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Paul Jarrett is the Co-founder and CEO of Bulu, a company in the business of creating private-label subscription box businesses for some of the world’s biggest brands such as Disney, Clorox, GNC, and Discovery Channel. Paul and his Co-founder and wife, Stephanie, launched Bulu Box, Bulu’s flagship program in 2012 as the sixth subscription box to the market.

Bulu pioneered taking subscription boxes from concept to creation and now they ship millions of boxes to happy subscribers nationwide. They specialize in working with multibillion-dollar retail brands by offering innovative solutions to go to consumers and they also offer e-commerce brands turnkey services such as customer service and fulfillment. Paul quickly gained recognition as a trailblazer and has been featured in the Entrepreneur Magazine, Forbes, PBS, Inc., CBS News, and many other major media outlets.

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Here’s a glimpse of what you’ll learn:

  • [03:07] Paul Jarret’s personal endorsement of Rise25’s services
  • [06:17] The inception of Tricky Ship 
  • [12:45] How Bulu is leveling the playing field for smaller companies
  • [16:46] How Bulu’s logistical strategies contributed to the success of Long Table Pancakes
  • [21:31] The importance of flexibility and versatility in fulfillment options for entrepreneurs
  • [24:23] The dynamics of running a business with a spouse
  • [36:09] BIOptimizers’ partnership with Bulu and how it transformed their order fulfillment process

In this episode…

Have you ever wondered what it takes to navigate the complexities of e-commerce and logistics to turn a simple idea into a booming business? How does one go from packing boxes in a studio apartment to managing a 100,000-square foot warehouse while helping brands adapt and grow?

Paul Jarrett’s journey from running a subscription box service to leading a logistics powerhouse offers invaluable lessons in business transformation. His diverse background, spanning collegiate football, MMA, and roles at industry giants like Disney and GNC, adds a unique dimension to his story. The evolution of his company from a modest startup to a logistics leader exemplifies persistence, innovation, and strategic growth. Through Bulu Group, Paul and his team have mastered the art of providing customizable logistics solutions, enabling brands of all sizes to deliver their products to customers efficiently and affordably.

In this episode of Inspired Insider Podcast, Dr. Jeremy Weisz hosts Paul Jarrett, Co-founder and CEO of Bulu, to discuss the importance of relationships, both in terms of networking and in running a business with his wife, Stephanie Jarrett. He emphasizes the value of grit, adaptability, and the willingness to challenge industry norms to create win-win solutions for clients. This conversation is packed with insights on leveraging technology and strategic thinking to overcome logistical hurdles, streamline operations, and dramatically increase a brand’s reach and efficiency.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Special Mention(s):

Related episode(s):

Quotable moments:

  • “We are fighting for the entrepreneurs and the growth-minded people that put their blood, sweat, and tears into a product.”
  • “If you run an e-commerce business, it’s the non-sexy stuff, like logistics, that makes businesses run smoothly.” 
  • “Risk-taking is in our DNA; we do the things that others say can’t be done.” 
  • “Our experience working with major brands has allowed us to democratize fulfillment for entrepreneurs of all sizes.” 
  • “Having thick skin and really believing in love is pivotal when you’re running a business with your spouse.” 

Action Steps:

    1. Implement a hybrid hub and spoke logistics model to diversify your sales channels and reach: this strategy allows businesses to cater to various customer segments efficiently, which was successfully applied by Bulu for clients like Long Table Pancakes
    2. Build strong industry relationships and leverage your network: as emphasized by Paul, these can lead to partnerships, insights, and opportunities that might otherwise be inaccessible, such as connecting with co-packers or retailers
    3. Maintain the flexibility to pivot and adapt your business model: adaptability is crucial, as evidenced by Bulu’s ability to transition from VC to independent and continue innovating their services
    4. Utilize technology to gain a competitive edge, like ChatGPT or software comparison platforms: stay updated with emerging tools like artificial intelligence and comprehensive platforms like G2.com to make informed decisions for your business’s tech stack
    5. Prioritize transparency, integrity, and a mission-driven approach in your business: Bulu’s success comes from a clear set of values that foster trust and long-term partnerships, crucial for sustainable growth

    Sponsor for this episode

    At Rise25, we’re committed to helping you connect with your Dream 100 referral partners, clients, and strategic partners through our done-for-you podcast solution.

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    Cofounders Dr. Jeremy Weisz and John Corcoran credit podcasting as being the best thing they have ever done for their businesses. Podcasting connected them with the founders/CEOs of P90xAtariEinstein BagelsMattelRx BarsYPOEOLending TreeFreshdesk, and many more.

    The relationships you form through podcasting run deep. Jeremy and John became business partners through podcasting. They have even gone on family vacations and attended weddings of guests who have been on the podcast.

    Podcast production has a lot of moving parts and is a big commitment on our end; we only want to work with people who are committed to their business and to cultivating amazing relationships.

