How Two Former Athletes Turned Into Leading Wellness Entrepreneurs with Kevin Moran: An EOFire Classic from 2021
Feb 9, 2025
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Kevin Moran, a former professional athlete and co-founder of Beam, shares his remarkable journey from sports to wellness entrepreneurship. He emphasizes the power of consumer feedback in launching products and discusses the importance of building a trustworthy brand in a skeptical market. Moran highlights how funding can change business dynamics, sharing insights on balancing growth with stress when external investors are involved. He also details the innovative use of CBD to improve sleep, showcasing its growing significance in wellness.
Kevin Moran and Matt Lombardi's transition from athletes to entrepreneurs emphasized resilience and perseverance in building their wellness brand, Beam.
The success of Beam relied on early consumer feedback and strategic fundraising to address skepticism in a competitive wellness market.
Deep dives
The Journey from Sports to Entrepreneurship
The transition from being an athlete to an entrepreneur shaped Kevin Moran's approach to building the wellness brand Beam. After facing multiple severe injuries that ended his baseball career, Kevin realized that the challenges he encountered provided him with valuable lessons in resilience and perseverance. These experiences instilled a mindset that thriving in competitive spaces requires relentless effort and a willingness to push through adversities. This perspective helped him understand that achieving outsized results often comes at the cost of balance, leading to a focused commitment in his entrepreneurial journey.
Overcoming Initial Hurdles to Launch Beam
Starting Beam came with a unique set of challenges, particularly because Kevin and co-founder Matt Lombardi ventured into a highly skeptical and competitive market. Despite the apprehensions stemming from marriage commitments and a stable job, they were driven by a strong vision to create a trustworthy wellness brand. They emphasized the importance of getting early consumer feedback and adapting to the market needs, advocating that practical testing is crucial for product validation. This approach echoed the incremental improvements seen in endurance sports like Ironman competitions, where each small victory builds towards greater achievements.
Demystifying CBD and Its Benefits
Beam's foundation is largely built on the use of nano-CBD products aimed at enhancing overall wellness, with a specific focus on aligning with consumers' needs and concerns. The creators recognized that many people harbored misunderstandings regarding CBD, questioning its effects and legality. By leveraging their personal experiences and conducting thorough research, they designed products that not only contend with common misconceptions but also incorporate other functional ingredients to enhance their effects. Their approach positions CBD as a lifestyle supplement, aimed at fostering a balanced state in consumers while demystifying its use in mainstream wellness.
The Significance of Capital and Athlete Relationships
Raising capital was essential for Beam's expansion, with Kevin and Matt strategically utilizing their athletic networks to secure funding and support. They initially raised over $5 million in Series A funding through connections with well-known athletes who believed in the brand's mission and products. This proactive approach to fundraising was underscored by their ability to present a compelling brand story that resonated with their athletic backgrounds and expertise. Their understanding of relational and functional marketing became a substantial asset, allowing them to leverage their experiences to gain trust in a skeptical market while ensuring informed growth.
From the archive: This episode was originally recorded and published in 2021. Our interviews on Entrepreneurs On Fire are meant to be evergreen, and we do our best to confirm that all offers and URL's in these archive episodes are still relevant.
Former professional athletes turned entrepreneurs Kevin Moran and Matt Lombardi started the wellness company Beam offering products that harness the benefits of natural, non-toxic, nano CBD and other high-quality ingredients.
Top 3 Value Bombs
1. There’s nothing better than consumer feedback and getting the product to market. You have to test it and see what people think.
2. In a high skepticism, low trust space, you have to have the revenue equation and all the metrics that show a healthy business, but also build a beautiful brand.
3. When you bring in funding, it changes the game in terms of people who are involved in the business. There’s a different level of stress that’s associated with a business that has other people’s money involved.
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