The Cold-Pressed Truth
A Founder’s Field Guide to Building, Scaling, and Selling a Consumer Brand
Foreword by Jay Shetty
An eight-time founder tells the unvarnished story of building Suja Juice from an ice closet to $100 million in six years - and of the July 3rd phone call when Coca-Cola declined to buy the rest of it - then turns three decades of wins and wipeouts into a working manual for anyone building a consumer brand.
It isn’t out yet. Drop your name below and you’ll hear the day it lands.
Jay Shetty
“In a world that often glorifies hype, noise, and overnight success, Jeff Church has chosen a different path.”
“He understands that entrepreneurship isn’t about having the best idea or being the smartest person in the room. The real work of leading a startup for the long haul begins within. He also knows that outcomes are shaped long before they are visible, through the countless small decisions most people never see.”
“I would strongly consider it essential reading for entrepreneurs in Consumer related industries.”
— Jay Shetty, author of Think Like a Monk
Part memoir, part operating manual
Twenty-three chapters across three parts, plus an epilogue and a field guide to the retail metrics that actually matter. It keeps interrupting the story to hand you a tool, and it keeps admitting what the story cost. Failures get as much airtime as wins.
Part I
Building a Strong Foundation
Founder's DNA, pre-launch roadmap and budget, the M.A.P. framework, stage-gate process, the life stages of a brand, fundraising, culture, and the ten startup misconceptions that crack a foundation.
Part II
Scaling the Engine
Scaling without losing control, systems, the battle of the shelf, innovation and the art of the pivot, strategic partnerships, retail relationships, and Coca-Cola's fateful decision.
Part III
The Exit
The moment of truth, personal reflections on leading a startup, Babu's field guide, fatal flaws versus recoverable mistakes, and the universal principles for any startup.
What founders who’ve done it are saying
“Jeff shows that great companies aren't built on shortcuts or luck - they're built on timeless principles, disciplined execution, and relentless learning. This is required reading for anyone building a brand they want to endure.”
Mark Rampolla
Founder of ZICO Coconut Water; author of An Entrepreneur's Guide to Freedom
“Jeff Church has done it all as an entrepreneur - driven hypergrowth and delivered stellar returns to investors. But he's also managed disappointments and setbacks. Through it all, he's been the same level-headed and resilient leader. Any entrepreneur at any stage can learn from the wisdom in this book - I know I did!”
Seth Goldman
Founder of Honest Tea
“Jeff is truly the Yoda of CPG. When I made the leap from tech into beverage with JUNI, his guidance helped us avoid mistakes that could have cost us years and millions. The Cold-Pressed Truth is the kind of book every founder should have from day one: practical, honest, and packed with hard-earned wisdom. Must-read.”
Kim Perell
Co-Founder of JUNI Adaptogen Tea; bestselling author of Mistakes That Made Me a Millionaire
“In CPG, the difference between the brands that endure and the brands that disappear comes down to discipline - about margin, about culture, about cash. Jeff has built it, lost it, and won it back, and he teaches it here with a generosity that's rare in this industry. The Cold-Pressed Truth belongs on the desk of every CPG founder.”
John Foraker
Co-Founder & CEO, Once Upon a Farm; former CEO, Annie's
Know the day it lands
The Cold-Pressed Truth: A Founder’s Field Guide to Building, Scaling, and Selling a Consumer Brand. Foreword by Jay Shetty.
In the meantime, everything Jeff has that’s already free lives here.