403 | Best Wholesale Pitching Practices with Two Shopkeepers, Victoria Venturi & Katie Wilson
Release Date: 07/24/2025
424 | The Reality of Juggling Multiple Business Models with Stephanie Clarke, Dahlia Press
Proof to Product
This week on the podcast, we have my friend and alum Stephanie Clarke of and . Stephanie has been on the show a few times, sharing how she started her business and different pivots along the way (, , and ). But today, we are discussing where she's at now, including the complexities of running two sister businesses. She has her greeting card and stationery line called Dahlia Press and a bespoke custom invitation studio called Chloe Clarke Paper. We talk about the importance of building relationships in wholesale and custom work and the realities of juggling multiple business...
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We're on winter break!
Proof to Product
The Proof to Product podcast team and I are practicing what we preach and the podcast is taking a winter break! We will be back with a new podcast episode on Tuesday, January 6, and we have some incredible things lined up for you! While we're gone, be sure to dip back into the archives. We have over 420+ incredible episodes to help you strengthen your business. Have a great two weeks and I will see you on January 6th!
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423 | Indie Retail Update: Trends, Challenges & How Buyers Are Adapting with Jen Palacio, Tiny Turns Paperie
Proof to Product
Today's episode is a look at what is going on with independent retail shops right now. I sat down with my friend Jen from . She's one of our speakers and a longtime advocate for small businesses. We talk honestly about some of the hardships that shop owners have been facing during 2025: everything from operational curveballs to tariffs and other things that have impacted the way they do business. We did get into some specifics about unpredictable buying patterns, last-minute shopping, the rise of treat yourself, and community-driven products. We also talked about some of the less...
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422 | How Athletic Brewing Doubled Subscriptions — And How You Can Apply It with Katie Hunt
Proof to Product
Today, I'm sharing a case study and an analysis that I originally shared with our . The reason I'm doing this is, one of the most valuable things that we can do as a product-based business owner is look outside of our industry for inspiration, ideas, and new ways of thinking about our own business. When we study how other industries structure their revenue models, how they build community or how they create demand for their products, we really start to see new and fresh opportunities that we can adapt in our own way for our own business. In this episode, we're looking at and...
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421 | End-of-Year Financial Planning for Product Business Owners with Mary Beth Storjohann, Allora Wealth
Proof to Product
On today’s episode, we are digging into the financial side of running a creative product business and I've invited someone that I deeply trust with both my personal and business finances. It's Mary Beth Storjohann from . Mary Beth and I have worked together since 2016 and she has guided my husband and I through everything from financial planning for the family to long-term business strategy. She's one of the few financial planners and advisors who really understands how intertwined your life and your business become when you are a small business owner. Her approach to “whole...
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420 | Communicating Your Holiday Shipping Deadlines with Katie Hunt
Proof to Product
I know you are deep in preparation for Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the Q4 holiday sales season. So I want to make this a real quick episode, but I want to make it tactical and actionable for you. I want to talk about setting your holiday shipping deadline and where you should be updating your website to reflect the shipping deadlines. This is something we're talking about in depth in our LABS program. If you’re looking for further support in your business, check out our Proof to Product LABS coaching program. This is a coaching program specifically built for product-based business...
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419 | How To Create Your Own Gift Guide and Boost Holiday Sales with Katie Hunt
Proof to Product
One of the things we've been talking about in our LABS program is Q4 sales strategies because we are heading into the holiday season which as you know, is one of the busiest times of year for product-based business owners. Today, I want to talk about one really powerful marketing strategy that often gets overlooked, but it's a good way to help drive sales for Q4. That strategy is being your own gift guide. I think there's a misconception for smaller product brands that big media or working with influencers on their product roundups is the only way to get more eyes on your...
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418 | Expanding into Tabletop Products with Alyson O'Connor, Rust Belt Love
Proof to Product
Friends, you know that I am all about simplifying and systematizing your business, but I'm also about taking risks and experimenting within your business. When we run these experiments, sometimes we have to adjust our thinking and our normal processes to make it happen. That's what we're talking about today: taking risks, experimenting, and releasing a new product category during an off-cycle season. Today's interview is with Alyson O'Connor of . Frankly, it's your permission slip to lean into the things that you're excited about, even when it doesn't feel like the timing is...
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417 | 8 Ways to Prepare for the Holiday Sales Season Now with Katie Hunt
Proof to Product
Today, we're talking about getting your website ready for the biggest sales season of the year Q4. I know this time of year can feel super hectic. Between prepping for holiday markets and promotions, fulfilling orders, and managing inventory, the last thing you want to do is lose sales because of a preventable website issue or overlooking something that you hadn't really been paying attention to. So today, I'm walking you through a quick checklist to make sure that your online store is buttoned up and ready to handle the traffic and the sales, and any last-minute shoppers that are headed your...
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416 | 2025 Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sales Strategies with Jessica Totillo Coster, eCommerce Badassery
Proof to Product
According to Experian, Black Friday 2025 spending in the US is predicted to reach over $12 billion in online sales alone, and global spending is forecasted to be between $80 and $82 billion. That's a lot of money. Despite consumer caution and economic pressures here in the United States, this represents an 8 to 10% increase over last year. 2024's Black Friday buying season totaled almost $11 billion. Why am I sharing these stats with you? Because Q4 is a critical sales season for product-based business owners and we want you to be prepared. Jessica Totillo Coster of is back...
info_outlineOne of the highlights of our Paper Camp program is the weekly coaching calls that we host by me and our guest experts. You not only get to ask questions about that week's curriculum and content from Paper Camp, but you also get to hear firsthand from industry experts.
These are wholesale experts: large-scale wholesale manufacturers, retail shop owners, sales experts, trade show exhibitors, all of the people that are deeply embedded in the wholesale world.
This week on the podcast, I wanted to share a snippet of one of our calls from Marketing Week. This is the week in Paper Camp that we traditionally talk with shopkeepers to find out how they like to be pitched, how much follow-up is too much, do they want to see samples before they buy, and so much more. This is your chance to ask all of your burning questions of our guest experts and to hear direct feedback.
This excerpt is a conversation with Victoria Venturi of Paper Epiphanies and Katie Wilson of Crush & Touch. These are two shopkeepers who are getting pitched all of the time from brands and vendors that are just like you.
Victoria and Katie are providing feedback on how they like to be pitched, including the best way for vendors to capture their attention, methods that they use most when placing orders, and red flags that they see in wholesale pitches.
They talk about whether they want to receive samples and about follow-up and how much follow-up is too much.
This is just a small portion of the incredible value that our Paper Camp students receive during their time in our program.
I am incredibly grateful for people like Victoria and Katie and our other speakers that come back to share their knowledge and preferences with us.
These calls are my favorite part of Paper Camp. Speaking of Paper Camp, we will be opening enrollment for the next round very soon. This is a program that we only run live twice a year. It is not a course you do on your own. We are there to hold your hand and help you through it, answering questions for your specific brand and circumstances.
I wanted to let you know that we have some new, exciting surprises to share with you during this launch round, including a free event that you won't want to miss.
I'm not quite ready to spill all the tea yet, but everyone who is on our Paper Camp waitlist will be the first to hear about this live event and the new incentives that we're offering.
You can view full show notes and more at http://prooftoproduct.com/403
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