Startup Revolution: Scout Brisson of De Soi On How Their Emerging Startup is Changing the Game
An Interview With Dina Aletras
Creating a Welcoming Environment: It’s important to create a workplace where people genuinely want to spend time together.We prioritize our in-person days and have intentionally designed the space to foster collaboration, with areas for meetings, and snack
Startups are at the forefront of innovation, driving change across various industries with fresh ideas and cutting-edge technologies. These emerging companies are not only disrupting traditional markets but also creating new opportunities and transforming the way we live and work. What makes these startups successful, and what can we learn from their journeys? As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Scout Brisson, Female-under-30 CEO of De Soi.
Scout Brisson has an impressive and diverse work history of consulting, venture capital, entertainment, and co-founding one of the fastest-growing CPG brands. In 2022, she stepped into her role as CEO and has quickly become a dynamic leader driving innovation in the spirits industry, crafting unique botanical aperitifs that resonate with a new generation of conscious consumers.
Thank you so much for your time! I know that you are a very busy person. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?
I began my career at McKinsey as a management consultant, and quickly realized my passion lay in early-stage startups. This led me to join M13, a venture fund with an in-house incubator launching brands in partnership with Procter & Gamble, which further ignited my excitement to start my own company.
I went on to co-found DEUX, a better-for-you consumer packaged goods company born from my passion for indulgences that feel as good as they taste. My struggle with an eating disorder during my undergraduate years at MIT taught me to never miss out on a moment — food and drink should be enjoyed and indulged in, tapping into both inner and outer wisdom.
Meeting Katy and Morgan in early 2021 was a light bulb moment; I had explored the Sober Curious trend in 2019 but found existing market offerings lacking. As someone who often drank in social settings to fit in, I inherently understood the need for sophisticated NA options. The numbers behind the NA movement are staggering — it’s the third fastest-growing category in CPG. Over 50% of millennials and more than 60% of Gen Zs want to drink less and are already consuming significantly less than previous generations.
The rest is history! I joined the De Soi team full time in the fall of 2021 and launched the brand in January of 2022.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
When I first started at De Soi and we were preparing for launch, I set up our sales email and (of course) forgot about it right away. Three months later, I checked it and found hundreds of messages from major accounts wanting to carry our products! I immediately hired a sales director. The lesson? Set up email forwarding. But also, it taught me the value of having the right team in place. As a leader, you can’t do everything yourself — building a strong team is crucial to growth (and minimizing slip-ups).
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now?
Alllll the new product development! Innovation is always the most exciting — I get to spend time thinking more than 12 minutes ahead and instead think 12 months ahead. And like most early stage startups, we’ve been tweaking and dialing in our positioning, packaging and even liquids themselves to find that sought after product market fit.
When we first launched the brand, we started with award-winning flavors that were the kinds of cocktails you’d order at your favorite swanky bar. We learned quickly as we launched the brand in retail that consumers weren’t understanding flavor and use case as readily as we’d like. Since then, we launched Très Rosé, our take on a sparkling Rosé, and Spritz Italiano, which taps into the popularity of the Aperol Spritz (now the top cocktail in the US).
As a teaser, we’ve got something fun in the works for the winter ;)
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Tenacity and Competitiveness: I grew up in the shadow of a naturally smart older brother and thanks to both nature and nurture (hi mom!) I’m a pretty competitive middle child. Through high school and college as a rower — where I was smaller than most of my teammates and often misclassified as a coxswain — I developed a tenacity that is imperative in a startup environment. Startup life is littered with rejections, scaleup challenges, among other things, and being able to persevere through it all is key.
Growth Mindset: I view setbacks as opportunities for growth rather than failures, and this perspective shapes how I lead my team. For example, we once misspelled a word on our packaging and only noticed after production. Instead of dwelling on the mistake, I used it as a learning opportunity for everyone involved. This approach fosters an environment of psychological safety, where team members feel comfortable taking risks and learning from them, knowing that accountability is about growth, not blame.
Emotional Intelligence: Everyone on the team has different motivators and triggers, and understanding these nuances is crucial for leadership. Through years of personal development (and therapy), I’ve become adept at managing my emotions and understanding those of others. This skill helps me motivate my team effectively, providing empathy and support where needed while also knowing when to step in to facilitate change.
Can you describe a significant challenge your startup faced and how your team overcame it?
Early on, we had conversations with a major retailer who initially didn’t understand the non-alcoholic adult beverage category — asking questions like: who is willing to pay for these? Who is even drinking De Soi? It wasn’t the first of those conversations, and we had the foresight, or what some might call delusion, to persist, thinking with every retailer who said no, they were really just saying not yet.
