On used cars, soapless cleansers, and the things that actually matter. Real-time dispatches from building Sans Savon — and the lessons from everything that came before it.
Also on Substack →A practical guide for navigating today's post-corporate world — and why becoming an entrepreneur is the most reliable path to a meaningful career.
What the founder of Zara figured out — and why it's the most important lesson for surviving in the age of AI.
How a human algorithm created $175 billion of value — and why, in today's AI world, everyone needs to become an entrepreneur.
How the father of modern retailing convinced me to go into the hair business.
The dinner conversation that sent me from fish tanks to hair — and the three lessons I've spent thirty years applying to every business.
You don't have to be an innovator to be a great entrepreneur. But you do have to know which bet is right for you.
My worst business idea is also my favorite. In this post I explain why — and resurrect it with Claude in just 30 minutes.
On modeling, retention, and the one question my grandmother understood better than most investors.
The most important output of any business model isn't sales or profit. It's how much cash you'll burn before breakeven — and how long that will take.
On why professional investors and entrepreneurs are natural enemies — and why you should bootstrap for as long as you possibly can.
What I learned watching my own VC fund try to sabotage a friend's fundraise in the middle of the night.
The product science behind soapless cleansing — what soap actually does to your hair and skin, why the beauty industry hasn't told you, and what the latest innovations make possible.
What switching from shampoo taught me about the thing I'd resigned myself to losing.
On genetics, microbiomes, amphiphilic molecules, and why second-day hair is almost always better than day-one hair.
Anti-dandruff shampoos don't fix the problem. They are the problem.
We have 5,489 customer reviews about scalp health. What they say is something the makers of Head & Shoulders do not want you to read.
Why the "customized haircare" companies got it wrong — and what 25,000 reviews prove about getting it right.
Function of Beauty and Prose raised a hundred million dollars on the promise of customization. We had something that actually worked differently for every person who used it. Without any customization at all.
A real-time account of building Sans Savon from idea to business — the inspiration, the assumptions, the lucky breaks, and the frustrating setbacks of a life lived without a conventional safety net.
A real-time account of building Sans Savon from idea to business.
Thigh-high snow in a boreal forest, a private equity deal gone bad, and the moment I knew I would start one more business.
Why we decided to bet on ourselves instead of the stock market.
On communes in Vermont, the entrepreneurial drive for independence, a 71% sensitive skin statistic — and the pitch that convinced my wife to do it all over again.
A CEO job in Australia, forty failed prototypes, and the rule that held it all together.
What a lying board member in Sydney taught me about building a brand I could stand behind — and why the Body Bar took forty tries.
How an iconic lighthouse and the Charlevoix beluga became the inspiration for our brand and packaging.
When you get something right, you often find validation after the fact. Little did I know it would come via a pod of belugas.
On the exhilaration of launching, the particular terror of spending your own money — and what happens when the inspiration doesn't strike the second time.
A Forbes article that got 3 million views. A product page that tripled a business. And why, six months into Sans Savon, I found myself staring out a different window.