Jake Kouns has built Dead Meat Society into a mission-driven grilling community after founding and scaling Risk Based Security, a cybersecurity company acquired by Flashpoint in 2022. Transitioning from B2B SaaS to consumer products, he's launched a grilling tools brand with a social purpose - fighting the loneliness epidemic by bringing people together around flame, family, and community. Dead Meat Society combines DTC commerce, local chapters, charitable giving, and community engagement to build something bigger than just grilling gear.
🔧 Tech-to-CPG Transition Framework - Approach to translating B2B operational principles to consumer brand operations
📊 Mission-Product Balance Strategy - Process for balancing SKU development with community building investments
🤝 Custom Manufacturing Navigation - Framework for finding co-manufacturers for unique branded products as a first-time CPG founder
⚙️ Multi-Channel Community Operations - Systems for managing DTC, local chapters, content, and community engagement simultaneously
📈 Purpose-Driven Commerce Model - Method for operationalizing social mission alongside profitability in early-stage scaling
🎯 Distributed Community Governance - Strategy for maintaining brand consistency and authenticity across local chapters
Whether you're pivoting from another industry into consumer products or building mission-driven brands that prioritize community, Jake's frameworks will help you operationalize purpose, manage complex multi-channel models, and scale community without losing authenticity.
Perfect for: Tech founders entering CPG, mission-driven brand builders, community-first entrepreneurs, lifestyle brand operators
Guest: Jake Kouns - Founder & Chief Grilling Officer, Dead Meat Society
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.