In short
Episode topic: Scott Frohman, founder/CEO of Odyssey Functional Energy, explains how he built a “functional energy” drink brand (Odyssey) using functional mushrooms and sustained energy positioning, pivoting from coffee/tea and lower-caffeine SKUs, and scaling via retail distribution rather than early marketing.
Guest background
Scott Frohman is a former Wall Street executive who moved to Florida, got into health/fitness (Pilates, triathlons), and previously built and sold vape and CBD businesses. He sold a CBD company to Terrison (2018) and later launched Odyssey.
Key claims
Odyssey became “number one natural energy brand in America,” stocked in about 17,000 doors; it’s sold to companies like SpaceX and Citadel. He says Odyssey avoids the “crash” by using lion’s mane, cordyceps, and L-theanine with 85mg or 222mg caffeine, plus real fruit juice concentrate for taste. He claims growth came from repeat purchases and word-of-mouth, not early marketing/social media.
Notable examples
His earlier “PhoneGuard” anti-texting product failed despite celebrity buzz (Justin Bieber). Odyssey’s COVID-era pivot from mushroom coffee/tea to an immunity-focused white tea, then to the current energy drink; later TikTok creator payouts (reported ~50% commissions) to drive trial.
Written by AI. May contain mistakes. Listen to the episode to check what was said.
Chapters
Tap a time to open that second in VOFrom Wall Street to Energy Drinks
0:45 to 2:30
Scott discusses his transition from a high-pressure Wall Street job to creating energy drinks.
“Look, I spent a lot of years on Wall Street, and I was, you know, coffees, moved to Florida, got into...”
The Evolution of Product Development
2:30 to 5:00
Hear how Scott explored functional mushrooms and health products in his entrepreneurial journey.
“So, you know, that was what was going on as to how I got into these, you know, functional mushrooms in the first place.”
Chasing Trends or Spotting Opportunities?
5:00 to 7:00
Scott reflects on his ventures in vaping and CBD, and how he identifies market trends.
“You know, a lot of cool tinctures and, you know, some vape products.”
The Launch of Odyssey and Its Unique Vision
7:00 to 9:30
Scott shares insights on launching Odyssey and the unique approach to energy drinks.
“You know, it's also the right people you want to engage with on a regular basis.”
Education and Acceptance of Functional Mushrooms
9:30 to 12:20
The discussion focuses on how to educate consumers about functional mushrooms and their benefits.
“And I'm really excited to be part of it.”
Building a Brand with Authenticity
13:20 to 14:00
Scott concludes with thoughts on building a product that resonates and the importance of authenticity.
“But I want to build the greatest product.”
The Journey of Product Development
14:00 to 18:20
Learn about the evolution of Odyssey's product from initial concepts to market entry.
“A lot of people would require a tremendous amount of time to launch a product because they want it to be perfect.”
The Journey of Product Development
18:36 to 18:46
Learn about the evolution of Odyssey's product from initial concepts to market entry.
“That's code founders50off at factormeals.com.”
Pivoting to Energy Drinks
18:46 to 24:18
Understand the strategic decisions that led to the launch of the Odyssey Elixir.
“And I cleaned it up and I called it the Odyssey Elixir for Cognition and Energy, Dragon Fruit Lemonade.”
Balancing Life and Business
24:18 to 28:00
Explore the personal sacrifices and lessons learned while building Odyssey.
“So you get a longer sustainable energy without the crash from the jitters, but you're getting this focus and clarity.”
Show all 20 chapters
Journey to Market Success
28:00 to 29:10
Learn about the challenges and growth of Odyssey Functional Energy.
“And I had to get it to my product so that it was like, it hit right, tasted right.”
The Purpose Behind the Product
29:10 to 30:49
Discover the motivations driving the creation of Odyssey drinks.
“And that's why I'm excited about what I'm doing.”
Misconceptions in the Wellness Industry
30:49 to 32:50
Understand the complexities of wellness claims and listening to your body.
“So that and then and then it's the working out.”
Lessons from Past Failures
32:50 to 34:05
Scott shares his hard-learned lessons from a failed business venture.
“Because you've been at so many, you've done things before other people really caught on.”
Lessons from Past Failures
34:27 to 35:41
Scott shares his hard-learned lessons from a failed business venture.
“bioactive compounds found in a cocoa bean, clinically proven to support heart and brain health.”
Evolving Marketing Strategies
35:55 to 41:36
Explore how Odyssey is leveraging social media and influencers for growth.
“It was anti-texting when driving software.”
Evolving Marketing Strategies
41:41 to 42:01
Explore how Odyssey is leveraging social media and influencers for growth.
“We know when people try the product, they're going to like the product, they come back and get in the product again.”
Winning in the Energy Drink Market
42:01 to 43:33
Learn how Odyssey Functional Energy is gaining traction in the market and leveraging social media influencers.
“And look, we're winning in, you know, not only the micro market, we're winning in colleges too, winning a lot of places.”
Winning in the Energy Drink Market
43:36 to 44:30
Learn how Odyssey Functional Energy is gaining traction in the market and leveraging social media influencers.
“We used to run our entire sales process on spreadsheets.”
Building Brand Awareness through Influencers
44:38 to 48:09
Explore Odyssey's strategy for brand awareness and community engagement through social media and influencer marketing.
