Shelf Help Podcast: She Quit Google to Sell Pork Sausages

On this episode, we're joined by Cassie Maschhoff, Co-Founder of Lottie's Meats - the sister-owned, chef-crafted premium pork sausage brand.

Cassie left a career in tech (including time at Google) to team up with her sister Chelsea, a CIA-trained chef, to reintroduce pork the way it should be.

We dive into what it takes to build a premium meat brand from scratch, from three years of recipe experimentation to working with eleven different co-packers. Cassie walks through USDA facility requirements, the "messy middle" of co-packer hunting, and how most co-manufacturers in meat still operate on handshake deals.

Cassie breaks down why food service has been a brand-building flywheel, how customers discovered Lottie's at Denver restaurants before finding them on shelf, and the pricing mistakes she made early on.

We also get into their retail expansion playbook, from flying to NorCal to drop off samples and locking in Berkeley Bowl as an anchor account, to convincing regional distributors to come on board.

We talk about why demos have been their most effective velocity tool for a premium-priced product, the unique dynamics of marketing in the meat department, and why building relationships with the people behind the meat counter matters more than most CPG tactics.

Listen to the full episode here!
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Episode Highlights:

🐷 Sixth-generation pork farm origins and the sister co-founder dynamic
🏭 Working with eleven co-packers to find the right fit
🧪 Why clean-label sausage is an art and a science (no preservatives, no shortcuts)
🎨 Building a brand identity that breaks from typical meat aisle packaging
🍕 Food service as a brand-building flywheel (bakeries, pizzerias, breweries)
💸 The pricing mistake in food service and how they fixed it
🛒 The retail expansion playbook (Denver to NorCal to SoCal to Midwest)
📈 Berkeley Bowl as the anchor account that opened NorCal
🎯 Why demos are their most effective velocity tool
🤝 Building relationships with the people behind the meat counter
👀 Brands to watch: One Trick Pony, Painterland Sisters, Huxley, C&Chilies