Branding, Storytelling & Hypergrowth on Social Media with Jake Karls

Jake Karls is the Co-Founder and Rainmaker for Mid-Day Squares, the first functional chocolate bar on the market. The company was founded in 2018 by Jake, his sister Lez and brother-in-law Nick. Their goal is to build a modern chocolate company with functional ingredients.

The company has since exploded. Their peanut butter bar became the number 1 selling SKU in its category at Target. They received over 20 million organic views on social media in three months, and Jake was recently on the cover of Forbes 30 Under 30 digital edition.

Jake and I talk about a whole host of topics, social media marketing, brand building and the hardships of entrepreneurship. Jake gives lectures at universities on branding & story-telling and has some incredible insights on the importance of fostering connections with your audience. Jake has infectious energy and I really enjoyed this podcast. Even if you are not an entrepreneur or founder, I think there is a great deal of wisdom and insights in this episode that you’ll enjoy.

Discussion Topics:

(1:45) Living life with cameras always on.

(3:49) Having a supportive partner as an entrepreneur.

(10:28) Mid-Day Squares growth stats.

(15:34) Founders as storytellers.

(22:34) Using humor and emotion to go viral.

(30:07) Entrepreneurship demystified. 

(36:00) Amazon & wholesale strategies.

(39:39) Raising $17.5 million in growth capital.

(43:00) Rapid fire questions.