Transcript
Automatic transcript. May contain errors.0:00Scott Frohman:Justin Bieber became my spokesperson. Guess what?
0:04Alon Shapiro:I lost it. This is Scott Frohman. He started with a drink nobody understood. Today, Odyssey is the number one natural energy brand in America, stocked in 17 ,000 doors and fueling the offices of SpaceX and Citadel.
0:22Scott Frohman:I built this whole thing with no marketing, no social media, zero. This whole thing happened because I focused on building.
0:31Alon Shapiro:What did building Odyssey cost you?
0:33Scott Frohman:One thing you didn't cost me was my...
0:43Alon Shapiro:So, Scott, you were a burnt-out Wall Street guy. What did that world do to you?
0:49Scott Frohman:Look, I spent a lot of years on Wall Street, and I was, you know, coffees, moved to Florida, got into... Cuban coffees that I really like. And, you know, I was always kind of like wiring out. And then, you know, energy drinks, you know, came about. And I got really into, oh, okay, here's another thing to stimulate myself in the afternoon. Got a bunch of, you know, energy drinks and, you know, things like that. But it really, it moved me to kind of like say, okay, this existence that I have going on here, I didn't feel like it was going to get me to where and how I want to live long term. So I said, I think I had to make some changes and change it up a little bit.
1:25Alon Shapiro:From what I read, you wanted energy without the crash. You were testing with putting mushrooms in, but it tasted terrible.
1:34Scott Frohman:Yeah. So as the evolution kind of developed in my life, I started getting very entrepreneurial. I got to start to look at doing other things outside of Wall Street. And I got involved in products. You know, I got really into products. Like my background is I got into health and fitness and Pilates. And I got sciatica and, you know, and Alison, the Pilates helped me. And I started getting into doing triathlons. And so I got into using these kind of functional mushrooms, you know, kind of utilizing like lions made for focus and clarity and porticeps that were really good for endurance and go to max.
2:06Scott Frohman:And I started adding them to my coffee in the morning. And I said, wow, I really like how I was showing up. I was showing up. I had this clarity. I felt that I was, you know, where I was managing with people, my creativity. I didn't feel like I needed that extra cup of coffee for that extra caffeine as I went. I felt I had this longer lasting energy and I just felt this better existence. So, you know, that was what was going on as to how I got into these, you know, functional mushrooms in the first place.
2:36Alon Shapiro:So you went from vaping to CBD to now mushrooms. would you say that you're chasing trends or do you see things before everyone else
2:46Scott Frohman:you look the vaping i just looked at it like it was a better alternative than smoking cigarettes and then you know i was like i thought like i looked at it like and i'm not gonna go through the debate whether it is or it isn't okay but i really think that you know and i saw a trend of getting from you know because i was into vape early before there's even vape stores and i saw the trend of like getting into those little illiquid bottles because it was originally it There was rechargeables and electronic cigarettes and moved to these little bottles. And then the bottles turned into the premium bottles.
3:16Scott Frohman:And I got into that. I ended up owning vape stores. I went public with my deal. I had worldwide distribution selling vape premium e-liquid bottles and stuff like that. And that was really cool. And I built that and sold that. And what happened was when I sold that, I had a non-competes. I couldn't do anything with nicotine. But I liked the whole thing, the movement that was happening with cannabis. And I really liked the whole thing with CBD. because I looked at CBD. It was like, wow, this can really help people with anxiety and like, you know, inflammation and, you know, sleep and, you know, just better existence.
3:51Scott Frohman:And I, and I liked CBD without the THC because, you know, I thought that this would be good for a lot of people. So I got the CBD and built that relatively fast because I had all that distribution from vape, smoke and head shops. I was able to plug right into, you know, all that obscure place in the back of a shopping center would take CBD in early days before people really fully understood. I got involved in that early and I built a big business on the CBD. But yeah, I like getting involved in things that I see helping people and at times when I feel like the market is ready for those products.
4:26Alon Shapiro:I tried to do some stuff with CBD maybe 10 years ago, but the regulation changes and everything, it freaked me out and I got out of it. And maybe that was a big mistake. Like, what kept you into these?
4:40Scott Frohman:Yeah, CBD was clearly gray, you know what I mean? And especially when I got in, because I got into CBD in 2015, and I built that company really fast. And, but people liked the products, you know, we had the creams, you know, it helped people with, like, you know, like all kinds of, you know, it was fantastic. You know, a lot of cool tinctures and, you know, some vape products. Look, I think it was, I sold the company in 2018 to Terrison, which is a big cannabis MSO. They're like the biggest operators in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. I wasn't looking to sell the company. Actually, funnily enough, I was making good money with the business.
5:20Scott Frohman:It was a private company. And I said, well, this market is about to change. A lot of people, I'm going to get CBD. I'm going to get CBD. The regulations were about to change. And I said, wow. I said, I really want to be positioned. And so I wanted to, you know, actually raise money and have a war chest of money to, you know, manage throughout this. As it was, they wanted to buy the company. I sold the company. That was great. And then I spent the year of work through the integration. And now it's like, you know, January 2020. And I left the company and I now am sitting at home and I'm by myself with my wife.
