CPG Connect // Vol. 6: Dorm Room Dreams, Ghee Queens & Soju Scenes
From college dorm rooms to national Target shelves, from ancient ingredients reimagined to Korean-inspired RTDs getting mainstream love, it’s clear the next generation of CPG isn’t just breaking in, it’s breaking through.
This week, we’re spotlighting brand builders reshaping tradition, investors doubling down on consumer, and events coast to coast that are heating up as fast as the shelf wars.
Scroll on for your weekly dose of founders, funding, flavor, and IRL fun.
Let’s dive in.
Events:
RSVP - LA Founder's Social Club 8/7 (LA)
RSVP - Venture Dinner Club 8/8 (LA)
RSVP - Founders Running Club 8/9 (AUS)
RSVP - Alo Mindful Miles 8/10 (LA)
RSVP - Smarterships Boston Happy Hour 8/11 (BOS)
RSVP - Sports x Commerce: Back to NYC 8/13 (NYC)
RSVP - MUD\WTR presents: Day Camp 8/16 (LA)
RSVP - BeaUtahful Invitational | CPG 8/20 (SLC)
RSVP - Coffee Meetup @ Newtopia Now 8/22 (Denver)
RSVP - Laurel’s Coffee 1st Birthday 9/5 (NYC)
RSVP - NYC Commerce Club September Mixer 9/9 (NYC)
RSVP - End-Of-Summer Party for Utah CPG Owners and Operators 9/13 (SLC)
RSVP - Pre-Grow Coffee + DJ 9/26 (NYC)
Also… (Drumroll Please)
AI Is Getting Real And Fast
We’re calling it: this is the Summer of AI. It’s no longer just buzzwords, AI is already reshaping how brands operate, market, and grow.
On August 28, we’re hosting a rapid-fire session with operators and tech leaders from TripleWhale, Novel, Rep AI, Tommy John, Lunar Solar Group, and more to break down how AI is actually being used in commerce today.
No fluff. Just real-world examples of AI driving revenue, saving time, and leveling up day-to-day operations.
👉 Join us live | August 28, 4–4:45 PM ET
RSVP now to stay ahead of the curve.
Full-Funnel BFCM Playbook: Digital + Direct Mail = Q4 Growth
Lunar Solar Group teamed up with PostPilot and Nerd Marketing to drop a full-funnel BFCM playbook that bridges digital and physical channels.
Here’s what’s inside:
From the LSG team:
→ Meta best practices (hooks, framing, formats)
→ Our go-to BFCM 2025 tech stack
→ Creative testing tips and styling recs
→ Wins we’re seeing on TikTok + Google
→ IRL ad examples from 2024 that crushed
From PostPilot:
→ Direct mail as an acquisition channel
→ Retargeting with email, SMS, and mail
→ Retention tactics for lapsed buyers (and unsubscribers)
→ How to plug direct mail into your ESP flows
Pulled together by Nerd Marketing. It’s dense. It’s tactical. It’s worth bookmarking.
Founder Clips w/ Katie & Aditi (SayGhee)
What inspired you to start this brand, and what were the first steps you took to bring it to life?
We were college roommates who moved to New York City to pursue careers in finance. Like a lot of people living fast-paced lives, we found ourselves constantly eating out, always on the go, and eventually feeling the impact on our health—especially our digestion. For Aditi, it got to the point where even one restaurant meal would leave her feeling bloated and uncomfortable.
That’s when she remembered something from her upbringing: ghee. It was a staple in her Indian household, used in everything from cooking to finishing meals. Once she started using it again, and we both made the switch in our daily cooking, we saw a real difference—not just in how we felt, but in how much better our food tasted.
We started talking about it with friends and realized even the most wellness-conscious people either weren’t using ghee or didn’t really know what it was. That’s when the lightbulb went off. We couldn’t find a brand on shelf that felt clean, modern, and easy to understand—so we created one. We soft-launched with friends and family, made the product ourselves in a commercial kitchen, and built SayGhee step by step from there.
What sets your product apart in a crowded market?
Honestly, the market for ghee isn’t crowded—it’s underdeveloped. In most stores, it’s not even an aisle, it’s a shelf. And what’s there often feels outdated or confusing.
SayGhee is different because we’re not just selling a product—we’re reintroducing an ancient ingredient to a modern audience in a way that feels fresh, approachable, and beautiful. We keep the traditional process and high-quality ingredients at the center, but we wrap it in modern branding, flavors, and education. Ghee is packed with gut health benefits, it’s lactose-free, it’s great for high-heat cooking—and yet most people have no idea. We want to change that and make ghee a pantry staple, just like butter or olive oil.
What’s been the biggest challenge so far, and how did you overcome it?
There have been a lot of challenges, but the biggest one early on was time. We were both working full-time jobs in finance, so everything was slower than we wanted. You’re trying to squeeze in product development, branding, customer support, social content, pop-ups—on nights and weekends. It’s not sustainable.
