Kat Cole’s Post

Kat Cole, President and COO, took the stage at WSJ Global Food Forum to share her views on the industry, raising the bar on quality and standards, and why she chose to focus on health and wellness after a decade at Focus Brands. “We make one green powder, and we’ve been working on perfecting it for the past 14 years. Everything we do affects the one thing we do. So we have to hold ourselves to the highest standard.”  - Kat Cole Thank you The Wall Street Journal and Kim Last for inviting us to Chicago for the conversation. Watch the full video https://lnkd.in/gYzf76aa

Asking these two questions can help positively reframe your thoughts when uncertainty creeps in about a big, exciting decision: 💡Could this be as magical as it seems? 📈How will I feel if I don’t give it the effort? Kat Cole uses these questions to guide both personal and professional decisions, like becoming President of AG1. She believes that since a lot of decisions are risky, there’s no point in dwelling on what could go wrong; our minds easily fixate on negatives. Instead, focus on what can be gained, learned, and transformed by your next big choice. Her approach doesn’t ignore potential downsides but balances our natural tendency to focus on negatives with a proactive, positive perspective. Listen for more on how she’s finding success using both practicality and optimism: https://lnkd.in/ddbj8BZM

Do first things first, and second things not at all. Chris Ashenden didn't try to do 100 things with Athletic Greens. Instead, he focused on perfecting one product, AG1. It took 52 iterations and years of effort to get it to its current state. Most large supplement companies follow a distribution model, constantly churning out new products to keep up with trends and fill shelf space. Chris saw this as flawed and customer-unfriendly. Instead, he built Athletic Greens around AG1, focusing on delivering the best possible outcome for the customer. In this episode of The Consumer VC, Chris talks all about how R&D and sourcing has turned Athletic Greens into the behemoth it is today. Watch now: https://lnkd.in/dqGPEDGP?

I have three kids: two sons and one daughter. I like to joke though that sometimes it feels like I have a fourth kid—Maven Clinic, the business I founded ten years ago. My most important job is being a mom, but the juggle is real when you’re a CEO and founder. So often we pit business and motherhood against each other when really they have a lot in common. Both require constant learning, decision making, and an all-star team. As Bobbie's own CEO and co-founder Laura Modi put it when she joined me in conversation this week, they’re also both jobs you can’t really quit. We both agree, while being a mom is hard and leading a company is hard, they’re so much more than hard. They’re also incredibly fun! And immensely rewarding! Too often the questions we ask mothers seem to ignore that. I feel so lucky to be a mom building a business for moms, with the help of other moms along the way. Happy early Mother’s Day! Here’s a peek at our discussion.

Entrepreneurship is not a linear path and it’s hardly ever smooth.  As the founder of AG1, I’m often asked for advice about building a business. I want to start sharing some of the lessons I’ve learned through 20 years of highs and lows, and I hope to learn from others here too. The first lesson is about radical ownership, a concept that’s core to our mission and values at AG1. Ownership is a foundational concept to me because it is the only way to truly learn from our mistakes and move forward on a better path. I’ve talked a lot about the failures and struggles early in my career, but it wasn’t always easy to own the mistakes behind them. Sometimes it was embarrassing or uncomfortable, or I didn’t want to admit what I didn’t know. For example, it took me years to radically own the failure of my early New Zealand real estate business. In short, I ran a “rent-to-buy” property program, but the financial terms were murky and confusing for some customers. The program allowed many people to get homes, but unfortunately some customers lost money or got evicted. The business was later found in violation of a NZ law related to advertising, as a result I was fined for breaches of the NZ Fair Trading Act. I was terribly naive, and I should have done better on many fronts – more on that below. Radical ownership means accepting the hard truth of my mistakes, taking responsibility for the outcome, and changing my actions to align with my values. Through that experience, I also learned the importance of passion and patience, finding the best partners and team, and holding the highest standard of quality and integrity in anything I do. It shaped how I built AG1, which has benefited millions of people over time. I learned to always focus on making the right long-term decisions and never to take shortcuts, even in hard times, because building a beautiful business that creates a positive impact for customers takes time. I share more about this experience on my Substack:

Here's why AG1's new ad CRUSHED it 💪🏻 → It told a gripping personal story → It made you reflect on your future → It tapped into heart-warming emotion Whilst most adverts talk about the product itself, AG1 showed viewers how its product benefits the lifestyle of their customers by telling a hyper-relatable story of growth and development. Hands down, one of my favourite adverts for a while 💁🏼♀️ Marketers take note → Facts tell, stories sell 🚀 #marketing #video #socialmedia

Confidence vs humble confidence – which will get you further? AG1 President Kat Cole believes it’s the *humble confidence* that will lead you toward the most success. “‘I don’t know that I know everything, but I know we can figure it out,’” she said. “It’s that humble confidence, not a bravado or machismo.” LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky agrees. “That’s the key…not being afraid to ask for help but also being confident enough in yourself to take risks and to innovate.” Listen to Kat's episode of #ThePath podcast: https://lnkd.in/gus4r-q7 Check out our annual Guide to Kickstarting Your Career (https://lnkd.in/2024careerstartersguide) revealing the fastest growing jobs, industries and cities for entry-level professionals. Share your advice for developing confidence using #GetStarted 👇

Most supplements rely on third-party ingredient research to validate their claims. We took it one step further (three, actually). We’re proud to share the results of three new research studies on AG1. Our in-house Research team worked with independent scientists and labs to conduct a pilot set of studies on the complete AG1 formula. Our commitment to research is ongoing, and we’ll use these results and learnings to power the development of future studies. The methodology, full results, and links to peer-reviewed publications are available on drinkag1.com.