Shroom Bar - The Bar Built for Fighters and Focus

The Story of a Brand

Ramon Vela

Business, Entrepreneurship

5 • 145 Ratings

🗓️ 19 May 2025

⏱️ 61 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

When someone tells me they’re going all in, I listen. That’s exactly what Tommy Walsh, Founder & Owner of Shroom Bar, did when he launched Shroom Bar, a protein-packed, mushroom-fueled bar designed for focus, energy, and endurance.

In this episode, Tommy shares his founder journey, from mixing mushroom powder in his drinks to building a functional bar brand targeting the MMA world (and beyond).

We explore what it really takes to bring a product from kitchen to shelf: sourcing ingredients, scaling manufacturing, bootstrapping marketing, and staying committed through long product cycles.

Tommy’s not just building a brand—he’s cultivating a lifestyle for everyday fighters, athletes, and high-performers looking for clean, daily fuel.

Here are a few highlights from our conversation:

* Why mushrooms like Lion’s Mane and Cordyceps aren’t just trendy, they’re powerful tools for performance and recovery

* How targeting the MMA community gave the brand a strong identity and early traction

* The cash flow vs. economies-of-scale challenge every CPG founder faces

* Why going “mile deep, inch wide” is the smartest early strategy for niche brands

* Lessons on going DTC-first, building social as an asset, and staying laser-focused on the long game

Join me, Ramon Vela, in listening to the full episode and hear what it really takes to go all in and build a functional food brand with purpose, grit, and hustle.

For more on Shroom Bar, visit: https://eatshroombar.com/

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Today’s Sponsors:

Compass Rose Ventures - Advisor for CPG Brands: https://compassroseventures.com/contact/

Compass Rose Ventures can help your CPG brand increase customer lifetime value, expand into the US market, create an omnipresent omnichannel footprint, optimize customer journeys, build brand communities, and more. Visit the link above to learn more.

Saral - The Influencer OS: https://www.getsaral.com/demo

SARAL is the all-in-one influencer platform that finds brand-aligned creators, automates outreach, and manages everything in one place. Request a live demo today. Let the SARAL team know you're a The Story of a Brand Show podcast listener to get an extended free trial! Visit the link above.

Transcript

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0:00.0	I didn't feel like I was living up to my true potential. I always had all kinds of creative ideas,
0:04.8	always new things that I wanted to try, but I just didn't have really the company to do it.
0:09.7	And I felt like all of my time was kind of going into just sales, selling the product, which I love.
0:16.5	I loved that company. But I think it's kind of like what you said. I just wasn't reaching my true
0:20.3	potential. I wasn't, I didn't, I felt like if I just did that, I'd probably make a lot
0:25.4	of money, live a very successful life, but I'd always kind of just be thinking like, what if?
0:29.5	What if I just went and did my own thing? And for me, it's, it's not about money or anything.
0:34.2	It's honestly just about having creative ideas and being able to go and do it. So that's the way I view it is just an outlet for creativity. And I felt like before
0:42.5	I didn't really have that outlet, it wasn't pushing me quite hard enough. So I just wanted something
0:47.1	to go all in at, put my full creativity on it, and see if I could go all in and see what would
0:52.5	happen.
1:08.0	Yeah. and see if I could go all in and see what would happen. Hey everyone, this is Ramon Vela, and this is another episode of the story of a brand. Like always, we have an amazing guest and founder that we're
1:11.1	going to feature on today's show. But before we do, hi, I speak to hundreds of founders and
1:16.3	CEOs of CPG brands each year. And they are facing unprecedented challenges from changing
1:23.2	consumer behavior, inflation, election year anxiety, cost of capital, and more. However, finding
1:30.1	an experienced knowledgeable advisor shouldn't be challenging. And that's why I'm personally
1:36.2	recommending that you reach out to Compass Rose Ventures, whether you're looking for help positioning
1:42.2	your brand and messaging, diversifying your marketing portfolio, preparing for retail expansion, or fine-tuning your
1:50.2	existing retail strategy, or maybe preparing your brand and financials for investors or
1:56.2	acquisition. Simply visit compassroseventures.com. That's compassrose ventures.com that's compass rose ventures.com to learn more welcome back everyone
2:06.8	i have an amazing show today i have with me tommy walsh who is the founder and owner of trumbar welcome
2:15.3	to the show hey ramon how are you doing are you doing? I'm doing fantastic. So,
	...

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