Why My Business Failed - The TryPod Ep. 175 

Speaking of ads…. I really wish you guys would stop working with better help. I’m a therapist and it is not a good company for clients or providers

Thing is, Zadiko isn't a failure. It sold out at launch and continued to sell for a while. You have just decided not to keep offering the product. That is just the way companies work sometimes. We need to stop thinking of short term things as failures just because our grandkids won't be using them x

Keith doing the sauces reminds me of Simply Nailogical starting Holo Taco. Keith has made chicken so much a part of his own brand for so long that it seemed like a logical next step.

Keith talking about how excited he was for that tour in September, and then when the tour happened he was filled with so much anxiety over the 404 error he couldn’t even enjoy it, breaks my heart looking back at it

Love and support you so much Zach but a new product needs to fulfill a need. I feel like I’m pretty set in my tea choices so you’re going into a really competitive market. Keith making hot sauce that isn’t hot serves an entire market of people wanting a flavour who can’t handle heat. Choosing this niche creates a segment he can target. If you had a need that wasn’t being met and then made a product for it by having something totally unique you can efficiently market a product. I would suggest novel pain management tools or entertainment workout videos for people who have pain, stop motion innovation products for kids places where you are truly an expert and can make a unique product.

Show idea for Zach- Have a 'tea time' where you discuss tea culture, media, and topics of interest with varying guests who deal with disability and invisible/chronic illness. This creates a platform for disabled artists, novelists, youtubers, etc to get exposure or share their work that can sometimes get overshadowed. Pair it with a tea blend of the guest's choice, or use the episode for you both to explore different styles of roasts/blends you, or they, might not have tried before.

I’d love to see Zach make a cbd oil or some funky comfortable hippie pants

I really respect Zach for this insight into his tea venture, and his self awareness regarding why it failed. As for not having a regular show on the main channel (though I love Candid Competition), you guys own a production company. Why can't you just make some of the weird shit that's in your head? Start writing and filming shorts. Get experimental. I personally have always wanted to see that sort of thing on the channel. Not every single piece of content needs to be optimized. Take some risks now and again, and fulfill some dreams while you're at it. The fan base will support you.

Also, tea(especially loose leaf) doesn't run out as quickly as hot sauce. I'm so glad you are being transparent about it. Love Rainy's thought that you can't be successful without failure. Totally true. :)

ty zach for chatting about failing at a company and for keith offering insight to what made his work. this convo in the podcast relates to much to what the core message of the try guys have - /trying/ and being ok with failure because we can try again!! zach is an incredibly creative person and im always impressed by the niche and campy content he wants to make. i honestly would just love to see zach lean more into the weird stuff he wants to do and does do because there really isn't anything like it on youtube anymore.

What Zach has done by way of disability and inclusion on this platform is a huge success, and maybe down the line, the tea thing will pop up again somewhere.

Even if the tea didn't work out, there's other very cool things Zach has done otherwise. I like to shout out his videos on Ankylosing spondylitis and its effects on him. My co-worker just told me he was diagnosed with that recently, and I only would have known what that was and how it effects my co-worker due to the videos. And he was like "I'm surprised you've even heard of it!" The disability awareness work on the channel has been informative and great. So...I think that outweighs the tea "failure" imo! Also, Rainie's bird conversation interpretations, I used to imagine the birds having gossip sessions and sometimes still think that, lol!

The tea was also released during the pandemic so paying more for something you can get so much cheaper is not always an option for most people. But I honestly liked It and I think it can do better now that people are in better places too.

Keith’s hot sauce made sense because I associate him with food and I know he can’t handle spice. When Zach came out with tea, it didn’t really make sense to me because i I didn’t associate Zach with tea. I agree with the other comments that if Zach came out with CBD products or pain management, that would make sense and I would trust his recommendation much more than tea. Very interesting insight and thank you for addressing this Zach!

This idea of “staying hungry” is so alien to me. Like what kind of wild capitalist brainwashing do you have to go through to want to never feel content?

Love when Zachs like "Neds Dentist appointment? Cool I don't care" and Keith saying "Neds dentist appointment in 10 minutes, cool hope he goes!" Couldn't help but laugh

This is it, guys. Advice that will go for Miles has reached a point where he is literally recommending breathing. There is nowhere to go from here.