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    Rise25 Cofounders, Dr. Jeremy Weisz and John Corcoran, have been podcasting and advising about podcasting since 2008.

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    Episode Transcript

    Intro 0:15

    You are listening to Inspired Insider with your host, Dr. Jeremy Weisz. 

    Jeremy Weisz 0:22

    Dr. Jeremy Weisz here, founder of InspiredInsider.com where I talk with inspirational entrepreneurs and leaders. Today is no different. I have Paul Jarrett of Bulu. Paul, before I formally introduce you, you need no introduction. Um, I always like to point out other episodes of the podcast people should check out. And since we’re going to go deep in logistics, e-commerce. Um, talk about what’s that?

    Paul Jarrett 0:44

    Boring.

    Jeremy Weisz 0:48

    I think you can make any topic not boring. So check out the previous episode I actually did with Paul. We went deep on certain topics. We’re going to go deeper in the e-commerce world. You know, it’s only boring if you’re not in the industry, right? Because if someone’s in the industry, it’s not boring, right? It’s a non-sexy stuff that makes businesses run smoothly. Right? Because without logistics, nothing gets to a customer. So that would be a problem. 

    Some of the past episodes, um, Sam Moses of Sockrates, they do custom socks, from Italy, from different companies. Uh, actually, they work with a lot of b2b companies. So like Netflix. Think Netflix, they want to get for all their staff, or if they want to give them to clients. Uh, that was a super interesting episode. He started with a men’s shop in Toronto, and it grew into an e-commerce business, and Bold Commerce co-founder Jason Myers. I was just reading, I think they’re installed in over 700,000 merchant sites, their Shopify apps, and they have a very variety of Shopify apps. So you can check them out at boldcommerce.com and the episode I did with Jason. Just really interesting founder stories like Quest Nutrition I had on and RxBar founder I had on. Super interesting stories and that many more on inspiredInsider.com. 

    This episode is brought to you by Rise25. At Rise25 we help businesses give to and connect to their dream relationships. Um, how do we do that? We actually do that by helping you run your podcast. We’re an easy button for a company to launch and run a podcast. We do the accountability, the strategy and the full execution, kind of like what Paul does in logistics. We’re like the magic elves that run around in the background to make it look easy for the host, so they can develop amazing content and actually create amazing relationships and most importantly, run their business. That’s kind of what Paul does for ecommerce companies. You know, you send the product, they do everything else to get it to the customer. But for me, the number one thing in my life is relationships. I’m always looking for ways to give to my best relationships. I found no better way over the past decade to profile the people and companies I most admire and share with the world what they’re working on. So if you’ve thought about podcasting, yes, Paul, go ahead.

    Paul Jarrett 3:07

    I just, I got to plug you because you’re not giving yourself enough credit, so stop the podcast. No, I’m kidding. Um, uh, doc, all right. If you are listening right now, here’s the deal. I get a million podcast people emailing me daily when I decided to kind of jump back on and then things, you know, some positive things happen. Dr. Jeremy Weisz and Rise25 was exactly where I went. And honestly our relationship goes back so long, I was a little bit concerned, like maybe they won’t, and let me tell you the organization and the straightforward and the get it done. Um, I talked to plenty of other places and I think what we talked in, I probably signed the next day or something like that. So you like, this is my plug. Stop talking to everybody else. Talk to him. And everything that you hear about relationships and all of that, it is beyond true. So that’s my plug for Rise25. Rise 25. Rise up together. There you go.

    Jeremy Weisz 4:12

    I appreciate it. You’re to come to all my future interviews and I’m just going to like put you in. 

    Paul Jarrett 4:19

    Hey man, I don’t bs. I mean, I don’t bullshit either. So it’s well deserved. It’s well deserved.

    Jeremy Weisz 4:23

    I appreciate it. So if you have questions go to Rise25.com. Happy to answer them. 

    I’m excited to introduce Paul and Paul Jarrett’s the co-founder and CEO of Bulu. Uh, as you can see, if you’re watching, there is uh, the video version, if you’re listening to the audio, only you can see their warehouse behind them and his gray hat as well. Um, and, you know, Paul actually grew up and we go more into his backstory in the other episode in a Nebraska trailer park. And he has, uh, background in collegiate football and MMA. Um, but Bulu has gone through many iterations. Actually, they had a software company that they sold that powered subscription companies. They also helped create private label subscription boxes for big brands like Disney, Clorox, GNC. I think you guys sold a brand to GNC at one point to providing actually an e-commerce solution business to ship for companies to get more exposure to more customers, in addition to shipping out their stuff. 

    And so we’ll talk about how that works. It’s called Tricky Ship, and we’re going to talk about the ins and outs of that. But they went from packing boxes in a studio apartment to occupying a 100,000 square foot warehouse and growing, um, and you can check them out on their websites bulugroup.com. Paul, thanks for joining me.

