In this episode of The Future of Consumer Marketing, host Brett Stapper interviews Terri Rockovich, Co-founder and CEO of Jinx. After scaling Casper’s marketing budget from $30k to $7M monthly as their first marketing hire, Terri applied those hard-won lessons to building Jinx—a premium dog food brand positioned for mass market accessibility. Jinx has successfully navigated the challenging transition from D2C to retail, launching in 1,000 Walmart stores and expanding to Target, Amazon, and specialty retailers. Through their “specialty for the masses” positioning, they’re making premium pet nutrition mainstream while building a community of millennial pet parents who treat their dogs like family.

Topics Discussed:

• Scaling paid acquisition budgets efficiently without burning cash on learning

• Transitioning from D2C-first to retail-dominant business model

• Launching and scaling with major retailers like Walmart and Target

• Building “specialty for the masses” brand positioning

• Consumer-led product innovation in saturated CPG categories

• Managing small, high-output marketing teams in competitive spaces

• Balancing founder involvement in marketing without micromanaging

Lessons For Consumer Marketers:

Set Clear KPIs Before Scaling Ad Spend to Avoid Expensive Learning

Terri’s biggest takeaway from scaling Casper’s budget 230x was being more thoughtful about objectives and KPIs upfront. Rather than spending their way to growth and learning through expensive mistakes, she advocates for establishing clear performance frameworks before scaling acquisition spend. This prevents the costly trial-and-error approach that many D2C brands fall into when flush with venture capital.

Use D2C as Product Development Laboratory Before Retail Scale

Jinx spent two years in D2C mode not to build a sustainable direct business, but to optimize their product through consumer feedback before entering retail. This approach allowed them to test palatability, packaging, and positioning with real customers while building case studies for retail buyers. The key insight: D2C economics don’t work for heavy, bulky products, but the channel provides invaluable product-market fit data.

Choose Anchor Retail Partners Based on Strategic Alignment, Not Just Size

When selecting Walmart as their primary retail partner, Jinx looked beyond just sales volume to find retailers willing to “lean in” and help grow the category rather than just competing for shelf space. Walmart’s shift toward younger, more affluent shoppers during the pandemic aligned perfectly with Jinx’s millennial pet parent target, creating true partnership rather than just distribution.

Start Retail Rollouts With Focused Geographic Strategy, Not Mass Distribution

Rather than launching broadly and risking failure through law of averages, Jinx started with 1,000 carefully selected Walmart stores with their core SKUs. This approach provided enough scale to create impact while allowing for proper testing and optimization. The strategy balances making a meaningful splash with maintaining manageable risk levels.

Maintain Small, High-Output Teams Through Maniacal Focus

Jinx’s entire marketing and creative team is just seven people, yet they manage everything from retail marketing to consumer insights to product innovation. Their secret is extreme focus on what works rather than spreading resources thin across multiple experiments. This approach requires hiring versatile talent willing to operate “over capacity” but results in higher efficiency and clearer accountability.

Position Premium Products for Mass Market Through Distribution Strategy

Jinx’s “specialty for the masses” positioning is reinforced by their ability to sell the same clean-label products in both Whole Foods and Walmart. This distribution breadth validates their premium quality while maintaining accessible pricing, making them attractive to mainstream consumers who want to “feed better” without breaking their budget.

Build Innovation Strategy Around Consumer Problems, Not Trend-Chasing

Terri’s product development filter is simple: if her own dogs won’t eat something during their hunger strikes when she travels, it won’t succeed in market. This consumer-first approach to innovation prevents the trap of chasing trends or adding SKUs just for more shelf facings, ensuring every product serves a real purpose.

Transform Business Model Transitions Into Team Evolution Opportunities

When Jinx shifted from 90% D2C to 90% retail, rather than just hiring new people, they invested in evolving their existing team’s skill sets while strategically adding retail-specific expertise. This approach maintained company culture while building new capabilities, though it required accepting that “not everything would be done right” during the transition period.