26: Fail Fast? No, Start Slow! Secrets from Building (and Exiting) the World’s Biggest Wine Brand with Michael Houlihan and Bonnie Harvey

BiggerPockets Business Podcast

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4+ y ago 1:05:41

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How would you run your business differently if you started with the end in mind?

Today’s show is all about forming your exit strategy up front… and there’s no one more qualified to talk about that than the co-founders of Barefoot Wine.

Bonnie Harvey and Michael Houlihan weren’t even “wine people” when they went into business. Yet they found a way to outsell everyone else and eventually had giant companies competing to buy THEM. (They happily sold to Gallo in 2005.)

In this episode, you’ll learn the strategies that drove their explosive growth and the way in which you can apply them—no matter your experience level.

From the simple question that launched their business, to the pitfalls of “falling in love with your product,” to why every entrepreneur should meet business brokers for lunch once a month, this show is packed with practical, hard-won wisdom you can immediately implement.

Download this one, subscribe to the BiggerPockets Business Podcast, and share this episode with just one person who you think you would get value out of it!

In This Episode We Cover:

Barefoot’s (crazy!) origin story
The one-sentence piece of advice that guided their launch
Identifying a hidden opportunity in a competitive market
How to design an iconic logo
Why your market is more crucial than your product
Avoiding the unnecessary expenses that kill most businesses
How “worthy cause marketing” transformed their customers into advocates
How to take other brands' followers
The importance of ensuring your product display is correct
How to think about what retailers want
Preparing to sell a business
Using narrative storytelling to teach entrepreneurship
And SO much more!

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