How he validated Kettle and Fire with just $50 (Now a $100M Company)
Digest
This podcast episode features Justin Mayer, founder of Kettle & Fire, discussing his startup journey and how aspiring entrepreneurs can validate their ideas before significant investment. He details his initial market research using Google Trends and online communities to assess bone broth's popularity, focusing on a smaller, profitable niche rather than immediate massive scale. His minimal viable product (MVP) strategy involved a simple landing page and inexpensive Bing ads, which surprisingly generated orders despite a rudimentary checkout process, validating market demand. The conversation then shifts to the future, exploring how AI tools like ChatGPT can revolutionize startup creation, from improved landing pages and sentiment analysis to faster prototyping and product redesign. Mayer highlights opportunities in both CPG and software, advising entrepreneurs to focus on areas of personal passion and expertise. He shares promising trends (like addressing health crises) and essential AI tools, emphasizing AI's transformative power in startup scaling. The podcast concludes with a fun experiment using ChatGPT to redesign Kettle & Fire's product line, showcasing AI's potential in product development.
Outlines
Validating Startup Ideas & Kettle & Fire's Journey
This section introduces the concept of validating a startup idea before building it, using Justin Mayer's Kettle & Fire journey as a case study. It covers initial market research, MVP testing, and the importance of focusing on a profitable niche.
MVP Testing and Early Market Validation
Justin explains his low-cost MVP approach using a basic landing page and inexpensive ads, demonstrating the effectiveness of early testing and validating market willingness to pay.
AI's Role in Modern Startup Development and Future Trends
This section explores the potential of AI tools like ChatGPT in improving various aspects of startup development, including landing page creation, sentiment analysis, and product design. It also discusses promising future trends and opportunities in both CPG and software startups.
Keywords
Bone Broth
A nutritious broth made by simmering animal bones, popular in paleo and CrossFit communities.
Market Validation
Testing product/service demand before significant investment, assessing market size and customer willingness to pay.
Minimal Viable Product (MVP)
A basic product version to attract early adopters and validate a product idea before full development.
Google Trends
A Google tool analyzing search term popularity over time, useful for gauging market interest.
ChatGPT
An OpenAI large language model chatbot for generating text, translating languages, and answering questions.
CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods)
Products sold directly to consumers through retail channels (e.g., food, beverages).
AI-powered Startup Tools
Software applications using AI to streamline startup development (market research, design, marketing).
Startup Strategy
Planning and execution for launching and growing a new business.
Entrepreneurship
The process of designing, launching and running a new business.
Market Research
The systematic gathering and analysis of information about a specific market.
Q&A
How can aspiring entrepreneurs validate their startup ideas without building a full product?
Conduct thorough market research (Google Trends, social media) and create an MVP to test demand and pricing.
What are some key lessons from Justin Mayer's Kettle & Fire launch?
Focus on passion, validate market demand/pricing before heavy investment, and embrace new technologies like AI.
How can AI tools impact CPG product development?
AI can reduce the cost and time for design, branding, and marketing, generating high-quality content and refining product concepts.
What are some current trends offering significant startup opportunities?
Areas addressing major societal problems (e.g., health crises) where you have deep expertise offer significant opportunities.
Show Notes
Join me as I chat with Justin Mares, Founder of Kettle and Fire, as he explains his methodical approach to validating Kettle and Fire before fully launching it in 2014-2015. He created a basic landing page with a PayPal checkout to test if people would pay $29.99 for bone broth, achieving a 30% conversion rate despite having no actual product. The conversation highlights how modern AI tools have dramatically lowered barriers to entry for entrepreneurs testing new business ideas
Timestamps:
• 00:00 - Intro
• 01:05 - The Scale of Kettle and Fire
• 01:20 - The Initial Idea and Inspiration
• 02:16 - Validating Market Demand
• 04:03 - Addressing Skepticism on Market Research
• 06:00 - Testing Pricing and Demand
• 08:48 - Bing Ads and Early Revenue
• 12:22 - Leveraging AI for Business Today
• 13:42 - Finding Passion-Driven Problems
• 15:28 - Identifying Trends and Tools
• 20:15 - ChatGPT 4o for Initial Product Design
Key Points
• Justin shares how he validated and launched Kettle and Fire, now a nine-figure bone broth business
• He used a minimal landing page, Fiverr logo, and Bing ads to test market demand before creating the product
• The validation process focused on identifying if enough people wanted the product and if they would pay enough
1) The "Day Zero" validation strategy that worked:
Justin wanted bone broth for his own health but couldn't find it online. Before creating anything, he asked two critical questions:
• How many people actually want this?
• Will they pay enough to make it a viable business?
Smart validation = less risk.
2) Finding your TRUE market size:
Justin didn't rely on gut feeling. He went where his potential customers hung out:
• Paleo forums
• CrossFit communities
• Reddit threads
• Mark's Daily Apple
He found FANATIC engagement around bone broth recipes, sourcing, and benefits
3) The Google Trends hack
Justin checked macro trends to confirm his micro observations.
He wasn't looking to build a 9-figure business at 24 - just wanted to make $10K/month with his brother.
Simple math: A few thousand customers spending a few hundred dollars a year = viable business.
4) The $15 MVP that ACTUALLY validated demand:
• $9.99 domain ([bonebroths.com](http://bonebroths.com/))
• $5 logo from Fiverr
• Basic landing page on Unbounce
No product. No fancy design. Just a simple page highlighting benefits that his target audience cared about:
- Healing leaky gut
- Convenience
- Organic ingredients
5) The GENIUS pricing strategy:
Justin priced at $29.99 for 16oz - 6X MORE than grocery store broth!
His thinking: "If people will pay this much for a product they've never tasted from a sketchy landing page, they REALLY want it."
High price = strong signal of demand.
6) The checkout flow was HILARIOUSLY janky:
"Order Now" button → Justin's personal PayPal
That's it. That was the entire checkout.
And guess what? PEOPLE STILL BOUGHT IT!
After spending just $100 on Bing ads (yes, Bing!), he made nearly $500 in revenue.
7) The honest follow-up that built trust:
After validating demand, Justin emailed every customer:
"We don't have the product yet. I can either refund you in full or give you 50% off when we ship in a few weeks."
Most chose the discount, giving him runway to actually create the product.
8) From validation to execution:
It took 8 months to figure out production and scaling.
But because he KNEW people wanted it and would pay for it, he had the confidence to push through the hard parts.
9) How would he do it TODAY with AI tools?
• Better landing pages using tools like Bolt.new
• Sentiment analysis across Reddit/Twitter
• AI-generated product designs (as shown in the podcast)
10) The bigger lesson for aspiring founders:
Focus on problems YOU care deeply about.
The best ideas come from the frontier where you're already spending your time.
11) AI is LEVELING the playing field:
One person with strong conviction + AI tools can now build products that previously required entire teams.
12) Want to find YOUR startup idea?
Justin's advice:
• Find a problem that lights you up
• Circle that problem until you find interesting solutions
• Validate with real customers willing to pay
• Use AI to accelerate everything
LCA helps Fortune 500s and fast-growing startups build their future - from Warner Music to Fortnite to Dropbox. We turn 'what if' into reality with AI, apps, and next-gen products https://latecheckout.agency/
BoringAds — ads agency that will build you profitable ad campaigns http://boringads.com/
BoringMarketing — SEO agency and tools to get your organic customers http://boringmarketing.com/
Startup Empire - a membership for builders who want to build cash-flowing businesses https://www.startupempire.co
FIND ME ON SOCIAL
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X/Twitter: https://x.com/jwmares
His Blog: https://justinmares.com/
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