Aug 6, 2019
I met Lillian Hoodes from Trail Fork recently at the Outdoor Retailer Show and in this episode we talk about how she built Trail Fork, her focus on cooking real food, how REI became one of her first customers and more.
Show Notes
First Exposure to the Outdoors
My parents were just into it. I grew up in a big family and our family vacations, weekends, trips and things were always camping. My grandparents lived in Wyoming, so we would go up there and fish, hike, canoe and all this stuff. So it was just kind of part of who I was growing up.
Things we talked about
TrailFork Announces First Round of Fundraising with SeedInvest
The Omnivore's Dilemma by Michael Pollan
Pearl Street Mall
Neptune Mountaineering
REI
Episode Sponsor
Advice
If somebody just wants to get into the industry period, just reach out to people and start having conversations. I think the reason that we were able to get where we did as quickly as we did, was that I was, for lack of a better word, networking like crazy. Like just going and having conversations with people and getting in front of people. So whether you're interested in the marketing side or the finance side, reach out to people and ask if you can buy them coffee. More often than not, people are willing to kind of point you in the right direction.
In terms of being interested in starting a business, I would just say really do your homework. Research the industry that you're trying to get into, research the product that you're trying to launch. There's so many things that you don't know, you don't know. A certain amount of that is unavoidable, but the more information you can gather, the better.
Other Outdoor Activities
Mountain Biking
Backpacking
Favorite Books/Podcasts
Insight Timer
You are a Badass by Jen Sincero
A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki
Favorite Piece of Gear under $100
Headlamp
Connect with Lillian