Eric Ryan Retail Rescue
There’s a saying, “It takes one to know one.” I believe entrepreneurs are the backbone of our economy because I’m one of them. I speak their language. I can also tell when they’re full of sh*t. One of my unfair advantages is the fact that I’m a fixer.
That means I can’t help walking into a store or shopping online and seeing what can and should be improved about a product packing, taste, ingredients and more. It’s a gift and a curse because I’m not easier satisfied. To me innovation and disruption is about seeing what others don’t see and either reinventing the category or introducing something totally unique. It’s mostly common sense combined with a high level of taste, the right team and a bit of luck.
Welcome to Eric Ryan Retail Rescue, where I spotlight products and in-store categories that need to be rescued and revived! Want to know more about me? Visit my website: https://www.gobstop.com/bio
Eric Ryan Retail Rescue
Getting Awkward Boosted Brittane Rowe's Start up Brand from $0 to $500,000 in Sales
From theater stages to Shark Tank to building a board game empire, Brittany Rowe turned a pandemic Google Doc into a multimillion-dollar business now sold at Target and Walmart.
What happens when 3 family members trapped in quarantine start documenting their deepest conversations? They create Hella Awkward, the card game that ignites genuine connections through hilariously uncomfortable questions. But getting from a Brooklyn apartment to national retail shelves took more than good questions.
In this episode, you'll discover:
- The entire Shark Tank journey from online application to Robert Herjavec's offer
- How Brittany hand-delivered games with balloons in NYC for social media content
- The nightmare of shipping 5,000 units to Macy's from a studio apartment
- Why 30% of their first production run went straight to trash
- How theater school taught her to embrace failure as a learning tool
- The cold reality of that first Target buyer meeting
Brittany opens up about growing up religious, finding freedom in theater at Michigan State, and how vulnerability became her superpower in business. Her approach to retail reads like a masterclass in momentum building - from convincing friends to quality control products over wine to turning every store visit into content gold.
This conversation gets into the real challenges of games and toys retail: competing against Hasbro and Monopoly, navigating buyer meetings that feel transactional, and why she chose 600 Walmart doors over 1,000 with an exclusivity deal.
Key insights for entrepreneurs:
- Launch before perfect - iterate as you go
- Your friends and family are your best first focus group
- Take every buyer meeting even if the timing feels wrong
- Marketing through radio worked better than Meta ads for a conversation game
- Being Type A and perfectionist will kill your business before it starts
The episode also dives deep into Gen Z consumer behavior, why in-person experiences are winning right now, and how to design products that double as home decor so people remember to use them.