Billie eilish did this asking her fans to draw merch for her... Like dude at this point she's a millionaire and taking people's art for free?? Like damn, a lot of people in the art community refused to participate because it was super unethical

Proud of the try guys for admitting and talking about their failures. It's apart of life and with the rise of social media we don't get to see the moments our friends and family fail at trying things because social media makes you want to only share your success. Good on them!

As someone who has their own small tea business, mixing all the blends myself, I felt kinda sad that I've been doing all this by myself and then this was "you can start a business with $500!" but Zach clearly had so many other things to help him, like already having a brand & fanbase and also someone else was actually making & shipping the tea. So while I'm really sad to hear that it fell through for you, I'm glad to hear that the whole time, you knew this wasn't exactly realistic for people in the way that it was being presented. It's definitely possible! But it's a lot of work.

I really want a try guys episode where the guys are at the mercy of Miles. Just let Miles go nuts and plan a video for the guys and don't let any of them know what he's got planned until filming. Give him a budget and total creative freedom and see where that beautiful brain takes him lmao

This group of four just has the best dynamic. Rainie was such a great addition to the podcast, I love how everyone’s energy blends here

Video Idea: Try Guys Try Advice That Goes for Miles I would love to see Keith try to go outside every morning for a week 🤣

Missed opportunity to call this “The Tea on Zadicko”

I feel like Candid Competition needs to be a reality show. I make upscale pizza for a living and my favorite thing is when people order things like a face made out of olives and pepperoni. How about take some people in the field and see if pizza sculptures can be a thing? Create something epic.

Just need Zach to know: 1. I listen to the TryPod exclusively on my podcast app so I'm coming here for him to know that I ... 2: love his tea brand and am bummed he sees it as a failure. I have a copious amount of tea (as many tea lovers do) and I have bought all his flavours. But I really don't need to restock that often because I have so much tea. Even my top favourite tea that I drink weekly, sometimes I even make a large batch of iced tea from it - I probably only buy a container (it's loose leaf) a year, maybe two. Unless you're selling bagged tea, it's kinda hard to have a heavy rotation of customers restocking their favourite flavours on a regular basis. Most tea brands are either big, big corporations or really small local brands that produce in small batches. I hope he knows that he has a great high-quality product, but a tea brand just isn't going to bring in $$$ the way Keith's hot sauce can be gone through at a much faster rate. Also - for the love of god I need Zach to open that CBD bar in LA. I would actually visit LA for that

I could genuinely see Zach create a line of unique sweaters/jackets thats fill his "fun quirky goofy" vibe of fashion. I could see it being a really big hit!

i appreciate zach’s transparency so much here! i remember at the time of the zadiko videos it felt a little off, and knowing the backstory now it makes sense.

Zach - Don't be too hard on yourself! I used to work with DAVIDsTEA and they sunk BIG bucks into breaking in to the US market and it was a crushing failure. They had huge backing and marketing budgets and still struggled - it's a hard market in the US where tea culture isn't as strong as other places.

For anyone on the fence about trying Keith's sauce, they are SOO good & unique & are an amazing heat level for someone trying to just test/push themselves. Also have to say that 2 bottles did break in one of my 3 packs one time, and Heatonist was on it & so quick getting replacements sent out. GREAT company to deal with! 15/10 will and have bought again :) :)

I appreciate that Zach originally wanted compostable packaging. Also, it was clear in one of the videos that Zach wanted to pay his designer fairly and not exploit them. That was great to see.

Awww that’s sad to hear. I believe Zach’s intentions with the fan art was genuine

as a tea drinker the zadiko teas are pretty reasonable for good quality tea, but I also spent $80 at a tea store today so I'm not the typical viewer in that sense

Ngl I've been wondering for a while as to what happened to Zadiko Tea Co

I appreciate this conversation about starting a business (specifically as someone in media) and the contrast between Zach’s and Keith’s products.

Ok, so after procrastinating for a year I had finally actually gone to the try-shop and I couldn't find the teas, only the hot sauce. Pretty sad but understandable since a lot of businesses close too soon.

