There’s a salt works in Malden, West Virginia. Population about 3,000 and surrounded by the Appalachian Mountains, sitting on top of an ancient ocean buried underground for hundreds of millions of years. A sister and brother revived their family’s salt business there in 2013. Everything is done by hand, brine pumped up from 350 feet below, dried in sun houses, raked, packaged, shipped right from the farm. A staff of fewer than a dozen people. Their salt ships to high-end restaurants in Tokyo...

You know how everyone starting an online business tries to appeal to everyone? Their about page says they help teens, parents, office workers, and retirees. Their product does five things. Their content covers whatever felt interesting that week. And I get it. Saying no to a type of customer feels like leaving money on the table. Thing is, Coca-Cola just proved the opposite. Mr. Pibb, a soda that has existed since 1972, became the fastest-growing brand of 2026. Not a new product, not a viral...

Everyone says their thing saves you time. Or saves you money. Or cuts your costs in half. And yeah, it sounds good. It feels like a responsible thing to say, especially when you’re just starting out and don’t want to come off as pushy. Thing is, “saves money” is actually one of the weakest ways to describe what you offer. And I don’t mean weak like unclear. I mean weak like it physically limits how much people are willing to pay you. Here’s why. When someone hears “this saves you money,”...