can companies follow suit? We're talking to Leah Thomas, the person who coined the term.

True Botanicals founder Hillary Peterson debunks the idea that natural products can’t outperform toxic ones, and dives into the implications of cost and customer education.

Etsy's Director of Sustainability shares how the maker marketplace is measuring and taking responsibility for their ecological impact.

A short meditation about the relationship between racism and climate change, and what we can do to better support Black businesses.

Chintextle. Purslane. Sir Prize avocados. Methodology founder Julie Nguyen is always trying to source exciting new foods for their menu. Delivered in jars, always healthy, and always filling, Methodology is innovating a new way forward for food delivery.

In 2008, Fireclay Tile CEO Eric Edelson brought the tile business direct-to-consumer, and he hasn't looked back. He talks us through scaling past max capacity, becoming a B Corp, and staying recession proof.

Most people don't know what kombucha is and fermented tea is a tough sell (especially after you've seen a SCOBY). Health-Ade Kombucha co-founder Vanessa Dew explains how they continue to educate consumers as they scale up at breakneck speed.

Launching a line of emergency kits in the midst of a pandemic is a big responsibility. Judy CEO and co-founder, Simon Huck, talks us through the first few months and the value of informative content.

Vanessa is taking us through the carefully considered, incremental decisions it took to build an ethical supply chain for Another Tomorrow.

Cotopaxi founder Davis Smith has always faced tough decisions with a people-first approach. Davis is making a case for sustainable shifts to capitalism.

In many ways, COVID-19 has made business stand still, so Nate Checketts found a way to keep things moving. Brands x Better is just one of the ways Rhone is adapting to a new world of business.

Decreased emissions don't paint the full picture of COVID-19's environmental impact. Sustainable fashion journalist Alden Wicker takes us beyond the idea of conscious consumerism as the pandemic magnifies environmental and human crises in the apparel supply chain.

Benjamin Witte isn't branding CBD, he's branding the clear calm it gives you. Hear the strategies for marketing, hiring, and growth that are expanding the world of this fruity, fizzy CBD drink.

Scalability has its limits. Taking his queue from Apple and Amazon, Barkbox founder Henrik Werdelin is thinking beyond big trees and planting seeds for something even bigger.

Minimalism goes deeper than aesthetics — way deeper. In his debut book, "The Longing for Less", writer Kyle Chayka goes back to the roots of minimalism to pivot our modern interpretations away from aesthetic and more toward sourcing.

Peter Dering, founder of Peak Design, shares why he is starting a new nonprofit called Climate Neutral to help brands become carbon neutral.

It's like a grocery store but everything is health and beautiful. Oh, and it's gone in 30 days. Founder Emily Schildt talks us through how Pop-up Grocer is a solution for how consumers actually want to shop for groceries.

A great product does not equal a great brand. Co-founders Eric Prum and Josh Williams share the strategy behind the Very Great platform and how it has helped to build three consumer brands and counting — W&P Design, Wild One, and Courant.

Fast Company Senior Staff Writer Elizabeth Segran reflects on the past decade of consumer trends and makes some insightful predictions about how gradual consumer shifts have lead to substantial changes in what consumers expect of brands.

Phone cases don’t need to last a lifetime, but in a landfill, they might. Pela founder Jeremy Lang shares how he developed the compostable flax-based phone case material and how Pela is making a place for itself in the responsibility economy.

Momentum is building around sustainable purchasing and Stuart Landesberg believes this is just the beginning. The CEO and Co-founder of Grove Collaborative shares a piece-by-piece sustainability strategy and the outlook that could make Grove a 100-year company.

Trade Coffee is delivering on discovery, but the subscription part is more complex than it seems. Hear how they've optimized for their roasters and their customers.

Universal Standard is building the largest size range in the world. Hear why they want to stop talking about size, and what they're doing to set a new standard.

Framing priceless pieces requires a ton of customer confidence. Framebridge founder and CEO Susan Tynan built that confidence by sweating the details, building out a new factory, and launching two brick-and-mortar locations.

