Oikos Enters Protein, Final Boss Raises $4M, and SLC Events Kick Off
Happy Thursday! From protein shake power plays to gamified snacks raising fresh capital, CPG brands are making big moves and we’re kicking off a packed June with events in Salt Lake and beyond.
Let’s get into it...
The Next Course in Circular Fashion May 28 | 7–10 PM | Tolo, NYC
Join Treet, Revenue Roll, PostPilot, and Lunar Solar Group for an intimate dinner exploring how circular strategies like resale are shaping the future of fashion. Expect great food, great wine, and even better conversation—just steps from The Lead Summit.
Space is limited.
Lead Summit Dinner – May 28th (NYC)
📍Other Upcoming Events
Golf Day w/ Okendo – May 28th (SLC) Only 2 spots left!
Midcost HoeDown - June 5th (Chicago)
Growth Labs: Email = Revenue – June 5th (NYC)
“Bring Your Brand” CPG Hangout – June 13th (SLC)
Big Brand Headlines
Oikos Breaks Into the $7B Protein Shake Market Danone is taking Oikos beyond the yogurt aisle with a new shelf-stable protein shake—aimed at meal-replacement users and high-protein snackers.
Quick Hits:
- 30g protein, 5g fiber, 1g sugar
- Flavors: Vanilla, Chocolate, Salted Caramel
- Launching at Amazon, CVS, Kroger—Costco & Target coming
- Built for the GLP-1 wave + gym-first consumers
Final Boss Sour Raises $4M + Drops New Sampler Box The most gamified snack brand on shelves is leveling up—again.
What’s new:
- $4M Seed 2 raise (backers include Science Inc.)
- 9 new tropical minibosses across 3 sour levels
- 700M+ views, 300K YouTube subs
- Even Prime is copying the concept—just not as sour 😉
Founder Spotlight: Aidan from Reserv Labs
1. What inspired you to start this brand, and what were the first steps you took to bring it to life? It wasn’t some big “aha” moment—I was just deep in the startup world, working long hours, drinking Red Bulls and Celsiuses like everyone else. I started getting into Yerba Mate as a better-for-you option, but everything on the market had a ton of sugar or other ingredients that didn’t sit right with me. So my co-founder Finn and I thought: “What if we made our own version that actually felt clean and functional?”
We each put in $25K, formulated the product, and handled everything ourselves—branding, website, content. My sister did the branding, Finn built the site, and a family friend helped with socials. No agencies. No playbook. Just figuring it out as we went. We wanted to stay lean and actually build something that could sustain itself.
2. What sets your product apart in a crowded market? We know it’s a saturated space, so our focus has been twofold: product quality and delivery format. First, we formulated a balanced Yerba Mate-based product with added nootropics like Alpha GPC and L-theanine for mental clarity without the crash. Magnesium helps round it out too. You actually feel good drinking it.
Second, we went with a stick pack format instead of cans. It’s lighter to ship, more convenient to carry, and a much better fit for e-commerce. That keeps costs down for both us and the customer. It’s also energy-first—which is different from the electrolytes you usually see in stick packs.
3. What’s been the biggest challenge so far, and how did you overcome it? Definitely figuring out what actually works when you don’t have money to waste. I’ve literally lit tens of thousands of dollars on fire trying to make Meta ads work, only to realize that at our scale, it’s just not the right lever yet.
We also had a steep learning curve getting set up on Amazon—got deactivated multiple times because I didn’t fully understand the rules. But we stuck with it, learned everything we could (shoutout to YouTube and Profitable Pineapple), and now Amazon is where most of our sales come from. I’m proud that we’ve done it all without an agency—just grinding, testing, and learning.
4. How are you approaching growth in these early stages—what channels or strategies are most important to you? Right now, Amazon is driving around 75–80% of our revenue. It’s scalable, searchable, and once you’re set up, there’s a compounding effect with reviews and organic traffic. But long-term, we don’t want to be overly reliant on one channel.
We're starting to test more organic content and micro-influencer partnerships—more gifting, less paid. We want creators who actually use and believe in the product. Shopify’s a slower build, but we’re getting more intentional with how we approach growth outside Amazon. We’ll invest more into other channels as revenue allows.
5. One year from now, what does success look like for you and the brand? Baseline: still alive and growing. That’s not a joke—survival is half the battle in CPG. But looking ahead, I want us to have 3–4 flavors, a few different pack sizes, and to be selling across Amazon, Shopify, and a small number of retail stores.
If we can hit seven figures in revenue in the next year, that’s a huge win. We’re not chasing vanity metrics—we just want to keep building a real, sustainable business step-by-step.
👀 Brand & Tech to Watch
Brand: Drink Journee – Uplifting Mind & Energy Drink.
Tech: Revamp.ai – Unlock 35–45% More Retention Revenue with Revamp
Tired of guessing what message works best?
Revamp replaces A/B tests and manual segments with AI that personalizes every message—based on real-time behavior, copy performance, and brand voice.
- Installs in 48–72 hours
- Delivers 35–45% revenue uplift
- Learns + optimizes daily (inside Klaviyo)
Whether it’s abandoned carts, product drops, or re-engagement, Revamp handles it—automatically.
That’s it for this week—Thanks for stopping by.
If you’ve got something launching, hit reply. Always looking to spotlight what’s next.
—Zach
P.S. If you found value in this, consider sharing it with a friend or colleague who's interested in brand building, consumer trends, or the future of retail. And as always, hit reply with any thoughts — I read every message.