That changed when Aditi left her job to focus full-time on SayGhee. That freed up both time and mental energy, and we started moving much faster. Another challenge was trying to do everything ourselves. We were very scrappy in the beginning, doing our own packaging, photography, web design, even manufacturing. Now we’re learning where to bring in support so we can focus on growth and brand-building. It’s been a real lesson in when to stay lean and when to invest.
How are you approaching growth in these early stages—what channels or strategies are most important to you?
Education and community are at the center of everything we’re doing. At pop-ups, the first question we ask is “Do you know what ghee is?” And most people say, “Sort of?” So we see every interaction—online or in-person—as an opportunity to explain what ghee is and how to use it.
Right now, we’re direct-to-consumer through our website and in a handful of independent stores around New York. We just completed our first production run, so now we’re focused on scaling through wholesale platforms like Faire and Bubble. We’re targeting independent retailers where we can really connect with our audience before eventually approaching larger chains.
We’re also testing digital strategies—UGC, paid campaigns, gifting, and brand collaborations. It’s all about finding what resonates and then doubling down. But the foundation will always be education.
One year from now, what does success look like for you and the brand?
Success means ghee is on your weekly grocery list. It’s something you reach for just as naturally as olive oil or butter. And when you do, you’re choosing SayGhee.
That means we need to be on shelf where people shop, especially in independent stores where our brand can really shine. But it’s also about building a community around the product—sharing recipes, celebrating tradition, making cooking feel more joyful and intentional. We don’t just want SayGhee to be a great product. We want it to feel like a brand that’s part of your lifestyle.
Watch the full conversation here:
Weekly News Roundup:
Prelude Growth Raises $600M for Fund III
Consumer-focused growth equity firm Prelude Growth Partners just closed Fund III at $600M, hitting its hard cap in under three months.
With this latest raise, Prelude now has $1.3B in AUM and plans to invest $15M–$75M in high-growth consumer brands.
Since launching in 2017, Prelude has backed winners like Sol de Janeiro, Bachan’s, Banza, Summer Fridays, PHLUR, and Westman Atelier. The firm continues to focus on beauty, wellness, food, and household categories that align with modern consumer behavior.
Fund III signals bigger checks, bigger ambitions, and a strong bet on the next wave of breakout consumer brands.
Doughlicious Raises $5M to Fuel U.S. Expansion
Frozen dessert brand Doughlicious just closed a $5M funding round led by Rich Products Ventures (RPV) and The Angel Group, with participation from existing investors.
Founded in 2017 by Kathryn Bricken, Doughlicious is known for its Cookie Dough & Gelato Bites — now sold in 10,000+ stores across the U.S., UK, Europe, and the Middle East.
The brand made its U.S. debut in late 2023 and can already be found in Whole Foods, Target, Wegmans, and Gopuff.
This marks the latest move from The Angel Group, whose portfolio includes Siete, Poppi, Goodles, Bubble Skincare, and more.
Big momentum for a brand blending indulgence and better-for-you snacking.
YOJU Raises $1.4M to Fuel Soju-Based RTD Growth
YOJU, the cult-favorite yogurt-soju RTD cocktail, just closed a $1.4M round led by Top Shelf Ventures and No Sleep Beverage.
Founded in 2020 and based in Los Angeles, YOJU is now on shelves at BevMo, 7-Eleven, and Trader Joe’s across key U.S. markets.
With soju sales booming in North America — Lotte Chilsung’s U.S. sales jumped 700% after partnering with Gallo — YOJU is riding the wave with a globally inspired product and nostalgic flavor profile.
This marks No Sleep Beverage’s first RTD investment, signaling a broader move into cultural, premium beverage formats.
Creamy, crushable, and ready to scale.
ChiChi Launches in 158 Target Stores Across SoCal
ChiChi, the chickpea-based hot cereal brand, just hit 158 Target stores across Southern California — marking its biggest retail launch to date.
Founded in 2020 by college friends Chiara Munzi and Izzy Gorton, ChiChi started with hand-packed bags in a dorm room and is now lining the shelves at $5.99 per bag (5 servings) in the oatmeal aisle.
The mission? Make healthy, joyful, protein-packed breakfasts accessible to everyone. Each bag is packed with 10g+ of protein, low sugar, and zero grains.
This SoCal rollout brings ChiChi one step closer to becoming a national breakfast staple — with Target.com shipping nationwide for those outside the region.
A dorm-room idea turned Target product. Let’s go.
Shoutouts:
Tech:
PostPilot x Lunar
Brand:
sevebotanicals.com - Modern elixirs for a happy gut.
That’s it for this week.
Whether you're launching your first SKU, scaling into Whole Foods, or trying to stay ahead of what’s breaking through, CPG Connect is here to help you keep pace.
See you next week✌️
— Zach
P.S. If this was helpful, feel free to pass it along to a friend, teammate, or founder in your orbit. And hit reply anytime, I read every note.