5:53Scott Frohman:I got two kids. And actually, my one kid was born January 4th, 2020. So I had this moment that I was able to like just take a break because, you know, it was a lot. There's a lot of activity going from the V to the CBD and then the CBD to sell on the company and then the integration. There's a lot that goes on with that a little bit. You know what I mean? And I was glad to take a moment to take a breather.
6:18Alon Shapiro:So now that you've started Odyssey, what learnings did you have from the other two companies? It's going to enable you not only to have a successful company with Odyssey.
6:27Scott Frohman:It's a great question. So one of the things I think I've learned is really being more sensitive to what's working and what's not working and really being real with the consumer. At the end of the day, what does the consumer really want? Look, I had, you know, I come up with these products and then, you know, but like, which are the products that are really resonating with them? What's really the product that they, I always say, people say, what's the best workout? I say, you know what the best workout is? It's the workout you're willing to do. And well, guess what? You know, with the products, what's the best product?
7:01Scott Frohman:You know, it's also the right people you want to engage with on a regular basis. So I think that I've been very more sensitive to what's working, what's not, doubling down on what's working and things like that. And where I think this is different about exiting than the other companies, you know, like, look, my friends started the bait business and they asked me to come in and run it. You know what I mean? and I justified it as a better alternative to smoking cigarettes and stuff like that. But like the CBD, I like CBD a lot, but this was something that I really built that resonated and aligned with me.
7:36Scott Frohman:I built this from scratch. I came up with the name. I came up with the formulation. I came up with how I wanted it to exist. You know, I was using the mushrooms in my coffee and it was muddying up the coffee. So I didn't really love how I love the coffee. so that's why i was also thinking like i think i could do something to make you know a product that you know would be great but this is something i'm really excited about going distance with because i really think that this is like there's been no innovation in in energy beverages since the inception of the last 30 years from red ball monster rockstar now celsius i mean by and large, it's the same type of mosh pit of caffeine with taurine, you know, other, you know,
8:22Alon Shapiro:stimulants repackaged, you know, sweetened with super low, you know what I mean?
8:27Scott Frohman:Or sugar, like, you know, there really hasn't been in like, but like, look at us as consumers and look at us as people today. We're different people today than we were, you know, 5, 10, 15, 20 years ago, our needs and our desires of how we want to show up. We didn't talk about alignment 20 years ago, as much as what it is today, being centered. You know what I mean? Being present. You know what I mean? And I really think that it's very exciting when you think about energy. What is energy? You know what I mean? Is energy just about being up here? Or is it about, like, you know, focus and clarity?
9:04Scott Frohman:And, you know what I mean? Energy about, like, how you're existing. You know what I mean? How you're exercising, how you're showing the work and how you're thinking and how you're spiritually feeling. You know what I mean? You know, I think it's really interesting to think about what I love this project, not for just today or to an exit. I'm really about building this thing long term. I think that this is the, you know, the future of what, you know, what people are looking for longer term.
9:34Alon Shapiro:And I'm really excited to be part of it. So yeah, so functional mushrooms are definitely picking up. I'm starting to see them more and more. However, I imagine it required a lot of education in the beginning. How do you sell something that requires you to explain it when people don't understand it?
9:53Scott Frohman:It's a great question. So look, when you really look at this, I really think that the functional mushrooms have really developed in the last, let's say, 10, 20 years ago, in the last five years, especially. And why?
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11:10Scott Frohman:Because they work. Because when people try these high-poncy Lions meetings, they get the focus and clarity. They really work. And that's why this isn't about what's happened in the last decade or two. This is what's gone on for thousands of years. This started in thousands of years in New York. they knew they were recognized this okay long long long time ago and the reason this isn't happened because of some celebrity endorsement people that got behind functional mushrooms this has happened organically because one person tried it said well i really like this and said oh and then they shared it with somebody else i shared with somebody i shared with somebody else and now it's become what it's become so fortunately enough for me i didn't really have to if i had to go i have to go educate everybody on this i i don't think i would have done the project i i think that lion's mane and some of the functional mushrooms were already like in the limelight and i was able to kind of like jump on to say that i'm going to give you a product that's going to taste great that's going to help you to function great it's going to be more approachable we can talk more about that but i don't think that it was really about me having to come out to educate because if i had to educate i think the lift would have been you know way too hard And then I think what it really is about is putting out a product when people drink the product that they say, wow, I love the way this product makes me feel.
12:33Scott Frohman:And going into this, I didn't think about the cost to what it's going to cost me to make the most amazing product of all time. I said, I want the highest potency of wines. I want the highest potency of corset. I want the highest potency of althinony. I want to do this product. And I don't want to think about the cost. let me build the greatest product and then i'll back it out and say what do i have to sell it for is it gonna is a consumer willing to pay that price as it was i was able to build a product for the mushroom manufacturer teamed up with me they came in i got a lot of people that came in with me from ingredients then they were excited about the project and and i was able to get pricing in a ways and now we're doing big production so i was able to get the pricing good so i could really compete, you know, and not have to be so as it is, it worked out.
13:23Scott Frohman:But I want to build the greatest product. And then as it is, because it works so well, people come back and buy it again. I'll repeat customer basis wildly high. And then the best part is they're sharing with their friends. People are saying, hey, you got to try this problem. Like, wait, you try this product. And then people are trying to project, oh, my God, I can't believe how I feel. Like this product is like, I'm like running at a whole different level. Like I have an itch when I treat this product and how I'm operating. This is awesome. And I think, you know, that's what's going on to get us to where we are.
