Most of the companies I’ve built are obsessed with the supply side. The inputs, the supply chains, the ethics and economics of everything measurable.
But their success has almost always been a function of demand: whether the thing is accessible, useful and delightful. And, more importantly, whether your customers know this and see themselves in it. That’s rarely where a company’s brainpower is directed.
The ones that work have a clear proposition, brought to life in a way no one has seen before. Their moat isn’t technical. In a world where anyone can make anything and ship it anywhere, technology, formulations and claims are the easiest things to copy.
What distinguishes Karma Drinks, All Good and Powershop isn’t what they sell. It’s their attitude and how they show up.
Demand is the half I work on. I’m the creative director for founders and operators who need one but not full time.
Setting the direction, writing the briefs, showing the team what good looks like, being in the room when the decisions get made.
That’s the job.