324: How Vital Proteins’ Kurt Seidensticker Generated Insane Consumer Demand For Collagen

<h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Kurt Seidensticker, Former NASA Engineer & Founder and CEO, Vital Proteins</span></h2> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">How did Kurt Seidensticker go from being a NASA engineer to the founder of one of the biggest protein brands in the world? Believe it or not, his career path has been a perfect culmination of experiences—one that has led him to his current position as the CEO of Vital Proteins, a brand that was recently acquired by Nestlé and is expected to generate a quarter of a billion dollars in revenue this year. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Even when Seidensticker was working at NASA as an aerospace engineer, he was constantly running his entrepreneurial brain and thinking up new projects to undertake. After several years of working in a diverse array of industries—from cellular phone systems to high-speed internet—he decided to strike out on his own and started his own data center company and ecommerce platform. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Despite appearing to be completely unrelated businesses, these two companies served as the launching pad that allowed Seidensticker to start Vital Proteins in 2013. His ingestible collagen product took the protein market by the storm and saw over 300% YOY growth in its early days.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">In this podcast episode, Seidensticker discusses what led to the incredible growth of Vital Proteins—from having first-mover advantage to finding negotiating power when dealing with retailers. He also shares his best recommendations when it comes to influencer marketing, moving fast, and so much more. </span></p> <p> </p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">If there’s any other type of content you’d like to see that would be valuable to you during this time, please don’t hesitate to reach out at support@foundr.com. </span></p> <h2><span style="font-weight: 400;">Key Takeaways</span></h2> <ul> <li style="font-weight: 400;"><span style="font-weight: 4