14:00Alon Shapiro:A lot of people would require a tremendous amount of time to launch a product because they want it to be perfect. The packaging, for example. And then what I find is that nothing ever happens, right? Like they took too much time. They spent too much money. i like to see when people similar to yourself when you launch it it's not perfect and as you go you change the name you slightly change the logos do you have the original can yeah so you know funny
14:29Scott Frohman:enough it's a great point what you're bringing up by the way and you know funny enough i think if i would have if i would have known more of what it took to do this i i don't know if i even would have started in the first place but i'm willing to try things you know what i mean i'm i look i did it with so many different things before i'll i think the other ones were a little less competitive i didn't realize what it took to compete in beverage you know this is one of the world you know cbd i had an edge you know the vape i got in early you know what i mean i'll find my ways you know what i mean a lot of hustle a lot of grind a lot of shows that i showed up for but look i'll actually show you okay it's really interesting so interesting enough and i don't really like usually take this out too much but i'm i'm glad to do it here so this was the original uh coffee drink you see it was odyssey mushroom elixir uh we called it the uh what do you call functional mushroom brew so i was talking about functional you know back 2021 here you know what i mean this product was like focus and energy at the lion's mane the cordyceps it was a french roast oat latte is what it was and this over here is sacred geometry and metatron cube and i called it the you know the mushroom elixir so i was all about functionality you know from from back from back when and then i launched this but what happened was when i launched this i said wow It came out so good.
16:02Scott Frohman:I thought to myself, you know what? This can be like a forward thinking energy drink. Because what happened was there was a delay in getting the production during COVID, getting the production done. So because of the delay, I was playing with some coffees. And during COVID, everything was about immunity. So I made a white tea with elderberry. And I put in like five different types of mushrooms, like turkey tail, shiitake, chaga. I went crazy. Okay. And I need this like, you know, white tea with the ultimate, you know, from an important immunity. And, you know, and then so now because of that, if that didn't happen, I don't know if I would have gotten to where I'm about to go with this.
16:45Scott Frohman:Because what happened is now I had the coffees and I had the tea. So I lost coffees and teas. And I went out to stores and I started going. And I remember I went out to California with Air One the first day I took this coffee drink. And I'm like, I like to get this product into your store. And they said, sure, you would like to get your product in the store, just like everybody else in this world. So good luck, you know, and I mean, in a good way, in a good way. The guys were awesome. And they were really sweet. I said, oh, let me see what you got. And they tried it. And they were like, this is really good.
17:16Scott Frohman:And they said, you know what? Let me tell you how you could look to maybe get into air one. And as it was, it worked out. But what happened was because the teas came out so clean. See, I thought I had to mask the mushrooms. The cheese came out so clean. I thought, wow, maybe I can make this until forward. And the way this drink hit, I think maybe I can make this until forward to get an energy drink.
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18:50Scott Frohman:this, which was the Odyssey Elixir. And I cleaned it up and I called it the Odyssey Elixir for Cognition and Energy, Dragon Fruit Lemonade. And I launched this. But the velocity on this product was through the roof. Way better than the coffees and the tea.
Read the full transcript
19:06Alon Shapiro:Well, the coffees were really good.
19:08Scott Frohman:And then I thought to myself, then I saw it got it going. So I started saying, okay, I'm playing right now in three different categories. coffee tea and energy drink now and and that's where it started so this started with you know 80 as it is this drink over here you know morphed into the odyssey you know we'll get back into this you know functional energy here and this is what the drink is today but um that was the impetus you know i thought to myself i think i can make this to a forward thinking energy drink and i I pivoted away. I got rid of the coffees and teas. I decided to double down on where I was getting the best velocity and the best result.
19:50Scott Frohman:And I was selling this in and stores were taking it in. I was getting into thousands of stores and all of a sudden the repeat business came and people were loving it. A lot of pioneer people were like, oh, I love the design. I like the whole sacred geometry. It resonated with people and it got me a launch, but it wasn't really getting me to where I wanted to go.
20:09Alon Shapiro:How are you finding the difference nowadays between going into stores and different types of stores? Like you said, there's Erwin to Walmart, Target to mom and pop, other ones versus selling online. And when I say online, it could be TikTok shop, social media live, or a website like Shopify.
20:30Scott Frohman:Look, I think a lot of companies, they start online, right or they start with a big community and they build up their community with the online and stuff like that interestingly enough i focused more on brick and mortar i focus more on distribution and i focus on getting into more stores i was always very comfortable and winning in this game just winning online doesn't mean you're going to win it on the shelf and beverage needs to be one on shelf. And I recognize that early days, I was a study of my portfolio, study of Celsius stories, bang energy, you know, following bloom a lot, you know what I mean?
21:14Scott Frohman:I'm just really a study of like who's winning and how they're winning. And you have to win, you know, on the shelf. So I guess
21:21Alon Shapiro:what happened was that, um, you know, I'm always looking at where founders can actually build something. So let me tell you about Whatnot. I got on the app and started out browsing luxury watches and somehow ended up in trading card unboxings. And before I knew it, I was watching live shows for new electronics. That's the thing about Whatnot. The live format pulls you in. Sellers are moving through inventory in real time. The chat is going and the deals are real. You almost never pay full price on Whatnot. But here's what got my attention as a business guy. Whatnot is the largest dedicated live shopping platform.
