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What’s up, Rock Nation! Today we’re joined by Maxx Chewning - fitness YouTuber, entrepreneur, and the founder of Sour Strips, one of the fastest-growing creator-led candy brands in the world.

In this episode, Maxx breaks down how he turned $50,000 and a secret “Project XX” into a candy empire that sold out 20,000 units in under an hour. We dive into the psychology of building a brand people actually want, why he kept his face off the packaging, and how obsessing over tiny details - from resealable bags to flavor tweaks - set Sour Strips apart from the competition.

Maxx also shares the reality of running a multimillion-dollar company without investors, why product-market fit matters more than follower count, and the behind-the-scenes risks that nearly broke the business (including changing the entire formula at scale). From influencer marketing hacks to lessons in cash flow, this episode is a raw playbook for turning passion into profit.

If you’ve ever thought about launching a brand, building something bigger than content, or just want the inside scoop on how a YouTuber created a $100M candy company, this one’s for you.

Check out Maxx here:

https://www.instagram.com/maxxchewning/

https://www.youtube.com/ ⁨@maxxchewning⁩  

https://www.instagram.com/sourstrips/

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Timestamps: 

0:00 - Intro

1:22 - Leveraging the initial $50,000 investment

2:42 - Sour Strips Launch Strategy

8:44 - Why Sour Strips was the fastest growing creator lead brand

13:06 - No investors and making every decision

13:51 - Hydrant Pay

14:48 - No investors and making every decision

19:22 - Dialing in the final candy

24:17 - The biggest decision in Sour Strips History

25:43 - Changing the original formula

30:15 - Pushback from customers

31:01 - Trusting your gut

33:11 - Packaging details

37:59 - The Viewing Window

40:36 - Truly understanding your brand

43:32 - Separating Maxx from Sour Strips Branding

48:33 - The science behind buying candy

52:33 - Why Sour Strips is more expensive

56:22 - Covid was the best thing to happen for Sour Strips

59:10 - Getting into Target

1:04:15 - Using influencer marketing to blow up Sour Strips

1:13:38 - Expanding outside of influencers

1:14:40 - Managing cashflow with massive target orders

1:26:48 - How Maxx paid himself while growing Sour Strips

1:29:25 - Maxx was the only one who handled the finances

1:31:46 - Hiring an inventory analyst

1:32:44 - Maxx never thought about selling

1:38:21 - Maxx’s next chapter

1:44:03 - How the money has changed Maxx

1:52:51 - Maxx’s investment strategy

1:58:08 - Maxx never got caught up in blowing cash

2:01:47 - How Maxx wants to raise his kids

2:07:05 - Advice to your 18 year old self

If you liked this episode please send it to a friend and take a screenshot for your story! And as always, we'd love to hear from you guys on what you'd like to hear us talk about or potential guests we should have on. 

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