Jesse and Stephan are answering your questions about the podcast, packaging, ecommerce, and Lumi.

The magic of Magic Spoon is in its trifecta of sweeteners that keep it low in sugar and its high quality dairy protein. Co-founder Gregory Sewitz talks sourcing, formulations, and why he'll never work with live crickets again.

Combining her impressive background in tech and marketing with her husband's wine making expertise, Helena Price Hambrecht launched Haus – an aperitif that deserves to be the main attraction.

Blueland is taking the refill model and dehydrating it. Founder and CEO Sarah Paiji Yoo takes us behind the scenes of Blueland's busy first year, the struggles to find a manufacturer for their cleaning tablets, and pitching on Shark Tank.

Tracksmith not only captures the grit it takes to run — they glorify it. Co-founder Matt Taylor shares the strategy behind their captivating photography, their growing community, and the respite of a retail space.

Shopping secondhand significantly offsets the amount of waste produced by the fashion industry. ThredUp's Brand Director talks sustainability, stigma, and streamlining resale with retail.

A report on the state of direct-to-consumer brands, straight from an expert. Founder of The New Consumer, Dan Frommer helps us digest the some milestone moments in ecommerce and what they mean for the future.

Beautycounter takes their mission straight to Capitol Hill. Hear how SVP of Social Mission, Lindsay Dahl lobbies for clean beauty.

After selling Tonx to Blue Bottle Coffee, Tony Konecny's new company Yes Plz is making delicious coffee more attainable.

By focusing on functionality and a direct-to-consumer model, Year & Day encourages customers to focus on what and who is around the table.

Getting real with Knix founder, Joanna Griffiths about rebuilding her brand of intimate apparel online.

We sit down with Poshmark founder and CEO, Manish Chandra to talk about the logistics of the resale marketplace, and building social ecommerce experiences.

As the co-founder of Seventh Generation and Sustain Natural, Jeffrey Hollender knows what it takes to build transparent businesses with a focus on sustainability. On this episode he shares successes, failures, and his current efforts to shift fundamental systems.

Hair care is getting personal — finally. We're talking with Function of Beauty's co-founder about the strategy behind their hundreds of bottling iterations and trillions of product combinations.

Aishwarya Iyer talks about founding Brightland to bring fresh, traceable olive oils to the table.

Neighborhood Goods' Matt Alexander on bringing together people and stories under one roof.

A chat with Happy Returns co-founder, David Sobie on the logistics of in-person, online purchase returns.

Hear how founder Adam Simone took his experience creating medical-grade tools to develop a refillable, plastic-free Leaf razor.

Alex Matisse of East Fork talks about walking the line between small scale craft and large scale commercialism.

Rothy's burst into the shoe market with flats made from recycled water bottles in 2016. Three years later, Kerry Cooper, the President of Rothy's, talks about treading new ground with the overseas expansion of their sustainable slip-on.

Breaking down the science of the microbiome with Seed.

On sustainable furniture design with ready-to-assemble, flat-pack furniture company, Floyd.

A discussion on designing for longevity with the Director of EILEEN FISHER Renew.

A talk with Tuft & Needle co-founder, JT Marino on waking up a sleepy industry and merging with their competitors to fundamentally transform consumer product brands.

ShipBob Chief Marketing Officer, Casey Armstrong answers logistics questions for outsourcing your fulfillment.

Ollie Sr. Operations Manager, Nancy Walton, and Lerer Hippeau Principal investor, Caitlin Strandberg talk about the supply chain strategy behind Ollie's new packaging redesign.

President of Supergoop!, Amanda Baldwin shares how she's leading the mission-driven sunscreen brand forward.

On the Thingtesting Instagram, Jenny Gyllander offers her perspective on products from the lens of a consumer and a venture capitalist.

A conversation with Backdrop — a new startup moving the hardware store paint chip model forward.​ ​

A year after our first talk, Baggu founder Emily Sugihara shares how they're preserving the heart of the bag brand.

LeanLuxe Editor-in-Chief, Paul Munford and Stephan Ango roundup the latest ecommerce news.

