A 4-week, operator-led bootcamp for founders who want to know their margin, readiness score, and first retailer target before they walk into a single buyer meeting.
Fall 2026 / 4 weeks / 10 founders per cohort
You're on the list. We'll reach out when applications open.
Founding cohort. Operator-led. By invitation after waitlist.
Brands & retailers we've worked with
of new products fail in their first year on shelf.
Not because the product was bad. Because the founder didn't know the math.
of premium brands never pass $1M in retail.
They get on shelf, celebrate the PO, then watch the margin evaporate. Survival and success are not the same thing.
of brands ever reach $10M in retail revenue.
The ones that do knew their numbers before they walked into the room. That's what this bootcamp builds.
The Problem
Every founder thinks the goal is placement. Get the meeting. Get the PO. Celebrate. Post about it.
Then six months later, the reorder doesn't come. The retailer asks for a deeper promo. The margin evaporates. The product is sitting in a warehouse because the economics were wrong from the start.
The average failed retail launch costs a founder $50,000 to $250,000. Not because they had a bad product. Because they walked into a buyer meeting without understanding their landed cost, their margin stack, or what happens when the retailer asks for co-op advertising they never budgeted for.
The founders who survived did the work before the meeting. They knew their numbers, they knew their channel, and they knew what "yes" would actually cost them.
This bootcamp is that work.
What the founder assumed
What actually happened
We lost $250K on our own products in retail. Not because the products were bad. Because we trusted assumptions instead of doing the math. This bootcamp is the math.
MMK Retail, from experience
What You Leave With
01
Not the margin on your spreadsheet. The one that accounts for co-op, promos, freight, and every cost the retailer will ask for that you haven't budgeted yet. Most founders don't find out until after the PO. You'll know before.
02
Packaging, supply chain, pricing, compliance. Buyers decide fast whether you're ready. This is the work that makes sure you are. Every risk identified, every fix prioritized, nothing left to surprise you in the room.
03
Not every retailer is the right first retailer. The wrong one costs you time and leverage. You'll leave knowing which channel fits your product, your margins, and your capacity, and in what order.
04
First meetings. First orders. First reorders. A plan built around your product, your category, and where you actually are. Not a template. Something you can act on the week the bootcamp ends.
You're sitting across from a buyer. They ask about your margin. You don't guess. They ask about co-op. You already built it in. They ask about velocity. You have the projection. That's the difference between hoping retail works and knowing it will.
You're on the list. We'll reach out when applications open.
How It Works
01
We run your product through the same evaluation a buyer would. Not where you think you are, not where you hope. Where you actually stand, and what needs to change before you pitch.
02
We build your full margin stack together. Every cost accounted for, from landed cost to retailer margin to the promo reserves nobody mentions until they hit your invoice. If the math doesn't work, we'll tell you here, not after you've signed a PO.
03
What buyers actually evaluate, and what they never tell you they're looking for. We work on how to present your product so the buyer sees a reorder, not a risk. You'll walk in knowing what they care about before they say a word.
04
The wrong first retailer costs you years. We map which channel matches your product, your margins, and your capacity. You'll leave with a sequence, not a wish list, and a 90-day plan from first meeting to first reorder.
What Powers the Bootcamp
Every tool in this system was built because we made the mistake it prevents. 25 years of retail operations, compressed into the system we wish we'd had.
Week 1
Figures out exactly where you are in the retail journey and what needs to happen next. No guessing, no assumptions.
Week 2
Builds your full cost-to-shelf model. Every dollar from factory to register, including the ones most founders miss.
Week 2
Scores your product's likelihood of getting a second order. Based on the 15 factors that actually drive reorder decisions.
Week 1
Audits every operational detail a buyer evaluates. Packaging, compliance, production capacity, logistics. Gaps found before they become objections.
Week 4
Projects your weekly sales per store based on category benchmarks and your specific product. The number that determines whether you stay on shelf.
Week 4
Deep intelligence on Costco, Amazon, Walmart, Best Buy, Target, Home Depot, Canadian Tire, and more. What each retailer actually looks for and how they decide.
Who Built This
We've spent 25 years operating inside the retail channel. Not advising from the outside. Operating. Costco, Walmart, Best Buy, Amazon, Home Depot, Target, and a dozen more. Over a billion dollars in programs across 20+ retailers.
Then we launched our own products. Trusted assumptions instead of validated economics. Lost $250K over two years. Not because the products were bad. Because we made the same mistake every founder makes: we didn't run the math before we committed the capital.
That's why every tool in this bootcamp exists. The Margin Stack, the Readiness Score, the Retailer Sequencing. They were built from scars, not theory. We know what it costs to get it wrong because we paid that price ourselves.
We built the machine we wish we'd had.
$1B+
Revenue Driven
25+
Years Operating
1,000+
Programs Run
20+
Retailers
"We spent 25 years doing this with our hands. Then we built the machine."
You're on the list. We'll reach out when applications open.
Honest Filter
Beyond the Bootcamp
Two months after the bootcamp, we get back on a call. Review your progress, adjust the playbook, make sure you're executing. Not a survey. A real conversation about what's working.
Your product changes. Your pricing changes. Your channel strategy changes. Re-run the tools whenever you need to. The system stays with you.
Every future cohort runs a live Q&A. You're invited to all of them. New founders, new deals, new lessons. The network grows with every cohort.
Before your first real buyer meeting, send us your deck. We'll tell you what to fix, what to cut, and what the buyer is actually going to ask. You walk in ready.
Founding Cohort
The average failed retail launch costs a founder
This is what it costs to know before you go.
10 seats. Founding cohort pricing. It goes up after this.
The Week 2 Honesty Guarantee. If after the margin stack work in week 2, we tell you your product isn't ready for retail, you get a full refund. We only keep your money if you have a real shot.
You're on the list. We'll reach out when applications open.
What's included
This work runs $15,000-$25,000 as a consulting engagement. 10 founders get it for $2,500 because we keep the cohort small enough to do it right.
Retail buyers are seeing more pitches than ever. Showing up unprepared used to cost you a meeting. Now it costs you the relationship.
MMK Retail / $1B+ in retail programs / 25+ years / Operators, not advisors
Founders with a real product and real revenue who are ready to enter retail or already in retail and not getting the results they expected. You should have something people buy. You don't need retail experience. That's what the bootcamp gives you.
If you have a product people buy and reviews that prove it works, you're not too early. This bootcamp takes you from "I think I'm ready for retail" to actually being ready, with the math to prove it. Most founders who enter retail too early lose $50,000 to $250,000 learning what this bootcamp teaches in 4 weeks.
Even better. If your product is on shelf but not reordering the way you expected, the Margin Stack and Reorder system will show you exactly where the economics are breaking and what to fix. Some of the most valuable work happens with founders who are already in retail and can't figure out why the numbers aren't working.
Consulting gives you a report. The bootcamp gives you the system. You leave with your own Margin Stack, Readiness Audit, and retail playbook. You own them. You can run them again for every new channel or product line. And you learn the thinking behind the numbers, not just the numbers themselves.
Because we review your actual numbers in the sessions. At 10 founders, everyone gets direct feedback on their margin stack and channel strategy. Bigger than that and it becomes a lecture, not a bootcamp. You're paying for operators to look at your specific product and tell you the truth.
Yes. We run partnership cohorts for accelerators, lenders, trade associations, and organizations that invest in their founders. The first cohort is a proof of value. If it works, we build an annual partnership. Email hello@mmkretail.com to discuss.
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