I can't wait for Miles' baby advise and the eye rolls from Ned. Congrats Miles!!!

When Zach said "Design Competition" I knew what was coming next 😂😂 It's a learning curve and it sucks to learn in real-time basically in front of the world

I’ve been BEGGING for candid competition to be a regular thing. Like PLEASE

Love Keith's thought about having ti accept that you no longer have time for something that once brought you joy. I'm currently at a weird place with theater where I still love it, but don't realistically have the time to commit to 3 hour rehearsals 6 nights a week on top of double majoring with other extra curricular. Currently wrestling with how much I can be involved this upcoming year and I really appreciate that comment

IDK if Zach will see this, but your Mission Chill tea was one of my mom's favorite things. I had bought some on a whim and my mom being a major ice green tea lover with a cold brew system she exclusively uses for making iced tea, she saw the bag I had bought and immediately fell in love. She swears by it to help her sleep at night and calls it her "sleepy time" tea. It was also the tea that helped me introduce the youtube channel to her as a whole.

Any thought on making a Zach show about what he eats? Their food videos do really well and maybe one called “Can I eat it?” Where he takes random dishes and makes it to his dietary needs. He’s not the best cook and it’d be great fun or have the other two guys and a guest try to make a dish for him.

About "guilty pleasures" I really like watching movies, and I wish that podcast, would be more interactive and let the audience choose which movies are going to be discussed, furthermore if they can post like a monthly calendar of movies that would be awesome, because I usually don't listen when there is movies that I hvent watched or know

A couple of months ago, I made my own tea company; Herbal Farmacy Functional Teas. I remembered Zach's videos on starting a tea business and took some of it to heart. It was very challenging and still is. I took a different niche than Zach however. I wanted to highlight medicinal herbs in a delicious tea blend. I worked at and managed a healthfood store and went to school for holistic nutrition, so I had the knowledge and passion for the products I'm making. I'm kind of sad that Zach's tea didn't pan out the way he wanted it to, but at least it inspired me to try my hand at it. Success to me doesn't mean I make a lot of money. My success will look like I help people with their anxiety, stress and lack of focus when they use my tea, and they love the flavour too. Thanks for the inspiration Zach. ❤️

“The best thing that came from this is I got a lifetime supply of tea” 😂😂😂😂

The contrast between Keith and Zach regarding their individual products was really interesting and made a lot of sense. I really like when they explain the behind the scenes aspects. It feels like Zach would do well with a product that was a means of donating to a cause, instead of just generating profit.

As someone who is attempting to start my own business, I loved the Zadiko series. And as someone who is still going through the ebbs and flows of trying to be creative and independently employed, I really appreciated this episode.

So I’ve never really had money for RU-vidr merch, but one of the very few things I’ve ever gotten was the mission chill tea. I’ve made it for myself and for a lot of my friends when they were sick and every person I gave it to loved it.

Even though I'm an avid loose-leaf tea drinker, I never opted in to buying Zadiko tea because the price was simply too high compared to similar products on the market. I can purchase amazing, delicious cream earl grey for far less from Tiesta. 🤷‍♀️

Love Rainie hyping Miles up during Advice 😂 really love their friendship!

Miles’ advice is actually super helpful for getting your circadian rhythm back in check and start getting tired for sleep earlier (if you struggle to fall asleep at a normal time)

Wanted to let you know, as someone who drinks an obscene amount of tea, your stuff was really good and I still have some in the house. I'm really glad you put your idea out there for us to experience. 😊

Zach found the perfect shirt to match those shoes...I'm impressed

I don't know if it's just me but, I never bought zadiko tea because every time it'd been brought up (that I saw at least) felt super gimmicky to me? I don't know how exactly to explain it it just, in a way didn't feel genuine? however, watching this gave me a different feeling about it anddddd....I just bought two bags.

i’m obsessed with the camera jumping to everyone on their phones during the miles nation theme song

for the record i absolutely loved zadiko tea!! the breakfast blend was not only so tasty, but the amount of caffeine in it was perfect for people who have a sensitivity to caffeine

I may be in the minority but I love it when you guys discuss the process and details of running your business.