Porter Road is bringing high-quality, traceable meats and poultry direct to consumer. Hear how the Nashville butchery went from catering business to VC-backed ecommerce company.

Two years ago, Eva Goicochea shared her idea for a new kind of sex wellness brand, Maude. We're looping back with her on how the freshly launched company is disrupting an industry that has for so long looked the same.

Industrial design office, Visibility, walk through the step-by-step process of bringing a physical product to market.

A talk with Bombas CEO, David Heath, about grounding their one-for-one sock brand in community and the customer experience.

A conversation with Sustain Natural founder, Meika Hollender on starting an all-natural period and sex startup with her dad.

Chief Operations Officer, Charlie Carlisle shares how social-good headwear company, Love Your Melon, is supporting pediatric cancer initiatives through selling knitwear at scale.

MVMT founder, Jake Kassan talks about building a $100 million brand through influencer marketing.

We sit down with GREATS co-founder, Ryan Babenzien to talk about building an enduring shoe brand.

Former blogger, tv host, and interior designer, Nicole Gibbons is simplifying the paint buying process one paint swatch at a time.

The Wall Street Journal logistics and supply chain reporter, Erica E. Phillips weighs in on the tightening labor supply, tariffs, and the trade war.

The founders of Freshly, a healthy, heat-and-eat ​meal subscription brand talk about making fresh foods that ship in the mail.

LOLA co-CEO, Alex Friedman shares how transparency is encouraging candid conversations around periods, sex, and reproductive health.

A conversation with Haraldur Thorleifsson, founder of Ueno — a creative agency designing digital experiences for Silicon Valley's biggest tech companies.

Getting real with Gloria Noto about instincts, risk-taking, and building an inclusive, gender-fluid beauty brand.

The founders of Studio Neat talk about the ups and downs of running their product design business.

The Sill Founder Eliza Blank shares how the ecommerce plant brand uses educational content as a key tool for growth.

A talk with Patagonia's Worn Wear Manager, Nellie Cohen on the logistics and marketing of repairing and selling used clothing online

A conversation with Cheryl Kaplan, President of luxury shoe brand M.Gemi, on closing the customer feedback loop with data to stay a step ahead.

A conversation with Managing Editor of Glossy, Hilary Milnes about the resurgence of the retail store and where the luxury world is at in the transition from wholesale to direct-to-consumer.

An interview with Material co-founder, Eunice Byun, on connecting with customers through their minimal set of kitchen tools.

We loop back with ecommerce expert, Web Smith to talk about how brands will adapt to new regulations and competition, and get an update on his newsletter, 2PM.

From their days at Facebook and Ross to launching their own footwear brand Birdies, Bianca and Marisa share what they've learned about marketing and manufacturing for a new product category.

A conversation with founder, Karen Young about disrupting the status quo with a razor designed for women.

From Fuzzco to Pretend Store, Helen Rice is taking a non-traditional approach to design and defining brand stories.

Burrow co-founder, Kabeer Chopra talks about the challenges of shipping their modular couches direct-to-consumer.

Rockets of Awesome founder, Rachel Blumenthal, talks about designing a brand backed by data and personalized for a modern generation of parents and kids.

FabFitFun co-CEO and co-founder, Daniel Broukhim, shares the value behind their subscription box.

Business of Fashion Chief Correspondent, Lauren Sherman, covers what is and isn’t working in this unprecedented time of retail, and how digitally native brands have changed where the fashion industry is heading.

Former Head of Product of Reformation and startup sustainability advisor, Tabea Soriano, shares social and environmental strategies to integrate into identity and business.

With 20 years of tech industry experience at Amazon, Etsy, NPR and SmartThings, business leader Maria Thomas shares the importance of a brand narrative and the value of preparation.

ThirdLove co-founder, Heidi Zak, is changing the way modern women get measured and shop for bras.

Tina Sharkey, the veteran entrepreneur, investor, and co-founder of Brandless talks to Stephan about reimagining what it means to be brand.

A conversation with David Hua, CEO of cannabis software company, Meadow.