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22:40Scott Frohman:I realized that where I started, which was a lot of natural stores, granola, a lot of cool little stores in great areas and stuff like that throughout the United States of America. And those people, which I can't think enough, helped to get this product going. And those were thousands of stores and tens of thousands of consumers that were like, I love this product. Thank you for putting out a product. And then what happened was I started talking to some of the bigger groups. And I was categorized as functional. And they said, look, at that point, I actually had a no caffeine, but revive. I had the low caffeine, the 85.
23:18Scott Frohman:I had the higher caffeine, the 222. I didn't even have the high caffeine. And then we can talk about that next. But I realized that I was getting, you know, a lot of the bigger groups were like, it's kind of niche-y. And you got like, you know, a lot of different options here. So I got rid of the Revive and no caffeine. And I also launched the high caffeine because I found a lot of people were buying a drink that says 85 milligrams of caffeine with high-pulcy lion's mane and cordyceph and L-thenedine. But what I realized is, is that a lot of people were buying our drink as we got into more convenience stores, they were buying our drink with either a Celsius or a Bang Energy because they also wanted the caffeine.
23:59Scott Frohman:And this only had the 85 milligrams of caffeine. So most every energy drink is caffeine and tourmine and sweetened with superlose, basically spiky up, crashy down, hard to come back. With Odyssey and even the Odyssey 2-2-2, which is 222 milligrams of caffeine, and you put in the L-theninine, it rounds out the caffeine. So you get a longer sustainable energy without the crash from the jitters, but you're getting this focus and clarity. You basically get this overall better existence. Yet the drink tastes great because we use real fruit juice concentrate. Like this drink right here, pineapple mango, legitimately tastes like pineapple sweetened and rounded out with the mango.
24:42Scott Frohman:And that's why this drink is legitimately and our higher caffeine has become the lead racehorse. So while I started with 85s and I thought to myself, oh, I'm gonna give people a lower caffeine, but give them more on this functionality, I realized that those velocities have been good and that got me started. But then I listened to the consumer and said, I want also the higher caffeine too. And now the velocity on this is considerably higher than we have on the lower caffeine. so I did pivot along the way and that's kind of like how part of that you know some of that has
25:19Alon Shapiro:kind of come about so you said that you've lost you had lost your balance chasing this what did building odyssey cost you oh so one thing it didn't cost me was my family you know
25:32Scott Frohman:I got a beautiful wife I got two kids and I said winning you know winning is like is winning it all you know what I mean like I found ways to continue to look I'm not doing triathlons lately I'm not trained for that. I don't have the time to do it, but I run, I cycle, I Peloton, I build the same gym in the office that I have at home. I've got a little tone machine, you know, I just, I just make sure I stay in the game correctly. You know, like my health's got to be right. If I'm not right, nothing's right. My spirituality, I meditate, take care of myself, make sure I take care of my family. so I made sure that you know what I was going to win at this business and then see myself because fortunately enough I had a lot of you know other things I've done in my life so fortunately if I didn't have all those experiences going into this I think this would you know it's not it hasn't been easy but you know I think it would have been very different and I've also come in with an attitude.
26:30Scott Frohman:So what did it cost? You know, it cost, you know, I really love what I do. Yeah, I come in here every day, we got a team and we've had, you know, ups and downs all around, you know. But, you know, there's been a real investment into the deal, we have over$30 million invested in deal between my money and other people's money. You know, I have friends and other people I had investments in with me in the past and other deals. And when I came and got started, I put all my own money in, by the way. And I said, if it's going to work, then great. And if it's going to not work, then I'll take my own hickey.
27:12Scott Frohman:And I'm not wanting to bring other people's money into that. But then it started to really work. And we started getting all these sales. But there was a lot of pivots. We started with coffees and teas. We started with the 85 milligram of caffeine. but then that wasn't enough to really win bigger we started with the metatron cube sacred geometry but then that had to pivot to functional energy we went to figure out we need to hire caffeine i lost stores along the way i gained stores along the way and to pivot from functional to and those those costs all along the way and i had you know i and i and i just kept that and then then dialing in all the flavors.
27:53Scott Frohman:I had to keep dialing, getting the flavors right. Not easy competing with Superlose with the top, what that sweetness is. And I had to get it to my product so that it was like,
28:06Alon Shapiro:it hit right, tasted right.
28:08Scott Frohman:We always had the functionality. So I think there's been a lot, there's been trial and tribulation to get to where we are today. And there was a cost to that. And I continued on because I saw the velocity. And now our velocities are so strong, especially with the 222s and even the 85s have really found their place. So I think that – and then we pivoted out of functional and most classified and categorized as energy. And now we've been well-received. So now while we're in 10 ,000, 12 ,000 doors, 50 ,000 points of distribution and doing very well where we are in natural and now expanding into grocery.
28:51Scott Frohman:Now I really feel that, you know, we have the foundation of what should do this. And that brings on to the marketing, which we can talk about. And then that's really going to grow us. Like I see how Olipop and Poppy kind of started in natural and then built into grocery. And I believe that we have the likes to go to convenience and go the full distance. And that's why I'm excited about what I'm doing.
