Running a DTC brand means juggling product, inventory, ads, retention, your 3PL, customer service and a growing team, all while trying to grow. Nobody built a structure for that.
So you became the structure. Every question comes to you. Every fire needs you. Every decision waits on you. The business didn't create a bottleneck. You became the bottleneck, because no one showed you another way.
The reframe: your overwhelm is a boundary problem, not a tools problem. You don't need another app, more VAs or a $150K COO. You need one simple structure that sets healthy boundaries, creates accountability and gives you visibility, so you can stop managing chaos and start leading growth.
Every founder in chaos tries the same three things. They all make sense on paper, and they all fail for the same reason: they treat the symptom, not the structure.
VAs complete tasks. They don't own systems. The chaos is still there, and now you're managing more people inside it. Every task still flows through you, because nothing has changed about how decisions get made.
A full-time COO at your stage costs $150K+ before they've proven anything. Many founders hire the wrong profile: an operator who needs direction rather than one who creates it. Six months later you're more overwhelmed and less profitable.
Great book, wrong executor. You're already the bottleneck. Putting yourself in charge of the system meant to free you from being the bottleneck doesn't work, because implementing it takes the one thing you don't have: bandwidth.
You don't need more systems. You need one simple structure that fits how a DTC brand actually runs. I build it with you and your team, hands-on.
Clear rules about what needs you and what doesn't, so your team solves problems instead of escalating them. Your ads lead, ops lead and CX team know which calls are theirs.
Your team knows exactly what's expected, and you know exactly what's getting done, without chasing, checking or repeating yourself.
The few numbers that matter (revenue, contribution margin, CAC, inventory and cash) in one place. You lead from information, not interruption.
One meeting structure that replaces the scattered check-ins. One meeting handles it all, so the rest of your week is yours.
This isn't advice from the sidelines. I work inside your business alongside you and your team to build the structure, then stay until it runs without you in everything. Because it's hands-on, I only take 1–2 consulting clients at a time.
Is this the right fit? Consulting fits best when you need someone to build structure inside the business with your team. If what's really stuck is you (your boundaries, your decisions, your energy), Heartset coaching is usually the better place to start.
Book a 15-minute founder callWhat We Build Together
The structure your business needs
to run without you in everything.
The complete Flow State Framework: the structure I use to get DTC founders out of the chaos and back in their zone of genius. It's free.
Instant access. No fluff. Just the framework.
100+
DTC founders coached & worked alongside
5+
Years coaching founders
1–2
Consulting clients at a time
These are turning points, not reviews.
Tommy went from pulling money out of savings to make payroll to six-figure months. We did it by holding expectations, creating boundaries and facing fears. He now has balance between family and work and spends his time in his zone of genius.
Samantha was profitable but burned out from doing everything herself. A clear process and a heart-led way of making decisions got her time back, and her relationships.
"Just got off a call with Justus and it was phenomenal. He guided me, by way of conversation and some really good questions, to being open to opportunities that could help me grow my business — namely building a team and looking at alternative ways to finance other than bootstrapping."
Read more founder stories, including Sarah's and Angela's, on the Heartset page →
I'm COO and Strategic Operator at Profitable Pineapple, where I work inside the business every day, and a partner at Freedom Brands. Before that, I coached founders and brand owners inside Ryan Moran's community, people who were scaling and hitting every wall that comes with growth.
I've coached and worked alongside over 100 DTC brand founders from startup to 8 figures, and the pattern is the same: someone who built something real, is now drowning in operational chaos, and needs a person they trust to come in, build the structure and get them back to leading instead of managing. That's what I do.
"The founder is the ceiling."
DTC and Shopify founders doing roughly $1M–$20M whose business is growing, but who are stuck at the center of every decision.
Consulting is hands-on: I work inside your business with your team to build the structure. Heartset is 1:1 coaching focused on you as the leader: boundaries, heart work and clear decisions. Most founders start with Heartset. Consulting is for those who also need operator help on the ground.
1–2 consulting clients at a time, so each one gets real attention.
It depends on what we diagnose and how hands-on you need me to be. We'll talk through scope and investment on the founder call.
Close. I bring the operator experience of a COO, but my goal is to build structure your team can run, not to become another person you depend on.
It depends on what we diagnose. Most of the core structure goes in during the first 90 days, and we decide together what comes after.
We'll look honestly at what the chaos looks like, whether consulting or Heartset is the right fit, and what the next 90 days could look like.
Book a 15-minute founder call. This isn't your typical sales call. We'll tackle whatever's keeping you stuck, whether that's a decision you're overthinking, scaling challenges that feel overwhelming, or needing mental clarity on your next move. Then we'll look honestly at whether consulting or Heartset coaching is the right fit.
You'll walk away with clarity, actionable brand ideas and the mental framework to make confident decisions fast.
Book your founder call →No pitch. No pressure. Just an honest look at what's possible.