Lumi founders, Jesse Genet and Stephan Ango discuss raising a $9M Series A.

Proper Cloth uses technology to power personalization in the form of dress shirts. Hear how founder Seph Skerritt went from electrical engineering to building web tools for finding the perfect fit.

A conversation with Daily Harvest founder, Rachel Drori, on how she's reclaiming the freezer as a modern tool for convenience.

Grovemade founder, Ken Tomita talks about designing products the hard way, and how to embrace mistakes along the way.

A chat with the founder and CEO of Shippo — an API for parcel shipping at any scale.

Ten years in, Baggu founder Emily Sugihara shares the tenants of her iconic bag brand and the discipline in good design.

A conversation with Iva Pawling CEO of Richer Poorer, an innerwear brand dedicated to the omnichannel approach.

We talk to ecommerce expert, Web Smith about what to expect from the shifting landscape, startup disruption burnout, and how DNVBs can adapt to compete with retail giants.

An interview about science fiction, Los Angeles, and the the history of women in technology with the artistic duo, YACHT.

An interview with Sara Hicks about the future of e-commerce and how her open source platform Reaction Commerce is powering it.

MeUndies founder, Jonathan Shokrian shares the past of MeUndies and plans for the future.

From their days at Quidsi to launching their own kid's clothing brand Primary, Galyn and Christina share what they've learned about e-commerce and entrepreneurship.

We talk to Sandwich Video's Adam Lisagor about how he became the face and voice of some of the most innovative tech brands.

Polly Rodriguez talks about founding Unbound Box to illuminating the sex health space for women, and her past at Grouper.

Talking pup health and packaging design with the co-founder of the human-grade dog food brand, Ollie

Iris is taking her learnings from American Apparel and applying them to EVERYBODY, a new brand founded on ethics and ecology.

Frank Body co-founder and Creative Director Jess Hatzis shares her strategies for creating the signature voice of the original coffee scrub brand.

Founder of Care/Of and former VP of Marketing at Bonobos, Craig Elbert tells us how he went from mens fashion to vitamins.

From running a business with boobs to small space living, Lumi founder Jesse Genet shares some advice from her years as an entrepreneur.

Parachute Home founder Ariel Kaye is on the podcast talking about the importance of branding and manufacturing when it comes redesigning home essentials.

Cotton Bureau founders Jay and Nate drop the big news about why and how they're launching their own line of blank t-shirts.

Founder of Thinx, Miki Agrawal talks about how she's taking stigmas head-on with innovative products for periods, pee, and poop.

Richie Siegel, the reporter behind Loose Threads joins us to take a look back at the major trends and shifts among direct-to-consumer brands in 2016.

Illustrator and entrepreneur Tuesday Bassen talks to Stephan about the evolution of her work through a series of “What do I have to lose?” milestones in her life.

Writer and entrepreneur Grace Bonney talks to Stephan about the evolution of her popular blog Design Sponge and her new book, "In the Company of Women."

Designer, writer Mig Reyes talks about the evolving role of the designer and his love of the four-day work week.

Ugmonk founder Jeff Sheldon talks to Stephan about how promoting brand transparency and staying small has earned Ugmonk an ever-growing, faithful following.

Graphic design icon and Field Notes founder Aaron Draplin talk to Stephan about working hard and the impact of lasting relationships.

Kevin Kelly, founding executive editor of “Wired,” and the former editor of the “Whole Earth Catalog,” talks to Stephan about his new book, his predictions of the future, and how we can embrace them.

Eva Goicochea — web designer, brand strategist and co-founder of Tinker and Maude talks to Stephan Ango about her minimal aesthetic and the evolution of modern brands.

In this episode, Matt Alexander talks about how his experimental brands are revamping retail.

Designer and maker of the Cord Taco, Mike Macadaan talks to us about going from pixels to leather.

In this second episode of the Well Made podcast, we talk to type legend Tobias Frere-Jones about how typography can level the playing field.

In our first episode of the Well Made podcast, we talk to Jeff Veen, founder of Typekit, about the role of design in modern business.