29:12Alon Shapiro:You can't beat a billion-dollar exit, right? That seems feasible.
29:16Scott Frohman:Look, I think the opportunity is a billion-plus dollars in sales. I think we can potentially, you know, I'll sell Celsius. I think that this can be the, I believe this is the evolution of that. I think that has headwinds because, you know, that is formulation and all formulation that stems back to the original energy drinks. And, you know, what we're bringing out is, you know, more of the forward thinking innovation of what what people are really looking for. Not so much about the ingredients, but about that. It's functional energy, that it gives you that that sustained energy. Don't give you the crash.
29:54Scott Frohman:It gives you this better existence that when you show up at work, we're crushing it in micro markets. We're one of the biggest selling product in micro markets. Some of the biggest companies, whether it's Uber and Citadel now and SpaceX and so many. And we're winning so big time there. Why? Because when people come to work, they want to have an edge. They want to compete. They want to have something that's going to help them to function really well in a good way. And they love the drink and the drink helps. And that's what we have purpose. You know, our purpose was that I like the way these ingredients work for me.
30:33Scott Frohman:I wanted to bring these ingredients out to other people. That was the idea that I felt like I could do good by bringing something that I felt could really help people. And that was the of this. So, you know, that's why I wake up every day and decide I don't slow down. Matter of fact, I just keep going better and better. So that and then and then it's the working out. You know, it's like, you know, I cycle, I get on my bike, I drink the drink. I'm like, I'm in the zone. You know, I'm playing tennis. I feel like I'm more in the game. And or maybe it's just about hanging with my kids and going about my day.
31:07Scott Frohman:Or maybe it's for a housewife that we're not housewife for. She works and she's got kids, husband, kids, all everybody. You know what I mean? For whatever you're doing throughout the day, or maybe even using it at night as an alternative to alcohol. You know, OK, a little bit of caffeine with the with the lines being in the cordyceps feels refreshing and good. and you feel elevated a bit and it's like it's nice instead of drinking alcohol. I'm not knocking anything. Look, I'm here. Odyssey is a spiritual journey. I look at it like this. It's your life. I'm not telling you how to live your life.
31:43Scott Frohman:I'm just helping to try and help support you and help to give you something that's going to help you to live your life even a tad bit better than anything else that can help you because no matter what you want to do.
31:55Alon Shapiro:What would you say is the biggest lie or misconception right now in the wellness industry?
32:01Scott Frohman:You know, I just think that everyone's just better for you. I don't ever say it. You know what I mean? Like, oh, is it better for you? Or, you know, is it better? I don't know. You know what I mean? Some are, some aren't. You know what I mean? I just, you know, I think that I think you got to listen to body. I think you got to like listen to what is your body need. and you know what I mean? But fruits, vegetables, proteins, you know what I mean? Like how this quantity, sizes, you know, frequency. I don't know. Like, I just think that, you know, everyone's just, oh, I'm better for you. I'm better for you.
32:37Scott Frohman:I think not everybody is better for you.
32:40Alon Shapiro:You know what I mean? And I, you know, I think that. Or customized to the individual versus saying everyone's going to get better if they do X, but maybe they're better if they do Y. Because you've been at so many, you've done things before other people really caught on. You're a visionary. Was there something that happened, though, in any of these three companies that you've been referencing that almost broke you and said, you know what? I was wrong. Look, there was a deal before this deal. Real talk, we used to run our entire sales process on spreadsheets. Every new hire made it messier. Deals slipped through because nobody knew who to follow up with or when.
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35:58Scott Frohman:It was called PhoneGuard. It was anti-texting when driving software. It started off as, and a lot of people back in the days of BlackBerrys and Androids were like, and there was a lot of kids that were texting and driving in the early days of BlackBerrys and Androids and iPhones. and you know this is like the earlier days and and it goes kids were going to jail people were going to jail manslaughter texting and driving people crashing terrible things going on and mothers against texting and driving and this is a big thing and i was like i'm going to put out this product that when the phone move faster than 10 miles an hour it's going to basically prevent you from getting text messages.
36:47Scott Frohman:It was going to send out a voter reply
36:49Alon Shapiro:saying that I'm currently driving. When I reach my destination, I'll pull you back.
36:53Scott Frohman:I said, oh, what a good day. This is such a good day. Wow, everyone's going to love this. It's a save lives. It's going to help people. Guess what? Nobody wanted it.
37:05Alon Shapiro:Nobody.
37:07Scott Frohman:Nobody. Guess what? You want to see? I'll show you something. Justin Bieber became my spokesperson. Real story. You can look at a phone guard. You can look up videos. Justin Bieber, phone guard. And Justin Bieber is like, look, I want to get behind something to help people. And who better than Justin Bieber back in those days in the teens to attract feet? Make it cool. Make it cool not to text and drive. Make it cool. We're on Morning America. We're on Today Show. Viral. Guess what? failed I can't get people to put it on their phone put it on the phone mothers I hear them on the phone
37:54Alon Shapiro:give me that phone no mom don't take my phone not putting it on your phone no good luck good luck trying to fucking make that work I was like I failed
38:07Scott Frohman:I lost okay I lost hard I didn't know how to quit I went way too far with that
38:13Alon Shapiro:They put way too much money into that.