Zach, you are right on, I wanted to buy it to support you, but it wasn’t my bag and fair fucking play for being so open and honest about it all! You really analyse and think about your fab base and the right way to get people involved in supporting you and the fan base. Mad respect! We love you guys❤️

Proud of you, Zach. It was a very honest and learning experience and it made me respect you more and more. ❤️

Love the lore behind the chicken sauce and tea!! I was wondering what happened to the company. I couldn't find the website when I was trying to restock my supply, but thankfully Art of Tea still has it on their own website. Much love to Zach and Keith, this insight is much appreciated.

This episode was great, thank you. I am a strong believer that we as a society/culture need to embrace failure and imperfections-talk about and normalize failure, correcting ourselves, apologizing and talking through our mistakes, etcetera. I work in an elementary school and already see kids putting themselves down for “not being perfect.” So I love when people talk about their failures and/or their tumultuous journeys-kids and people in general need to see that you don’t have to be perfect. Thank you. I adore and respect you all so much.

Keith: I rarely even eat anything (in eat the menu) with the hot sauce on it. Also keith: *puts his hot sauce on ice cream in the Baskin Robin's episide because there was nothing else to put it on*

I will say as a Canadian I would love to be able to buy the hot sauces on Amazon Canada or something that has more Canada friendly shipping.

Zach said so many smart things in this episode. Love how honest, upfront and real this conversation was.

I liked Zach’s tea. It got me back into loose leaf tea. I couldn’t buy it often because most were caffeinated, and I have to limit my caffeine intake. I first got the herbal one at launch while I was recovering from being hospitalized from covid, and it did help with the inflammation reduction during those early days of recovery. I still have some and I keep it at my work desk.

I’d love to watch you and Maggie plan your wedding in real time. Those episodes of creation, plus seeing the final product would be awesome, plus maybe include some DIY items and ideas that regular people like myself who don’t make tons of money can do on our own or with our family and friends! It’s a feel good, gather together, short video series that has a beginning and an end and maybe even a part 1&2 finale! Idk, take it into consideration, I loved Kieths wedding video, but there wasn’t a lead up of creation! Idk just throwing ideas.

the camera switching from Rainee to Zach to Keith on their phones and back to Zach then back to Keith was hilarious😂comedy gold Rainee!

As a loose leaf tea drinker and enthusiast myself, last month was the first time I've ever heard of Zach's tea company, mainly because of the drama that happened and watching more of their videos everyday since then. I'm going to buy Zach's tea now, but I'm sad that it wasn't as successful (understandably so). I think the majority of tea drinkers just didn't hear about it soon enough, but I'm glad we still get to support Zach's business until supplies run out.

I didn't know the business failed. I bought it in the pre-sale but couldn't purchase again because I live in the Philippines and shipping fees on top of the actual price of the product is shit. I was going to ask my aunt who is coming home next year to buy some for me but eh. Oh well. The mint-chamomile tea really helped me sleep longer. I work at night and my sleep schedule is shit. Having that tea really astounded me how soundly I was able to sleep.

Zach, the Guilty Pleasures podcast is my favorite on the Try Pod! The loose leaf tea business is highly competitive, and the costs that sprang up from the pandemic didn't help. Glad you're able to talk about these topics, and I hope this means we'll just have more Guilty Pleasures!

Was really hyped for Zadiko but then the tea was just too expensive and not unique enough to justify buying it from the UK because we have a lot of tea companies doing really different teas over here for cheaper. Sad to hear it didn't take off over there tho, because it seemed like the competition was so much less from what you were saying in your docs on it x

I am sad the product failed, but agree with most comments about finding a niche. Also since spanish is my first language i never really liked the name, sorry :'( it sounds like sádico (sadist in english) so it always sounded weird to me

It's funny because I'm an avid tea drinker so I had 0 clue that Zadiko wasn't doing well. When it was announced I was so excited because I drink tea every day. I'm bummed the tea is gone, especially Mission Chill, but I totally understand the struggle and I'm glad you're letting go! I'm exciting to see what's next

People are reluctant to discuss when business goes awry, and it makes people feel lonely when they think they're the only one struggling. Being a small business owner is hard and many have to rework their businesses or start new ones until they find something that fits both the kind of product/service customers want and the kind of business they want to have. I've closed a business before too until I could figure out how to make it work for me instead of losing my life to the business. Now I'm so happy with my new business, which I couldn't have figured out if I hadn't taken a break from my first business.

