Will Nitze has built IQBAR into a leading brain and body nutrition brand by making unconventional operational decisions. From bringing his supply chain in-house during COVID to keeping his team lean through strategic agency partnerships, Will has scaled distribution across major retailers while maintaining profitability. His wife serves as CMO, his agencies work on performance-based contracts with short exit clauses, and his product positioning sits at the intersection of five trends rather than dominating one.
🔧 Manufacturing Partner Transitions - Framework for scaling production capacity without disrupting supply to growing retail commitments
📊 Strategic Positioning Pivots - Process for knowing when to stick to vision versus adapting to market feedback
🤝 Supply Chain Internalization - Decision framework for when to bring manufacturing operations in-house versus staying with co-packers
⚙️ Multi-Trend Portfolio Strategy - Approach to positioning at the intersection of multiple trends rather than single-niche focus
📈 Unconventional Team Building - Methods for scaling through agency partnerships and family when traditional hiring isn't your strength
🎯 Adjacent Category Expansion - Framework for evaluating when product line extensions strengthen versus dilute the brand
Whether you're navigating manufacturing transitions, considering supply chain changes, or building teams unconventionally, Will's frameworks offer practical approaches to operational challenges that break from standard CPG playbooks.
Perfect for: CPG founders, supply chain innovators, lean operators, non-traditional team builders
Guest: Will Nitze - Founder & CEO, IQBAR
Host: Samantha Rose - Managing Partner, Hologram Capital & Founder, Endless Commerce
This episode was recorded live and is part of our series on operational frameworks that drive real business results. Subscribe so you never miss an episode.
What is Commerce is Chaos?
Look, we've all heard the polished founder story—the perfect pitch, the seamless scale, the overnight success. But what about the time you oversold by 100K units? Or when your 'seamless' integration crashed right before Black Friday?
Host Samantha Rose has been there—from founding her first consumer business, GIR, managing fulfillment and industrial design for your favorite brands, or acquiring distressed brands on her own.
Welcome to Commerce is Chaos, the podcast for founders who knows that building a real business is beautifully, chaotically messy.