38:16Scott Frohman:I didn't know how to quit. Everything I did in my entire life always worked. I'm Hercules. I'm Scott Roman. I can't make it work. Stop now. Best lesson I've ever learned. That's why when I said earlier about the SKUs, calm down. If something's not working so well, listen. If it's not coming off the shelves that easy, pay attention. If people aren't and the buyers aren't taking the product in, there's reason. They're not all wrong. These people are smart. When the buyers came to me and I tried to get into some of the biggest retailers now, we're in conversations with the biggest retailers. It doesn't make a difference who they are.
38:59Scott Frohman:Every one of the major retailers, we're in reviews, we're in communication, and it's a very different conversation today. It's not a mushroom. It's not an itchie. It's not a Metatron cube. It's functional energy. It's I'm going to give you more sustained energy. I'm not going to give you a correction. I'm going to give you a bonus and clarity. I'm going to give you a product that's going to taste great. People are going to come back and buy it again. I'm going to basically help bring new consumers that would not have maybe bought things in your store that are now coming to buy this product in your store.
39:31Scott Frohman:And I'm grateful to have the ability to get it there. And the retailers want product that people, the consumers want. it's a win-win for everyone so I listened to what the retailers were telling me and I did it so I just think that I've taken a lot of things that I've done in my life and I think that the mushrooms that I drink and the alliance main you know that I have on a regular basis has helped develop the creativity to have come up with this in the first place coming up with the name I worked or the sensitivity to say this isn't working we need to make some adjustments What do we need to adjust to make it so that it's more approachable on the shelf?
40:10Scott Frohman:Because we won this whole thing with no marketing or advertising. I didn't pay not one dollar to not one influencer up until recently, which we can talk about what I'm doing now. It's very different now. But I didn't do any marketing. I built this whole thing with no marketing, no social media, nothing, zero. This whole thing happened because I focused on building a great product. And when people tried the product, they came back and bought it again and shared it with their friends. It was more important to develop the right products. I don't think people care so much about the hype. That's about the market.
40:41Alon Shapiro:Because you always hear like marketing, great marketing, bad product beats great product, bad marketing. But you took a different approach. How are you leveraging content creators now?
40:54Scott Frohman:So now what we're doing is now is the time for us to create the awareness. Why? Because we know the product is right. We know that people come back. We know that 80 % of people try our product, come back and buy it again. We know the average consumer online is buying two cases every single month religiously. We know that the velocities, it's right. And I didn't want to go and market until I had it right. You know what I mean? And it actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise. So now what we're doing is we're doing deals on TikTok where we're paying out significant payouts. legitimately 50 % payouts to content creators on TikTok so that they can go.
41:36Scott Frohman:And we're giving them discount codes, 20 % discount codes for them to share because we know this is about trial. We know when people try the product, they're going to like the product, they come back and get in the product again.
41:49Alon Shapiro:We know where we're at right now.
41:52Scott Frohman:And it's worth it because we know that while we're going to take a little hickey on the first order at the beginning, we know that we're going to wind up having a customer that's going to come to us. And look, we're winning in, you know, not only the micro market, we're winning in colleges too, winning a lot of places. So we know that we have consumers that we feel, you know, we're the first ones out of the gate here. You know, we're really down the racetrack here. You know what I mean? No one really in a rear view mirror and no one in front of us, you know, with what we're doing. And we just want to just keep on with that lead now and extend that out.
42:26Scott Frohman:and there'll be others that will come and I think all highs will rise but that's what we're doing on TikTok and we have some of the greatest content creators on TikTok that we've sent out samples to and now on Instagram so we sent out a few hundred you know we could reach out to some really great people on Instagram and TikTok and said we want to share this product with you we sent out sample boxes beautiful they try the product oh my god this product it's amazing I love this product and we love this because it's not It's not we want to discover new discoverable products that we can bring to the market, not products that everybody knows about, you know, like, you know, that are typical of people familiar.
43:04Scott Frohman:We need to find things that are new so that we could be like, hey, look what I uncovered. And it's true. They're now coming to the market and say, look what we uncovered. Look what I found. I found this. OK, Odyssey, you know, functional. It coming to the market and saying, look, I found this product. OK, and it's true. They did. They found this product. Odyssey Functional Energy. Going to give you more focus, clarity, no craft, no jitters. And the product tastes absolutely fantastic.
43:33Alon Shapiro:And they're excited to bring out their... Real talk. We used to run our entire sales process on spreadsheets. Every new hire made it messier. Deals slipped through because nobody knew who to follow up with or when. That's where today's sponsor, Pipedrive, comes in. an intelligent AI-powered sales CRM loved by growing sales teams. Switching streamlined everything. Onboarding got easier. Everything stayed organized and we stopped missing sales. Their new meeting intelligence features seal it. Automatic briefs before every call, an AI note taker built right into the CRM and updates drafted for your approval.
