Jonathan Byrt

We got told that we are getting sued this week. Follow along the journey @jonathan_byrt A New York-based lawyer emailed us a few days ago to let us know @memobottle is being sued in the state of New York. Apparently a vision impaired customer had difficulty completing a purchase on our website - meaning our site isn’t ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) compliant, and we’re in violation of New York human rights legislation. At first I thought that this was a phishing email. I sat on it, did some research, and then I called a few people. Turns out we’re not alone. There are thousands of e-commerce brands currently being sued for exactly this (regardless of your region or company structure). Most of them, like us, with no idea they were doing anything wrong. There’s a wave of opportunistic law firms filing these cases at scale. Brands are settling for around $10,000–$20,000 USD. That’s a huge whack for small businesses. Especially when no one warned you. There are two important things to note here: The first: I had no idea about this, and this is such an important learning and lesson for me and my team. Accessibility matters and there is absolutely no place for discrimination. We want our products and brand experience to be available to everyone. If someone with a visual impairment can’t easily navigate our site and buy something, that’s a problem that needs fixing. I think there needs to be a lot more education around best practices here. But secondly.. waking up to a lawsuit as your first introduction to a regional legal requirement is a rough way to learn. A heads up would be nice. Even just awareness in the industry. Come on.. as if it isn’t already hard enough to run a business. So if you’re running an e-commerce store selling into the US - jump onto this now! Google “ADA compliance for e-commerce websites.” Look at accessibility apps. The basics include: alt text on images, captions on video, keyboard navigation, readable contrast - “most” of which are pretty easy to fix once you know where to look. This will get you 80% there - you might need some dev work for the rest. DM me if there are any questions

Surely not?! We thought @adam_sullo was having us on, so we had to check this thing out with a stainless steel @memobottle Pretty amazing results. @krof.co

We realised we were a leaking bucket. The brand was growing but the sales weren’t catching up. The unlock came when we stopped trying to fix everything and doubled down on what actually made us great. Storytelling. Marketing. Design. That shift turned the business into a true marketing led product brand. Most founders obsess over lowering price. But the real leverage is understanding terms and cash flow. That is where growth becomes unhindered. Now streaming on YouTube, Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Episode 6 of The Founders Method is live on Ticker TV (Link in Bio) In 2013, Rex Kuo and Charles Ng had a product idea, no money, and no proof anyone would buy it. So they put it on Kickstarter. That campaign turned into 12 more campaigns. Twelve campaigns, $7.5 million raised, 65,000 backers, and over 2 million key organisers shipped around the world. This week, they launch their 13th. Over the past 13 years, the Orbitkey founders have built a playbook that has cracked the Kickstarter code. We got into all of it. Why they still pick Kickstarter for product launches, what actually happens in the 30 days before launch day, and what elements actually make for a great Kickstarter campaign. Don't miss this mini masterclass. Episode 6 is live now (Link in Bio) @rexpressing @charleswng @orbitkey @memobottle @jesse_leeworthy @jonathan_byrt @weareticker

Episode 6 of The Founders Method drops today. In 2013, Rex Kuo and Charles Ng had a product idea, no money, and no proof anyone would buy it. So they put it on Kickstarter. That campaign turned into 12. Twelve campaigns, $7.5 million raised, 65,000 backers, and over 2 million key organisers shipped around the world. This week, they launch their 13th. Over the past 13 years, the Orbitkey founders have built a playbook that has cracked the Kickstarter code. We got into all of it. Why they still pick Kickstarter for product launches, what actually happens in the 30 days before launch day, and what elements actually make for a great Kickstarter campaign. Episode 6 is live tomorrow on Ticker. Stay tuned. @rexpressing @charleswng @orbitkey @memobottle @jesse_leeworthy @jonathan_byrt @weareticker

