Second Nature

Mattie Sims has built brands at Lululemon, Electronic Arts, Reef, and Rally Pickleball — and along the way developed a framework for brand building that most founders skip entirely. Now she's applying everything she's learned to two ventures at once: Courier, a performance sock brand built around the idea of the "Renaissance athlete," and Mate the Agency, a brand strategy firm working with founders across industries.
In this conversation, Mattie walks through the muse framework she learned at Lululemon and has refined across every role since — why the most important question isn't "who buys this product" but "what is this person worried about when their head hits the pillow at night." She also gets into why looking branded is not the same as having a brand, what happened when Rally discovered their customers weren't there for pickleball, and why having her son was the thing that finally convinced her she could be an entrepreneur.
Plus: why niching down is the thing every founder is most afraid of, how Courier is building a cultural movement around versatile excellence, and the Red Bull receptionist whose casual suggestion became a billion-dollar product strategy.
Popfly For Creators: https://popf.ly/secondnaturecreators
Popfly for Brands: https://popf.ly/secondnaturebrands
Show Notes:
Mattie Sims: https://www.linkedin.com/in/madeline-sims-83385823/
Courier Socks: http://couriersocks.com/
Mate The Agency: https://www.matetheagency.com/
Rally Pickleball: https://www.rallypickleball.com/
Mate IG Carousel Link: https://www.instagram.com/p/DYW4_SVEU8b/
Carrie Rheaume (Mate agency co-founder): https://www.linkedin.com/in/carrie-rheaume-6376521a8/
Matt Sims: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-sims-9b716450/
Gartner Hype Cycle: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnwerner/2024/07/18/the-trough-of-disillusionment-and-four-outliers-on-the-gartner-hype-cycle/
Morgan Tuohy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgan-tuohy/
Dera: https://rundera.com/
Ryan Thrower: https://www.instagram.com/ryanthrower/
BPC - Brand, Product, Content:
Seniq: https://seniqbrand.com/
Summer Edition - Red Bull: https://www.redbull.com/us-en/energydrink/products/red-bull-summer-edition
Billy Oppenheimer's newsletter: https://billyoppenheimer.com/
Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-nature-media
Meet us on Slack: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secondnature.media
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.secondnature.media
Subscribe to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@secondnaturemedia

Tom Austen is the founder of Pelotan, the world's first sun performance brand, and co-founder of Chance, a trail running apparel brand he's building with pro athlete and serial entrepreneur Christian Meier. Both brands are based in Girona, Spain — a two-square-kilometer pocket of world-class endurance athletes, cafes, and startups that's become the Boulder of Europe.
In this conversation, Tom walks through how Pelotan went from a sunburn problem on training rides to winning two Tour de Frances with Team Sky in its first year, and how the brand is now pioneering something entirely new: treating the sun as a performance variable rather than just a health risk. He also gets into the Chance origin story, why cross-pollination across categories is the key to building something original, and what it's like to run two high-growth startups at the same time from a city of 100,000 people.
Show Notes:
Popfly for Athletes/Creators: https://popf.ly/secondnaturecreators
Popfly for Brands: https://popf.ly/secondnaturebrands
Tom Austen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tomausten1/
Pelotan: https://pelotan.cc/
Chance Running: https://chancerunning.com/
Second Nature - Sea Otter Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hLk1LGIthPc
Christian Meier: https://www.instagram.com/christianmmeier/
The Gartner Hype Cycle: https://www.forbes.com/sites/johnwerner/2024/07/18/the-trough-of-disillusionment-and-four-outliers-on-the-gartner-hype-cycle/
Pelotan Apres Aftersun: https://pelotan.cc/products/pelotan-apres-200ml
Pelotan App for Second Nature listeners: https://pelotan.cc/secondnature
Broken Arrow Skyrace: https://www.brokenarrowskyrace.com/
Lael Wilcox: https://www.instagram.com/laelwilcox/
BPC - Brand, Product, Content:
Nomio: https://drinknomio.com/
Adidas World Cup ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJJY53qhJe0
Nike - Airport soccer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGalnbiGDW4
Insta360 GO Ultra: https://store.insta360.com/product/go-ultra
Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-nature-media
Meet us on Slack: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secondnature.media
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.secondnature.media
Subscribe to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@secondnaturemedia