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44:43Scott Frohman:to their network a product that they could stand behind because they're drinking the drink and they're saying wow not only is it function so great it tastes phenomenal i love this product and guess what the company is supporting me because hey i make a living i have family i have you know wants desires things i want to bring into my life and they're paying me out handsomely to go out at 50 percent or 35 percent that we're doing on instagram and stuff like that to share the product and now all of a sudden out of nowhere in hundreds and now soon to be thousands of content creators that are like and i'm hosting virtual meetings with them having sometimes 25 at a clip soon to be a whole lot more but i get and i'm explaining to them what the product is really all about what's our purpose what's the product why it's special and you know and different opportunities of how they could look to present it and they're grateful to have this you know meet the founder kind of thing here we go no pun intended yeah um and uh you do and you know um to be able to share share it so that's what we're doing we're doing that on instagram we're doing that on on tiktok now and i think that creating all that awareness and all that life around uh around the social and now podcast too i'm looking to do i have a placement by the way if there's a placement opportunity on the podcast i'm interested in that too but you know i think you'll be great i think the kind of people that listen to your podcast would love to know that no honestly you know it it attracts a very achiever type of person a person that really wants to you know really achieve and really get ahead and it's really taking you know look i'm not saying not have a great you could be achiever and achieve having a good time too i could show by the way okay you know what i mean the chief having a good time jumping out of a plane doing like so we're all about that and um i just think it's um that's how we're doing it with with social media so now what we're doing is we're paying a high payout you know and we're getting a lot of people in they're getting the product they're trying it up i'm running the offer i'm running i'm getting off they're saying i love the fact that i got something i could stand behind more than practically i've ever done before because i i absolutely love the product and then the feedback they're getting from their audience is fantastic.
47:00Scott Frohman:They're like, oh my God, thank you for sharing this. And it's just, it's all good. So now, you're going to see a lot more about us right now. We're not being like this great restaurant that nobody knows about. We're here to let everybody know that what's going on with this right now. So it's really fun. I'm really looking forward to this part of it.
47:20Alon Shapiro:I'm glad you brought the part because I think you had no ego when you needed to pivot. it. You know, the company was failing previously. You got out of that. People would have probably stayed and drained every single dime that they had. Instead, you got out and you went to the next thing. You knew when to cut your ties. You know when to put the gas pedal. And it seems like you're in an incredible upward trend right now. You got a lot going on. But founder and CEO of Odyssey. I love the packaging. The website's great. The branding. I can tell that you are super passionate about this. And I think just your love for it is coming through just here.
48:00Scott Frohman:It's my absolute pleasure. You know, I really, I love seeing people be well. And thank you very much for having me on your show. I greatly appreciate it.
From the publisher
Scott begins by reflecting on his years working on Wall Street, where long hours, coffee, and traditional energy drinks became part of his daily routine. Eventually, the constant stimulation left him questioning whether that lifestyle was sustainable, leading him to search for a healthier way to maintain focus and energy. His discovery of functional mushrooms became the catalyst for what would eventually become Odyssey Functional Energy.
The conversation traces Scott's entrepreneurial evolution—from building successful businesses in vaping and CBD to launching Odyssey during the pandemic. Along the way, he explains why listening to customers is more important than protecting your original idea, how multiple pivots transformed Odyssey into a leading functional energy brand, and why he believes entrepreneurs should obsess over building products people genuinely love before spending heavily on marketing.
Scott also shares one of his biggest business failures, explains how he learned when to pivot instead of forcing an idea to succeed, and outlines his vision for the future of the energy beverage industry.
Key Discussion Points
- Why years on Wall Street pushed Scott to search for healthier, longer-lasting energy and ultimately inspired Odyssey Functional Energy.
- How Scott successfully built, scaled, and exited businesses in vaping and CBD before entering the functional beverage market.
- The importance of listening to customers, pivoting quickly, and refining products instead of becoming emotionally attached to the original vision.
- Why Odyssey abandoned coffee and tea to focus entirely on functional energy drinks after customer demand made the opportunity clear.
- The lessons Scott learned from launching products that failed—and why knowing when to stop can be just as important as knowing when to persist.
- How Odyssey built strong retail momentum through product quality and customer referrals before investing in influencer marketing and creator partnerships.
Takeaways
Build the product before building the hype. Scott intentionally delayed major marketing efforts until he knew customers genuinely loved the product and repeatedly came back to buy it.
Customer feedback should drive your business—not your ego. Several of Odyssey's biggest successes came after Scott changed packaging, product positioning, flavors, caffeine levels, and branding based on retailer and consumer feedback.
Not every good idea becomes a good business. Scott openly discusses PhoneGuard, a texting-and-driving prevention app backed by Justin Bieber that ultimately failed, teaching him when to recognize that an idea isn't gaining traction.
Entrepreneurship requires constant adaptation. Odyssey began as mushroom coffee before evolving into teas and eventually becoming a functional energy drink company focused on a much larger market opportunity.
Winning starts with solving a real problem. Rather than creating another highly caffeinated beverage, Scott focused on sustained energy, improved focus, and eliminating the crash that many consumers experience from traditional energy drinks.
Long-term businesses are built through purpose. Scott believes founders perform at their best when they genuinely believe their products improve people's lives, making purpose the foundation of sustainable growth.
Closing Thoughts
Scott Frohman's entrepreneurial journey demonstrates that successful founders rarely follow a straight path. From Wall Street burnout to multiple exits, failed ventures, and continuous reinvention, he shows that building an enduring company often means letting customers shape the product, embracing pivots, and staying focused on creating genuine value. His story is a reminder that breakthrough businesses aren't built by chasing trends—they're built by solving real problems better than anyone else.
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