How Honey, Hustle, and Hard Lessons Built a $10M Brand | Jack Espy

Finding Peak w/ Ryan Hanley

Spartan philosophy, built in the black-ops lab of business: https://www.findingpeak.com

Finding Peak podcast: https://linktr.ee/ryan_hanley


Join our community of fearless leaders in search of unreasonable outcomes...

When COVID shut the world down, Jack Espy lost his job, mixed a cocktail, and accidentally discovered the idea that would change his life.

Connect with Jack Espy

Fast-forward five years and he’s running Spirited Hive and Strive Soda — two honey-sweetened beverage brands rewriting the “better-for-you” playbook.

In this unfiltered conversation, Jack and Ryan Hanley dig into:

  • How to turn early failure into a profitable foundation
  • Why naïveté can be a founder’s secret weapon
  • The brutal truth about distribution, marketing, and shelf space
  • Building slow, selling smart, and setting up for acquisition
  • What “better-for-you” really means (and what it doesn’t)

This one’s part business therapy, part entrepreneurial bloodsport.

Grab a drink, settle in, and take notes.

Because growth done right still takes sweat, humility, and a little honey.

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Recommended Tools for Growth

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Episodes You Might Enjoy:



This show is part of the Unplugged Studios Network — the infrastructure layer for serious creators. 👉 Learn more at https://unpluggedstudios.fm.
More description

Spartan philosophy, built in the black-ops lab of business: https://www.findingpeak.com

Finding Peak podcast: https://linktr.ee/ryan_hanley


Join our community of fearless leaders in search of unreasonable outcomes...

When COVID shut the world down, Jack Espy lost his job, mixed a cocktail, and accidentally discovered the idea that would change his life.

Connect with Jack Espy

Fast-forward five years and he’s running Spirited Hive and Strive Soda — two honey-sweetened beverage brands rewriting the “better-for-you” playbook.

In this unfiltered conversation, Jack and Ryan Hanley dig into:

  • How to turn early failure into a profitable foundation
  • Why naïveté can be a founder’s secret weapon
  • The brutal truth about distribution, marketing, and shelf space
  • Building slow, selling smart, and setting up for acquisition
  • What “better-for-you” really means (and what it doesn’t)

This one’s part business therapy, part entrepreneurial bloodsport.

Grab a drink, settle in, and take notes.

Because growth done right still takes sweat, humility, and a little honey.

--

Recommended Tools for Growth

--

Episodes You Might Enjoy:



This show is part of the Unplugged Studios Network — the infrastructure layer for serious creators. 👉 Learn more at https://unpluggedstudios.fm.
2025-11-12 64 min
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