I am part of Keith’s market. I like flavor but not excessive heat. I just got Keith’s hot sauce trio for my husband for a special anniversary gift because he likes mild hot sauce, but now that I know it’s not as hot as even mild hot sauce, I’m excited as well to put it on new recipes we’ve tried that end up being too bland or that actually call for hot sauce as part of the recipe. Unfortunately, I don’t like tea and was honestly getting so tired of some videos being about the premise of promoting merch that I didn’t even think to gift Zach’s tea to others who like tea.

This episode reminded me that I'm running low on chicken and burger sauce. I'm so excited for the new sauce he's working on that's actually hot!

one of the best things about the try guys is that any combination of the four of them is gold, every try guy is my favorite try guy ❤

I BOUGHT A YEARS WORTH AND JUST FOUND OUT MISSION CHILL was discontinued. I'm literally crying it was finally the only tea that didn't upset my stomach. I'll really miss this tea and if I could just pay for a massive custom bag that would be the dream for me but I understand the the decision I'll miss this loose leaf tea

Thank you Zach and the whole try pod cast for talking about failure. It isn't talked about enough! By the way, I bought the Zadiko breakfast tea and I loved it! I hope one day you're able to bring the brand back in a different way.

When Rainie interjects, is that called a Rain Drop? Because I LOVE that.

The Zadiko mug is still for sale on the try guys merch shop:). We should go buy them!

I did actually know that Zadiko wasn't successful only because you mentioned it in that podcast where you got the person interviewing you to buy like 800$ worth of tea.

I loved the description of Rainey's room haha invited in like vampires 🤣

This was my favourite episode of The trypod in a while - felt very engaged and insightful and showed your appreciation for the fans

You all share pics a lot and you do know we can't see them right? It makes it less interesting to listen to when we have no idea what the pic looks like. I usually watch and listen and I'd like to request that you please show us photos if you are going to talk about them.

Man, as a small business owner for the past five years, so much of this resonated! I'm so glad you talked about this.

Very sad about the tea - a wonderful product, even if not sustainable right now. Zach, and the rest of the team, thank you for sharing your vulnerabilities. This wasn’t a failure, it was just a stepping stone forward. Love to the whole team 💚

Much respect to Zach for his openness on failing. Businesses dont always work. I hope Zach when ready tries another solo business. Comfortable hippy pants or something he loves. Maybe selling his pottery if he still doing that.

LOVE this insight. Failure can feel so isolating and overwhelming and this shed some good light on it. Thank you for sharing that story zaddy. Would love to hear more down to earth stories like this love y’all

It's a bit weird watching this knowing it's right before the Ned stuff happened

I really appreciated this episode. It's really insightful hearing the behind the scenes story of this "failure". Very powerful learning experience. Thank you for sharing!

imo the tea market it already full, id rather buy from my local tea companies than a youtuber, I love the try guys but I just don't think Zack's tea was special enough especially for such a high price

yes Rainey!! “a mansion with foster kids and foster dogs” is my ideal scenario 💕 love the representation of gen z women going against societal norms

Appreciated this real convo. Something about this energy with Keith, Zach, Rainie and Miles

You have the best podcast episode titles! Also, I love LifeStraw. Great for trips abroad with non potable water.

Honestly, cannabis-based products focused on and tailored for chronic pain would be awesome. Zach could partner with someone like Keith did and could be local and West Coastal.

Really enjoy these sorts of pod episodes more than the silly non sensical/no topic ones. So much to learn and also entertaining bts info. More of these please!

Thanks so much for shedding some light on the situation. I was just confused as it was happening and hearing what actually happened was super enlightening. Thank you

I appreciate the consistency Keith, Ned, and Zach because they are in the videos more and how much a video that aren't in love with topic wise still includes them. I am looking forward to see Eugene with all his passion projects.

I tried one of every Zadiko tea and loved em all! You did a really good job with the flavor blends. I’m just not primarily a tea drinker so I restocked infrequently. :(