Brian Bethke has done this before. He built and exited a music industry brand — Supro and Pigtronics — before pivoting into the beverage space with Bear Maple Farms, a clean soda brand now in nearly 1,000 retail stores and backed by a $2M seed round. But success on paper hasn't made the journey any easier.
In this conversation, Brian shares the unfiltered story behind Bear Maple Farms: the BevNet pitch contest he lost despite months of preparation, two complete brand repositioning pivots, the data-driven decision to walk away from Whole Foods and build a grassroots retail story first, and the tension between investor expectations and a founder's instinct to extend runway and build sustainably.
As a second-time founder, Brian also gets candid about what he wishes he'd understood earlier — and why getting financial help years sooner would have saved him five years on his first business.
Key Topics:
Two brand pivots: from sparkling ginseng elixir to clean soda — and how customer feedback drove the final positioning
Losing the BevNet pitch contest and rebuilding from scratch
Why chasing Whole Foods early can be a trap — and the independent retail strategy that got Bear Maple to 1,000 stores
The real cost of trade spend at large retail chains
Seed round strategy: raise as little as needed, extend runway, and don't get on the VC treadmill before you're ready
What a fractional CFO actually does — from a founder who knows the difference between building with and without one
Guest Bio: Brian Bethke is the founder of Bear Maple Farms, a clean soda brand featuring ginseng for focus and clarity. A second-time founder, Brian previously built and exited Supro and Pigtronics — a music industry brand sold in 2020. Bear Maple Farms launched during the pandemic after Brian relocated to the Catskill
Mountains, where tapping maple trees with his daughter sparked the idea. The brand has since grown to nearly 1,000 retail stores across the Northeast and raised a $2 million seed round.
LinkedIn:
Company Website: https://www.bearmapledrinks.com
@drinkbearmaple
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– Nate and the Profits on Purpose podcast team
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Welcome to the Profits on Purpose podcast, where we explore the journeys of purpose-led founders and the financial strategies that help them survive and thrive. Host Nate Littlewood sits down with eCommerce and CPG founders to unpack the real-life tension between a brand's mission and the practical realities of generating profit.