Agency #99 - The "Leaky Bucket" Destroying Your Business | Jonathan Byrt
Nov 21, 2025
Jonathan Byrt, cofounder of Memobottle, shares his journey in revolutionizing reusable bottles. He highlights lessons learned from crowdfunding successes and the impact of scaling sustainably. Byrt discusses the challenges of B2B retention and the importance of strong retail partnerships. He emphasizes community-led development and why clarity in strategy is crucial for founders. Expect insights on creative marketing mistakes, co-brand partnerships, and the delicate balance between systems and creative freedom in a growing business.
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Kickstarter Launch That Changed Everything
- The Memo Bottle Kickstarter launched unexpectedly huge, selling ~14,000 units and $300k in sales overnight.
- Jonathan Byrt said the campaign sent them into a life of travel, retail placements and real customer conversations that shaped product direction.
Pandemic Crash And A Narrow Escape
- In a single week of 2020 lockdowns, 80% of Memo Bottle's retail revenue vanished and they nearly let the whole team go.
- JobKeeper arrived two weeks later and gave breathing room while they rebuilt marketing and pivoted to new channels.
The Leaky Bucket Problem
- Jonathan calls their pre-pandemic model a "leaky bucket": high acquisition but terrible retention in B2B retail.
- That realization pushed Memo Bottle to focus on e‑commerce and retention systems to capture created demand.