Founder Feature: Daniele Orellana of MITTS

The Startup CPG Podcast

Startup CPG

Startup, Food, Business, Beverage, Cpg, Entrepreneurship

4.9 • 642 Ratings

🗓️ 5 September 2025

⏱️ 32 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Turn every BFCM QR code scan into sales—get the free report now: www.uniqode.com/bfcmcpg

In this episode of the Startup CPG Podcast, our Editor, Caitlin Bricker, is joined by Daniele Orellana, co-founder of MITTS, a design-forward brand who's rethinking the everyday kitchen sponge. Daniele shares how MITTS was born out of a practical need to care for delicate glassware—specifically high-end wine glasses that were constantly breaking during handwashing. What started as a solution for wine enthusiasts has since evolved into a versatile, aesthetically pleasing tool for anyone seeking a better way to clean non-dishwasher-safe items.

Throughout the conversation, Daniele discusses the challenges and triumphs of building a consumer product brand while maintaining a full-time medical career. She offers insight into the manufacturing decisions behind MITTS, including the difficulties of sourcing production domestically, and the advantages of a non-perishable product. As a first-generation founder, Daniele reflects on the values of risk-taking and resilience passed down from her immigrant parents, and how that mindset fuels her entrepreneurial journey.

Also, hear about how she and her husband balance their professional lives with growing the brand, the importance of customer feedback, and the role of community—especially Startup CPG—in guiding their progress. With practical advice, personal stories, and a clear passion for thoughtful design, this episode is a must listen!

Listen in as they share about:

Product Evolution and Use Cases
Manufacturing Challenges
Shelf Life and Durability
Community & Mentorship
Advice to Other Founders

Episode Links:

Website: https://mitts.store/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daniele-orellana-258366157/

Don't forget to leave a five-star review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify if you enjoyed this episode. For potential sponsorship opportunities or to join the Startup CPG community, visit http://www.startupcpg.com.

Show Links:

Transcripts of each episode are available on the Transistor platform that hosts our podcast here (click on the episode and toggle to “Transcript” at the top)
Join the Startup CPG Slack community (20K+ members and growing!)
Follow @startupcpg
Visit host Caitlin's Linkedin
Questions or comments about the episode? Email Daniel at podcast@startupcpg.com
Episode music by Super Fantastics

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	I've always wondered about QR codes. Who's scanning them? How impactful are they?
0:06.0	But now there's actually a really cool new research report from our partners at Unicode.
0:11.0	You know what's wild? In this report, you can see 74% of shoppers say they'll scan a QR code during Black Friday Cyber Monday,
0:18.0	but only 37% of marketers think that those campaigns actually worked.
0:22.3	That's a big gap. And they also found that most brands focus on where to place the QR codes
0:28.1	just to get the scan, but then they forget to optimize what happens after the scan.
0:32.9	Marketers, fellow data nerds, you won't be disappointed. There's so much to learn in this report.
0:38.3	Like, shoppers want value, fast. 56% of shoppers said they expect discounts when they scan,
0:43.6	like automatically applied discounts with a quick checkout or instant reviews. And you can check
0:48.5	out who scans those QR codes, demographic insights, purchase likelihood, and learn how
0:53.9	effectively they've been used in campaigns. So, when you use QR codes, demographic insights, purchase likelihood, and learn how effectively they've been used in campaigns.
0:56.4	So, when you use QR codes during Black Friday Cyber Monday campaigns, make sure they are working as hard as your offers.
1:03.2	Check out all the insights in the full free report. It's in the show notes, but it's www.unuchode.com slash BFCM-C-G. That's www.utico.com slash BFCM-C-C-G.
1:11.7	That's www.
1:12.6	un-I-Q-O-D-E dot com slash B-F-C-M-C-G.
1:18.6	Thank you. We were tasting a lot of wine, and I was essentially his buddy and doing the tastings with him, which meant a lot more wine glasses.
1:42.4	And he has these really beautiful Josephine Ute glasses.
1:47.0	They're incredibly beautiful and great for aeration, but they're also razor thin.
1:53.0	And I broke at least four to five just during that level three exam period,
1:59.0	trying to hand wash them at the sink because you're trying to shove the sponge in and they break, really just with that bit of pressure.
2:06.3	Hey, everybody. This is Caitlin Bricker, editor at Startup CPG.
2:10.7	We are back with another founder feature.
	...

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