#106 Seoul Tonic: Launch First, Figure It Out Later - How Sophie Hood Built Seoul Tonic Without a Team

Apr 28, 2025

36:18

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Sometimes being naive is the superpower. Just ask Sophie Hood.

This week on The Lazy CEO, Sophie—founder of Seoul Tonic—shares how she turned a side hustle into one of Australia’s most innovative beverage brands, now stocked in Woolies, BWS, Dan Murphy’s, and over 2,000 independents—all without a single full-time employee.

With a background in finance and strategy at EY, LVMH, and Red Bull, Sophie had the big-brand experience—but it was her gut instinct, bold thinking, and scrappy execution that set Seoul Tonic apart. She and Jane talk about trusting your gut, getting to market quickly, and why waiting for perfection is often just fear in disguise.

Sophie and Jane also dive into the advantages of launching in Australia—why it's a slower, more forgiving market that gives founders the space to test, learn, and pivot on the go. Sophie shares how working full-time allowed her to reinvest every dollar back into the business, how she took calls from the Red Bull office to build credibility, and why prime checkout placement can be more valuable than shelf space.

From bootstrapping to winning Food Stars with Gordon Ramsay and Janine Allis, to expanding, this is a crash course in starting scrappy and scaling smart.

Note: This episode was recorded at the start of April. Any discussion around tariffs is now outdated and should not be taken as current or applicable business advice.