#248: Mike Cessario, Founder and CEO of Liquid Death – Disrupt with discipline

Almost all truly innovative ideas are almost laughable at first. Because anything that's truly new and never been done before. Almost seems ridiculous. If a new idea seems like, oh, this makes perfect sense to most people.

It means there's probably already ten companies who have been working on this for five years already. They made a candle with Ozzy Osburne's DNA. They sold a coffin shape cooler. They produced a horror film, and believe it or not, They're a healthy beverage company. Welcome to How Leaders Lead. I'm David Novak, and every week I have conversations with the very best leaders in the world to help you become the best leader that you can be.

Today I'm talking with Mike Cesario. He's the founder and CEO of Liquid Death. It started out as an irreverent water company, and now it's a healthy beverage company. And he has built this business from scratch to$1.4 billion. And he's done it in an industry dominated by giants. Let me tell you, this is a brand you simply can't ignore. The packaging really breaks through the clutter and is unlike any you've ever seen, even though they're selling water. The liquid death approach may seem pretty wild, but as you'll see today, there's a whole lot of discipline behind the scenes. Mike is super thoughtful about everything from product rollouts to ad spin to team culture. And if you ask me, His thinking on all those fronts is so impressive to go along with his marketing acumen. If you want to see what it looks like to disrupt with discipline, this is the episode to watch.

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