Seth Berkowitz
person on 1 show · 15 statements across 1 episodes
On the record as a speaker too: Seth Berkowitz across every show, appearances and statements → this page counts the times other people say the name.
15 statements about Seth Berkowitz, every show
Guy Raz: Krispy Kreme sold majority stake in Insomnia Cookies
“By the way, shortly after we did this interview, Krispy Kreme did announce that they sold a majority of their shares to two private equity groups. Krispy Kreme is still a shareholder in Insomnia, and Seth will remain its CEO.”
Berkowitz: Six-year Insomnia Cookies co-founder lawsuit settled in January 2024
“I mean, it started right around the Krispy Kreme announcement, and it settled in January of this year. It was almost a six-year litigation, which is pretty wild”
Berkowitz: Rapid Scaling to 150 Stores Caused Delivery and Innovation to Slip
“Something happened internally, I don't even remember exactly what it was, where I just felt like we had had this huge growth story, you know, 20 stores, 150 locations, so rapidly, and we didn't hit a wall, but I could see something was breaking. Like, it was, …”
Berkowitz: Crumbl's product is more cupcake than cookie
“I see a cupcake, I don't really even see a cookie. So, I see it, it's real, it's not nothing, but it's a different, really a very different business, and it's not something that, that we struggle with.”
Berkowitz: Cookies serve as resilient small indulgences during economic downturns
“That's what we've experienced at times. I mean, it's also like, it's a nice pick me up, right? Like people just like a little sweet moment, especially in a depressing kind of environment, right? It's just, it's one of those small indulgences.”
Berkowitz: Insomnia cut staff to three and halted salary for 18 months
“And so I ended up cutting my team down to myself. And a finance associate, and we had kind of a field operator who drove around, and I stopped paying myself for 18 months.”
Berkowitz: Food trucks were a two-year distraction Insomnia Cookies shouldn't have taken
“Vending trucks ended up being a right turn I wish I hadn't taken. It was like a two-year real distraction.”
Berkowitz: Keeping Insomnia Cookies company-owned protected its delivery model
“I mean, I was always a believer in corporate owned just to make sure that something that was, it was a little bit novel as it related to the restaurant environment, like basically delivery as a core competency. Outside of Domino's and the pizza guys was pretty…”
Berkowitz: Insomnia Cookies raised capital every year from 2003 to 2011
“Which, by the way, I did from 2003 to 2011. So, like, it was every year for eight years, I was just raising capital.”
Berkowitz: Focusing solely on cookie retail and delivery early on would have accelerated growth
“You know, I look back on the big mistakes I've made in the last 20 years. To me, that was like the biggest one. Because if we had set the course differently, and it just focused on retail with delivery together, the business that we have today it would have ac…”
Berkowitz: Insomnia Cookies did 500 weekly orders and $20K monthly in 2004
“At that point, we're probably doing 500 orders a week, 20 grand at most.”
Campus newspaper feature surged Insomnia Cookies orders from five to 80 nightly
“And the phone started ringing. I mean, it started ringing at a different pace, let's say, and from three to five orders to 80 orders that night.”
Berkowitz: Insomnia's model relies on delivering warm cookies within 30 minutes
“The premise was always, I want to get it to you in 20 or 30 minutes. When you eat it, that's gonna be optimal. That moment in time is gonna be optimal. If we can execute against that, you're gonna order again. That was really like the whole business model to s…”
Berkowitz: Insomnia Cookies launched with around $100 in initial investment
“I think I spent a hundred dollars on, like, everything. Like, the first mixer, it was like 30 dollars, and like, the first ingredients. It was effectively no investment.”
Berkowitz: Warm cookies fit delivery because they travel and reheat effectively
“Well, I think the premise used to be if you were going to deliver, it had to be something that you could deliver really well. Pizza delivers well. If it's not great, you can heat it up. Chinese food, same story. Sandwiches, it didn't matter. And so cookies rea…”