Proof to Product

Over the years, we've had hundreds of conversations on this podcast about what it means to build a sustainable, profitable product brand. And some of those conversations are just too juicy. They're too good to live in the archives.
Today, I'm bringing one back. What you're about to hear is a short clip from a past episode. It's a topic that has stuck with me and still feels very relevant today.
These throwback episodes are intentionally short and to the point because sometimes you don't need a full deep dive.
All right, let's dive in.
You can listen to the full episode with Danielle Coke of Oh Happy Dani here: http://prooftoproduct.com/189
Quick Links:
Free Wholesale Audio Series
Free Resources Library
Free Email Marketing for Product Makers
PTP LABS
Paper Camp
Mentioned in this episode:
Take the free quiz!
Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

Today's conversation is about building a business that truly evolves alongside your life and also having the courage to reinvent yourself more than once along the way.
I'm joined by one of my clients, Melissa Hyatt. She is an artist, a surface pattern designer, and an entrepreneur.
Before launching her own product brand, Melissa spent more than 2 decades designing textiles, wallpaper, home decor, and licensed products for major brands in New York. She eventually served as the design director for Waverly Fabrics.
Today, she brings all of that industry experience and knowledge into her own business where she creates stationery, watercolor art, and beautifully created watercolor kits that are helping more people reconnect with their creativity.
In this episode, Melissa shares how her career evolved from the corporate design world to entrepreneurship, why she intentionally built multiple revenue streams in her business, and how one unexpected setback became kind of the catalyst for creating a business that's more resilient and also more fulfilling for her.
We also dive into her wildly successful watercolor kits, the product development process behind them, and how following her curiosity has opened doors that she never really expected.
I really love Melissa's perspective on experimentation, perseverance, and creating products that create a meaningful impact in people's lives. If you've ever wondered whether it's too late to pivot or launch something new or reinvent your business, I think you will find so much encouragement in today's conversation.
Today's episode is brought to you by our Is Wholesale Right for You workshop. Wholesale is not the only way to make money selling your products. Selling in bulk to retail stores that order multiple times a year instead of relying on one-off direct-to-consumer sales— yes please!
Whether you are brand new to wholesale or you've hit a sales plateau, this free 25-minute on-demand workshop will give you actionable steps that you can take to strengthen your wholesale sales and marketing right away.
SIGN UP
You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/458
Quick Links:
Free Wholesale Audio Series
Free Resources Library
Free Email Marketing for Product Makers
PTP LABS
Paper Camp
Mentioned in this episode:
Take the free quiz!
Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

Over the years, we've had hundreds of conversations on this podcast about what it means to build a sustainable, profitable product brand. And some of those conversations are just too juicy. They're too good to live in the archives.
Today, I'm bringing one back. What you're about to hear is a short clip from a past episode. It's a topic that has stuck with me and still feels very relevant today.
These throwback episodes are intentionally short and to the point because sometimes you don't need a full deep dive.
All right, let's dive in.
You can listen to the full episode with Morgan Harper Nichols here: http://prooftoproduct.com/206
Quick Links:
Free Wholesale Audio Series
Free Resources Library
Free Email Marketing for Product Makers
PTP LABS
Paper Camp
Mentioned in this episode:
Take the free quiz!
Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

What did it cost you to not do Paper Camp last round?
Not what it costs to join the program — we'll get to that. I'm talking about the other number. The invisible one.
The wholesale orders you didn't land because your pricing wasn't dialed in.
The reorders that never came through because you weren't sure how to follow up and you didn't know what to say, or when to send it.
The stores that passed on your line because your minimums didn't align with industry standards.
The nights you spent Googling "how much should I charge for ___" instead of just knowing the answer off the top of your head or having a place to go and ask.

Those missed opportunities cost you real money.
But they don’t show up on your profit and loss statement.
No one sends you an invoice for the money you left on the table.
In this podcast episode, we're putting a number on it.
Today's episode is brought to you by our Paper Camp program. Paper Camp is our wholesale coaching program where we teach you everything you need to know to build strong wholesale foundations. Over the course of 4 weeks, we tackle your product line, sales tools, and marketing plan, and we even talk about how to exhibit at trade shows if that's what you want to do. We start with your product line and go into everything from how often you should be releasing new products to ensuring that your numbers are sustainable for the wholesale market and their price for profit.
Then we move into sales tools you must have for selling wholesale so you make a strong first impression with buyers like catalogs and your terms and conditions. Then, we cover marketing strategies and ways to reach various store owners.
Each week's teachings build on the previous week, and we host weekly live engaging coaching calls to answer all of your questions. We will open enrollment for our next round of Paper Camp soon, and we sell this program out every time we run it. Join the wait list and you’ll get early access to enroll.
ENROLL NOW
You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/457
Quick Links:
Free Wholesale Audio Series
Free Resources Library
Free Email Marketing for Product Makers
PTP LABS
Paper Camp
Mentioned in this episode:
Take the free quiz!
Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz

Thirteen years in business. Nearly 700 wholesale accounts. And the biggest shift Rachel O'Neill of Loftipop made this year was admitting her wholesale business was being run like a D2C channel.
If you started in direct-to-consumer and layered wholesale on top, this episode will feel familiar. Rachel came into Paper Camp with a thriving business at Loftipop and left with major enhancements: separate pricing logic, a leaner product line, and a strategy built around the retailers she already has.
In this episode, you'll learn:
Why wholesale is not an extension of your D2C business — it's a separate model with its own pricing, margins, and rules
How Loftipop added 60 accounts in the 6 months after Paper Camp, growing from 690 to about 750
Why Rachel discontinued SKUs that were still selling — and why she felt "so much lighter" afterward
How to run channel-by-channel margin math before keeping a product in your wholesale catalog
What it looks like to nurture current retailers — email outreach, direct mail, and consistent touchpoints — instead of only chasing new accounts
How staying open to change, 13 years in, became the shift that moved her whole business forward

From the episode:
"The biggest takeaway is that your wholesale business is not D2C. We came into wholesale thinking it was just an extension of our D2C... it's actually a whole separate business model and strategy." — Rachel O'Neill"If you're serious about wholesale, it's 100% worth the investment. In terms of numbers, we've already made our money back and more." — Rachel O'Neill
Paper Camp is currently open for enrollment, which only happens twice a year!
SIGN UP FOR PAPER CAMP NOW
You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/456
Quick Links:
Free Wholesale Audio Series
Free Resources Library
Free Email Marketing for Product Makers
PTP LABS
Paper Camp
Mentioned in this episode:
Take the free quiz!
Map out your next 90 days here: http://prooftoproduct.com/quiz