A room full of founders.
A conversation full of honesty (and a lot of laughs) Last week we hosted an incredible fireside chat with @jonathan_byrt & @jesse_leeworthy , founders of @memobottle - unpacking the real story behind building a globally recognised brand. This conversation covered the parts of entrepreneurship people don’t always see. One of the biggest takeaways?
Great brands aren’t built overnight. They’re built through resilience, adaptability, and continuing to move even when things get hard. Thank you to everyone who joined us 🩵 #founders #entrepreneur #business #startup #community

Episode 5 of The Founders Method is now live on Ticker TV (Link in bio). Kirsten Scott is the co-founder of Boa App, a community of more than 6,000 active members running over 200 events a year for founders and entrepreneurs across Australia. She watches more founders network than almost anyone else in the country, and her view is sharp and contrarian. Networking is transactional. Building a network compounds. And most founders are getting it backwards. We got into all of it. Why five to ten quality connections will beat a hundred superficial ones, how to build trust before ever asking for anything in return, and the single move a founder can make tomorrow to double the ROI of their network. Episode 5 is now live (Link in bio) @boa.app @kirka_ @memobottle @jesse_leeworthy @jonathan_byrt @weareticker

The only bottle that won't roll away 😂... @memobottle

Episode 5 of The Founders Method drops tomorrow. Kirsten Scott is the co-founder of @boa.app , a community of more than 6,000 active members running over 200 events a year for founders and entrepreneurs across Australia. She watches more founders network than almost anyone else in the country, and her view is sharp and contrarian. Networking is transactional. Building a network compounds. And most founders are getting it backwards. We got into all of it. Why five to ten quality connections will beat a hundred superficial ones, how to build trust before ever asking for anything in return, and the single move a founder can make tomorrow to double the ROI of their network. Episode 5 is live tomorrow on Ticker. Stay tuned. @boa.app @kirka_ @memobottle @weareticker @jonathan_byrt @jesse_leeworthy

Most eComm founders assume this: “Scale revenue → expenses flatten → margin expands” Sounds logical. Rarely true in practice. Here’s why that belief breaks at $20M+ scale: The theory says: * Revenue grows faster than operating costs * Fixed costs get diluted * Margin naturally expands But there’s a hidden assumption in that model: That you are a good capital allocator. Most founders aren’t. And that’s not an insult. It’s just reality. Because what actually happens when you scale is: * You reinvest more into media * You hire faster than efficiency improves * You add tools, agencies, overhead * You “buy growth” instead of optimizing it So instead of margin expanding… It stays flat or gets tighter. And this is where the mindset shift matters: You hear it all the time: “Just reinvest into the business” But reinvestment without discipline = margin compression disguised as growth. So you end up in this loop: * Grow revenue * Increase spend * Maintain or worsen margin * Wait for “efficiency later” Except for most businesses… “Later” never comes. Because capital allocation decisions get harder, not easier, at scale. So the uncomfortable truth: Many brands would be more profitable growing at half the speed… and actually cash flowing the entire time. Instead of: * chasing aggressive scale * assuming margin will fix itself * and paying for growth upfront The better question isn’t: “How fast can we grow?” It’s: “Are we allocating capital in a way that preserves margin as we scale?” Because revenue growth is optional. Margin discipline is what determines whether scale is sustainable.

April antics 🔥

Episode 4 of The Founders Method is now live. (Link in bio) Liv Coleman from All Things Golden She started All Things Golden in a spare room with $20,000 and a conviction that the fashion industry was getting it wrong. Liv Coleman built All Things Golden from scratch into a 2,000 square metre operation shipping globally. In 2025, tariffs wiped half her US revenue overnight. And when the pressure hit hardest, she made a bet almost no other brand was making: that real, physical, human connection is becoming the most valuable thing a brand can offer. So she built a flagship that isn't just a store. It's a place people come to feel something. We got into all of it. The experience economy, what it looks like to back your gut when the numbers disagree, and how to stay focused on your vision when the world is in chaos. Episode 4 is now live on Ticker TV. (Link in bio) @liv.atg @all.things.golden @memobottle @jesse_leeworthy @jonathan_byrt