Bill Shufelt was a hedge fund analyst who didn't drink, couldn't find a non-alcoholic beer worth ordering, and one night his wife spun him around on a sidewalk and told him to do something about it. Eight years later, Athletic Brewing has 300 employees, four breweries, over a million barrels of capacity, and has almost single-handedly turned non-alcoholic beer from a stigmatized afterthought into 20% of all beer at Whole Foods.
In this conversation, Bill walks through the full journey: the two years of research before he quit his job, the valley of darkness where no brewery, distributor, or investor would take his calls, finding his co-founder John Walker through a brewing forum post (with the words "non-alcoholic" deliberately removed), and the grassroots field marketing strategy that built the brand one race, one taproom, and one six-pack at a time. He also gets into the competitive explosion that followed, why he views 200 brands entering his category as a positive, and what it's like to redefine success once the business reaches cruising altitude.
If you've ever looked at a category and thought "why hasn't anyone fixed this yet", this is the episode that shows you what happens when someone actually does.
Show Notes:
Popfly For Brands
Popfly For Creators
Bill Shufelt on LinkedIn
Athletic Brewing
John Walker on LinkedIn
1000 True Fans (Article)
Do Things That Don't Scale (Article)
Two For The Trails
What It Takes (Book)
The Obstacle Is The Way (Book)
BPC - Brand, Product, Content:
Dirt - Ireland
Gramicci
Hopa Hopa Climbing Wall
Kawa
Raide Research - LF 5L Vest
The Modern Substitute
Kids Ride Shotgun
Connect With Us:
Join us on LinkedIn
Meet us on Slack
Follow us on Instagram
Subscribe to our Newsletter
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel

Morgan Tuohy is seven days into the launch of Dera, a trail running belt brand built around a BOA-style dial closure that nobody's tried before in the category. He sold out of two sizes in under eight hours, shipped hundreds of belts from his living room until 3 AM, and had $500 left in his bank account two days before launch. He's 27 years old.
In this conversation, Morgan walks through the full founder journey — from stitching prototypes in his attic with fabric from old running shoes, to convincing one of Osprey's largest factories to take a chance on him, to the moment Tim Tollefson told him he wasn't allowed to NOT do this. He also talks openly about his first failed brand, why he set three rules for himself this time around ("I know nothing, everyone else knows everything, and they all want to help"), and how seven members of the Second Nature Slack channel played a direct role in getting Dera off the ground.
This is a brand launch captured in real time — and a reminder that sometimes the best businesses start with a sewing machine in an attic and the willingness to ask for help.
Show Notes:
Popfly for Brands: https://popf.ly/secondnaturebrands
Popfly for Athletes/Creators: https://popf.ly/secondnaturecreators
Morgan Tuohy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/morgan-tuohy/
Dera: https://rundera.com/
Tim Tollefson: https://www.instagram.com/timtollefson/
Our IP Attorney, Ian Gates: https://krdglaw.com/staff/ian-gates/
Kitworks: http://www.kitworks.com
Second Nature Slack Channel: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature
Cade Michael: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cade-michael-mba-914411152/
Clara Froeschner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarafroeschner/
Tim Nooney: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-nooney-0a3bbaa6/
Courier Socks: https://couriersocks.com/
Claude: https://www.claude.ai
Mammoth Trailfest: https://www.mammothtrailfest.com/
BPC - Brand, Product, Content:
Goodles: https://www.goodles.com/
Dexa Scan: https://dexascan.com/
Kiprun - Kipsummit Max: https://www.kiprun.com/en-US/product/kipsummit-max-men-s-max-cushion-trail-running-shoes_362206--c153c385m9001281
Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-nature-media
Meet us on Slack: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secondnature.media
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.secondnature.media
Subscribe to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@secondnaturemedia

Steve Holmberg is one of our favorite recurring guests, and this time, he showed up with something nobody expected. Over the holidays, Steve went from zero coding experience to a fully functional AI-powered app called Field Check, built using the vibe coding platform Lovable. The app connects retail store associates directly to brand product and marketing teams through AI-driven chats that go deeper than any survey can — and he built the whole thing in about a month.
In this conversation, Steve walks through exactly how he did it, what he wishes he'd known before starting, and why AI is "a tool masquerading as a solution." He also deployed Field Check live on the Second Nature Slack channel to surface what the audience actually wants — and the results are fascinating.
Plus: a halftime check-in on Second Nature's 2026 predictions, what happened at Sea Otter with Chinese bike brands, why Adidas is having a moment, and the 32-inch wheel debate that nobody asked for.
Show Notes:
Popfly for Creators: https://popf.ly/secondnaturecreators
Popfly for Brands: https://popf.ly/secondnaturebrands
Steve Holmberg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephenholmberg/
Insight Accelerator: https://insight-accelerator.com/
Lovable: https://lovable.dev/
Field Check: https://fieldcheck.app/
Supabase: https://supabase.com/
Cloudflare: https://www.cloudflare.com/
Github: https://www.github.com
2026 Predictions Episode: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0G3OpDVnyA
Steve's Prediction Post: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stephenholmberg_2026-sport-and-outdoor-industry-trends-activity-7414293417557626880-AXy7
Trailcon: https://www.trailconference.com
BPC - Brand, Product, Content
Jason Fried - David Senra Podcast: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdDCtMA1gSw
Adventure Bucket List: https://reachinternationaloutfitters.com/collections/state-bucket-lists
Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/second-nature-media
Meet us on Slack: https://www.launchpass.com/second-nature
Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/secondnature.media
Subscribe to our newsletter: https://www.secondnature.media
Subscribe to the YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@secondnaturemedia