    Paul Jarrett 5:59

    Thanks for having me, that stressed me out. There’s a lot of people here who’s in charge behind me.

    Jeremy Weisz 6:07

    Let’s talk about well, maybe go. You know, we talked about your backstory last time. Um, so I wanted to just talk about what Bulu is up to now, and Tricky Ship.

    Paul Jarrett 6:17

    Yeah. Thanks for all that information and kind of setting the table, man appreciate that. Because we have gone through an incredible amount of iterations. Right? The irony is, we are now doing basically the first biggest problem that we encountered when we first had Bulu Box. So, you know, I always kind of joke around and tell people like we did consumer packaged goods and we did well. And you know, there was a problem that we solved with software, right. And then we provided a service to big brands. And so you know, those are so shockingly different categories of business, right? Goods and services and everything in between, right. But what we’re doing now is it’s truly the thing where like, I feel it like I physically feel it, it like you know, sparks my fire, whatever you want to call it like the and the reason for that is we are helping out or supporting or ways the we are empowering people like Stephanie, who is my co founder, and now the owner of Bulu. We’re helping them do all of the things that we wish that we would have done. And how do we do that, like we have over a decade of working with the biggest brands in the world, you know, building software, all that stuff. And then truth be told, we kind of looked behind this when we were like, man, we have this giant warehouse. What do we actually want to do? Like, do we want to move forward with this? Do we want to start something new? Like what really, what really like lights both Paul and Stephanie up and our main team? And it was a pretty easy answer to that. 

    We kind of looked around the table and we’re like, man, you know, our core value is like the five way win, right? It’s for our clients, customers, community, co founders, co owners, anything with a C, right? But the idea of really what our core DNA is that makeup, most of the people at the top of that company, I would say maybe all everyone is that we really love to, we have this like rising tide raises all boats, right. And we just know that if we do great work in an industry, that’s kind of intimidating. And it’s kind of aggressive. And, you know, there’s old school methodologies in it but if we can be the people that don’t just say like, Oh, we got cheap, cheap shipping rates, right? But we can be the people that listen and go like, Hey, I know when we experienced that, here’s what we did, right? And we got team members that are, you know, our average tenure, I think is like eight and a half years. And so what we do now, is it doesn’t matter how big your brand is, doesn’t matter how many you’re shipping. Most companies, even the big brands, they think about logistics of simply getting things from point A to point B, right, like just visualize a train track, right? We have learned what’s called the hybrid hub and spoke logistics and how did we learn it? Honestly, we didn’t know any better. We grew up doing the most difficult shipping because nobody told us any different right? So Disney says shipped to our theme parks ship to our stores shipped to our customers, GNC, same thing, right 5000 stores globally, like all these kits, bundles, all this stuff. 

    And because we have the backing of those brands and because we have the time and the money and the ability to build really cool things. We just turned around one day and went what’s holding us back from offering this hybrid hub and spoke logistics aka the Tricky Ship to everybody? And the answer was nothing. So we said, screw it, let’s work with who we want to work with, let’s work with growth minded people. And why do we want to do that? Because if they work with us and get into our system, our combination of software and the physical warehouse, what we’re able to do, really, and why most people come to us, is they can sell anywhere they want with any quantity that they want, which doesn’t sound like a big deal. But if you’re in the consumer packaged goods industry, you run into these challenges where people say, hey, send this pallet to the store or send this or meet these requirements, EDI, there’s a huge laundry list. And at Bulu, we just say, hey, that independent retail store, we can ship to them. And they can order one or two products, not a case. That church, that school? Same thing. Directly to customers? Same thing. Why? When you have a hybrid, hub and spoke model, and you truly, truly appreciate and understand how important both the physical and the digital version of that product is, and you connect those two things, you can kind of ship anywhere, right? 

    Logistics to me, and I would argue this kind of with anybody, it’s nothing more than ensuring that the data is attached to the physical product through software. And if you can do that, then anybody can do what we’re doing. And it’s just really complicated. It’s really tricky, right. But yeah, that idea of unlimited sales channels, tick tock Sure. Right. Target, sure. Unlimited sales, channels, packaging and packing options without a huge fee, we just charge a flat like 10% for storing packing shipping. I didn’t, I didn’t realize what a big deal would be really. So we’re, we’re trying to say that like in a quicker way, but you know, we have like, 30 new clients in the past 60 days. So it’s fun to experience the wave and also, having experienced it before, like to actually appreciate it this time. You know what I mean? Whenever you get this big waves, you know, we’ve done in the double, triple millions of dollars in revenue, and your hair is just on fire. I have no hair anymore because of that, right? And this go around. It’s like, yeah, we go hard, but like, we can stop and be like, Marcus, like, Good job, man. Like, and it’s fine, that can wait another day, you know, like, you know what’s important and not important. So it’s just so much fun right now, right? It’s great atmosphere.

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