MUTT’S SAUCE®

THE SECRET IS OUT: Mutt’s Sauce @muttssauce is relaunching- with Meredith College @meredithcollege . I’m handing the reins of the company over to the smart and talented women at Meredith, the last all-women’s business college in the United States. Over the next 6 months, they will be strategically planning the relaunch. I flew to NC to say thank you and promise them my availability and vulnerability. They will turn problems into profitable plans- so exciting. Thank you Molly McKinley for taking a chance on this company so many people love. We are forever bonded by this experience and it’s going to be a transformative semester! #meredithcollege #businessschool

🎓GRADUATES. Still reflecting on an incredible weekend at @meredithcollege celebrating graduation with an amazing group of young women who helped bring new energy, creativity, and strategy to the relaunch of @muttssauce . Thank you to: Rubi Juarez-Olvera Perla Casiano-Pineda Aya Alqoh Ashley Driver Lyba Qureshi Perla Avila-Soria Mariana Ocampo Londono Karina Albo Megan Philbin Alyssa Evans Bridget Rowe Carson Biddy Molly “Matt” Martinez And a special thank you to @mollymckinley2 for creating such a meaningful hands-on experience for your students and for believing in the power of entrepreneurship, leadership, and real-world learning. Watching these graduates step into their next chapter was inspiring. The future is incredibly bright. #leadership

I have been thinking about you. Not in a general, mass-text kind of way. I mean that as a founder, every single order represents a person who said yes to something before they even held it in their hands. That is not a small thing. That is trust. And I do not take it lightly. So I wanted to write to you personally and tell you exactly where things stand. The order is placed. The labels are done and printed. The marketing inserts — including a gold foil postcard with the story of my grandfather, Charlie “Mutt” Ferrell Jr. — are being created as I write this. Phase 2 and Phase 3 of our relaunch are already in motion, including pre-sales conversations with local grocery stores so that Mutt’s Sauce can be somewhere near you, not just on your doorstep. Production takes 5 weeks. That is the reality of making something the right way, with the right manufacturer, from a recipe that has never been compromised since 1956. We are dedicated — completely dedicated — to getting your bottles to you in time for the 4th of July, your summer barbecues, and the America 250 celebrations. This sauce was made for exactly those moments. This is a labor of love. And you are worth every bit of it. We bottled togetherness. That is not a tagline — it is what my grandfather did every time he made this sauce for the people he loved. It is what I am trying to do now. And when you open that bottle for the first time, I hope you feel it. When your package arrives, please tag us. Show us your table, your grill, your family, your moment. @muttssauce on TikTok and Instagram #thepeoplessauce ❤️🇺🇸, @charlyndajean

This is what you don’t see during a relaunch. From the outside, it looks like new branding, a fresh label, and a countdown to pre-orders. But behind the scenes? It’s strategy. It’s pressure. It’s precision. We’re three days out from closing pre-orders for @muttssauce , and the real work is happening in the details: A last-minute nutrition label formatting correction flagged by the chemist so we stay compliant for grocery shelves. That means design revisions… immediately… and back to print. Active threads with our manufacturer because once we place that order, the clock starts on every customer delivery timeline. Running numbers with local warehousing partners to confirm pick-and-pack rates match what was forecasted. Because one surprise cost can wipe out your margin. Calling our retail partners to reserve limited inventory for their 4th of July promotions. Building a @tiktok Shop strategy for what remains. Hiring virtual team members for the summer to keep social media active, emails answered, and customers taken care of. And while I’m not the one executing every tactical step anymore… I’m still responsible for approving almost all of them. This is the part of entrepreneurship that doesn’t get posted. The invisible layer between “idea” and “execution.” The part where you’re balancing risk, protecting margin, and making decisions that will show up months from now. And in the middle of all of it—my primary mission hasn’t changed. I’m serving on active duty, and it’s an honor I don’t take lightly. So while I’m on mission… the Mutt’s Sauce team is on mission here. This relaunch isn’t just about a product. It’s about building a system that works—with or without me in the day-to-day. If you’ve ever wondered what founders are really doing behind the scenes… This is a small sample. And we’re just getting started. ❤️🇺🇸- @charlyndajean 👉 Pre-orders close in 3 days. /products/theoriginalrecipe

Signing their recommendation letters… with the last of 1,000 Mutt’s Sauce pens. And realizing— That pen was one of my first bad investments. I thought I was building a brand. But I wasn’t selling pens. I was always meant to sell sauce. Connection. Togetherness. Full circle moment: The women of Meredith College didn’t just relaunch Mutt’s Sauce… They became one of the best investments I’ve ever made. They graduate in 2 weeks. And I’m so proud of who they’ve become. Let’s send them off right ❤️ 4 days left to support their pre-order campaign Orders close May 1 Grab your bottle: /products/theoriginalrecipe #MuttsSauce #WomenInBusiness #Entrepreneurship #FullCircleMoment #MeredithCollege SupportSmallBusiness LegacyBuilding

