Invest Like the Best with Patrick O'Shaughnessy

Nick Saltarelli - One Foot in Front of the Other - [Founder’s Field Guide, EP. 54]

22 snips

Dec 23, 2021

In this conversation, Nick Saltarelli, co-founder of Mid-Day Squares, discusses his journey in revolutionizing the chocolate industry with his functional chocolate bars. He sets ambitious targets and critiques the CPG landscape, sharing personal insights on resilience after losing his father. Nick emphasizes balancing long-term vision with daily efforts, mentorship experiences, and lessons from Chinese manufacturing. His compelling narrative reveals a commitment to authenticity and community engagement as keys to building a successful brand.

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ANECDOTE

Formative Experiences

Nick Saltarelli learned from Lino Saputo Sr.'s relentless focus and long-term vision in building a cheese empire.
His father's early passing taught him the importance of presence and pursuing one's own path.

ADVICE

Long-Term Vision

Focus on long-term vision and optimize for the distant future, not just immediate results.
This reduces pressure and helps make decisions that give you a competitive edge.

ANECDOTE

Mentorship and Dealmaking

Rory Olson mentored Nick Saltarelli, teaching him dealmaking by identifying undervalued assets in large companies.
Olson built successful businesses like Paysafe by acquiring and transforming these assets.

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My guest today is Nick Saltarelli, co-founder of the functional chocolate bar business, Mid-Day Squares. Nick started the company with his wife and brother-in-law a few years ago to build on a simple idea: if the big chocolate bar brands were to start today, what would they look like?

In our conversation, we discuss the importance of Mid-Day Squares’ $100 million revenue target, what’s wrong with the CPG industry today, and how to keep a long-term mindset while making the most of every day. Please enjoy this unique conversation with Nick Saltarelli.

For the full show notes, transcript, and links to mentioned content, check out the episode page here.

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This episode is brought to you by Pilot. Pilot handles your startup’s finance, accounting, and tax prep needs, so you can focus on what matters most—building your business. Join over 1,000 startups that rely on Pilot to help them scale. Founder’s Field Guide listeners get 20% off their first six months. Get in touch with Pilot at https://pilot.com/founders.

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Founder's Field Guide is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Founder's Field Guide, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.

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Show Notes

[00:02:01] - [First question] - What Mid-Day Squares is and how he started the business

[00:04:48] - Why they’re so publicly open about their company’s goals

[00:09:05] - Major lessons he learned from his father’s early passing and being around very successful entrepreneurs at a young age

[00:16:51] - What long term thinking unlocks for him in short term progress

[00:21:05] - Becoming unexpectedly close and learning from Rory Olson

[00:25:44] - What Rory taught him about deal-making

[00:28:35] - Lessons from Rory about raising capital

[00:33:25] - Opportunities in a seemingly oversaturated market like chocolate

[00:42:46] - An example of doing something contrarian that worked out

[00:47:11] - Their unique approach to marketing Mid-Day Squares

[00:57:33] - Lessons learned about building a manufacturing operation after years in China

[01:02:35] - What we can expect from Mid-Day Squares in the near future

[01:06:59] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him

[01:08:05] - Mid-Day Squares Uncensored Podcast