So instead, we leveraged our early adopters and retail partners to create our own demand and proof points for demand. We launched De Soi in regional grocery stores and independent boutiques that were trendsetting for the category while simultaneously marketing the brand through partnerships, activations, influencers etc. to increase awareness. When it comes to sales you also have to be shameless; we took the retailer’s feedback and emailed them regularly to share new flavors we were developing, updates on our pricing strategy and of course, to share our latest wins.
Luckily for us, we weren’t totally delusional, and the retailer did come around, not only to carry De Soi, but to embrace the entire category, which is the biggest win of all — as they say, rising tides lifts all boats.
What strategies have you found most effective in scaling your startup and reaching a wider audience?
Despite having a lean team of just eight people, we want people to have the impression that our brand is everywhere. We achieve this through hyper-localized events and focused marketing efforts, making sure that in specific communities, our presence is felt strongly. E.g. in influencer marketing, we collaborate with groups of creators rather than just individuals. That might look like gifting “pods” of influencers that have overlapping communities, or like we recently did for the launch of Spritz Italiano, partnering with a creator to host a De Soi themed dinner with friends.
Similarly, for our IRL activations, we concentrate on specific markets, executing major blitzes to create multiple touchpoints, all of which we amplify digitally. This way, shared audiences encounter our brand multiple times, reinforcing our presence even with limited resources.
How do you foster innovation within your company to stay ahead of the competition?
I encourage our team to seek inspiration beyond the confines of the De Soi bubble. This involves engaging with the broader world in various ways:
Staying Informed: I encourage our team to read a variety of newsletters, both industry-specific and general interest (some of my favorites include the CPGD newsletter, CPGWire and Nik Sharma’s DTC newsletter).
Consuming Content: I used to joke that watching TV and consuming social media was part of the job, but I actually think it is! We have to be aware of pop culture and what’s resonating with audiences to provide valuable context for our own strategies.
Talking to people!!: One of the richest sources of inspiration and innovation comes from talking to people — whether they’re industry peers, customers, or experts in unrelated fields. I know I’m not alone in this one.. my notes app is filled with random ideas that were sparked from conversations like these.
Based on your opinion and experience, what are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful And Innovative Startup” and why.
Prioritization: There are one million and two things you can be doing on a monthly, weekly, hourly basis at a startup. To navigate this, we use OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) as a framework to prioritize our initiatives. This helps us focus on what truly matters and ensures we’re working towards our overarching goals. For example, when we were scaling our distribution, we had to decide between several promising markets (not to mention, the never ending conversation of focusing on on-premise aka restaurants, vs. retail chains). Using OKRs, we identified key regions that aligned best with our current growth objectives, which led to a more strategic expansion.
Great Network: Building and maintaining a strong network is crucial. I spend as much time external facing as I do internal facing. I like to foster a community of De Soi fans and keep them apprised of what’s going on in the business. For instance, through storytelling in my quarterly updates, we’ve secured incredible partnerships and talent referrals. This external focus complements our internal efforts, creating a well-rounded approach to growth.
Hunger: A startup thrives on the hunger and drive of its team. This can come from a competitive spirit, a want to contribute to a larger purpose, or simply the ambition to succeed. It’s essential to know your “why” and keep returning to it. At De Soi, each team member is encouraged to feel like a business owner of their own realm, treated like an entrepreneur within the company.
Creating a Welcoming Environment: It’s important to create a workplace where people genuinely want to spend time together.We prioritize our in-person days and have intentionally designed the space to foster collaboration, with areas for meetings, and snacks (& for watch parties for Katy’s latest music videos). In every interview process, there has to be a vibe check!
Culture of Celebrating Wins: I’m taking our head of sales to his favorite restaurant when we land my favorite retail account, Wegmans :).
More than four out of five startups fail. What have you done to break out from that pattern, and be successful when so many others have not?
Truly, we’re not there yet! But my only advice would be to just keep going!
This was really meaningful! Thank you so much for your time.
About the Interviewer: Dina Aletras boasts over 20 years of expertise in the corporate media industry. She possesses an in-depth understanding of growth, strategy, and leadership, having held significant roles at some of the UK’s largest media organizations. At Reach PLC, the UK’s largest tabloid publisher, she served in various director capacities. Additionally, she held leadership roles at The Independent Magazine Group and DMGT. Her extensive knowledge spans editorial, digital, revenue, sales, and advertising. Upon relocating to Switzerland, Dina took on the responsibility of managing and promoting the international section of Corriere del Ticino — CdT.ch pioneering the English page “onthespot.” She also was the Co-Editor of Southern Switzerland’s first official Italian and English bilingual magazine.