We said we were rebuilding @muttssauce differently this time. This is what that looks like. Our email subscribers just got early access to the limited edition run of our Original Recipe (formerly Sweet N Spicy) and they are already moving. I’ll be honest… I’ve been trying to hold on to inventory. But at this pace, they are going to smash Meredith College’s preorder goal. @meredith_school_of_business So here’s what we’re doing: We’re opening the door a little wider, just a little longer. If you’ve been waiting to grab a bottle for your 4th of July cookouts or America 250 celebrations, this is your window. Preorders close April 30. After that, this run is gone. *link in bio* This relaunch is bigger than a product. It’s proof of concept. It’s students turning strategy into revenue in real time. And it’s a community showing up in a way I don’t take lightly. If you’re already on the list, check your inbox. If not… this might be your last shot at this batch. Corporate or retail inquiries: [email protected]

Killing my ego might be the smartest business move I’ve made all year. Mutt’s Sauce @muttssauce is officially back… but not the way I’ve done it before. I didn’t lead this relaunch alone. The women of Meredith College @meredith_school_of_business stepped in and asked the questions I was avoiding: Where are YOU the bottleneck? What are you not good at? What needs to go? So I answered honestly. I gave up control. Handed off social. Opened the backend. Admitted where I was slowing the business down. Uncomfortable? Yes. Necessary? Absolutely. This isn’t just a relaunch. It’s a rebuild that doesn’t depend on me to survive. Pre-orders are OPEN. Order now → delivered in June (just in time for 4th of July 🇺🇸) We’re starting early with PayPal + Venmo to hit their goal: 294 pre-orders. Not random. Proof. If you’ve ever had to put your ego aside to build something real… you get it. If not, this is your sign. Growth will cost you your comfort. Sometimes it costs you your ego. It’s worth it. Great job, ladies! #muttssauce #originalrecipe

@TikTok SOAR just graduated another class of veteran entrepreneurs — and I’m proud to be one of them. 🎓🇺🇸🔥 This week in Washington, DC I was surrounded by people who believe in what we’re building — @awpartnership , @elizabethdolefoundation , the SBDC, Student Veterans of America — and I got to sit across from Congressman Mike Turner’s office and Senator Husted and talk about the future of Mutt’s Sauce and what it means for Ohio. This is bigger than hot sauce. This is about veteran stories, economic development, and proving that our service doesn’t end when we take off the uniform. 💪 Next week — pre-orders for @muttssauce go LIVE through Meredith College business students who’ve been learning the craft of entrepreneurship in real time. They will sell out. Fast. Drop a 🔥 if you want pre-order details the moment they’re available! Thank you @TikTok . We won’t waste this moment. #MuttsSauce #TikTokSOAR #VeteranEntrepreneur #VeteranOwned #OhioMade SmallBusiness SupportVeterans WomenWhoLead

You don’t outgrow leadership by stepping back. You outgrow it by staying in the center too long. Here’s a practical test I use: If the next phase of growth requires skills, perspective, or cultural fluency you no longer personally represent, but can responsibly oversee, your role has changed. It’s time to move from execution to governance. That’s what you’re seeing here. These Meredith College students are pitching real strategy for Mutt’s Sauce. My job in this chapter isn’t to do the work for them. It’s to set direction, define guardrails, and protect decision quality while the next generation tests, learns, and builds. This is how platforms endure. If you’re building something meant to last, I’ll be sharing what I’ve learned about when to step forward, when to step aside, and how to transfer leadership without losing outcomes. Follow along on IG or TikTok @muttssauce

Much of my work has lived behind closed doors— shaping strategy, aligning stakeholders, and stewarding complex systems to durable outcomes. Across sectors, I’ve helped build platforms and brands that became iconic—not through visibility, but through disciplined leadership and decision quality. In this season, I’m opening the playbook. I’ll be sharing what strategic leadership looks like at scale, including a real-time case study: how Mutt’s Sauce is being positioned to endure by intentionally transferring strategy and execution to the next generation through a partnership with Meredith College. This isn’t about one brand. It’s about how leaders design systems that outlast them. @muttssauce

STILL IN DISBELIEF OVER this massive opportunity and collaboration. Thank you for believing in the mission of @muttssauce ! @meredith_school_of_business

They thought @muttssauce was gone. Instead of shutting down, we did something different. This fall, Mutt’s Sauce became a college course at Meredith College School of Business @meredithcollege Students in the New Venture Launch & Management class didn’t study a hypothetical brand. They worked on our real business, developing and pitching strategies for our future. Their winning plan is now guiding our TikTok-first, e-commerce relaunch. And the story doesn’t stop there. This spring, Mutt’s Sauce was selected again, this time for Meredith College’s Marketing and Sales course, allowing students to help execute the very strategy they helped create. To top it off, we’ve been accepted into TikTok’s 2026 S.O.A.R. Program, which supports veteran-owned brands as they scale on the platform. @tiktok.forbusiness As a veteran-owned business, resilience is in our DNA. When things got quiet, it wasn’t the end…it was preparation. Now, we’re rebuilding in public, inviting community input, and letting the next generation help shape what we proudly call The People’s Sauce. Grateful to the students, faculty, and partners who believed in this comeback. From classroom to cookout, we’re just getting started. Thank you @mollymckinley2 and my team at Mutt’s Sauce who participated in guest lectures! 📸: @thecharlatte #VeteranOwned #Entrepreneurship #ExperientialLearning TikTokBusiness Ecommerce ComebackStory ThePeoplesSauce