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Most companies talk about purpose. Beekman 1802 made it their operating system.
In this episode of The Eric Ries Show, I sit down with Dr. Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell, co-founders of Beekman 1802, to explore how a small act of compassion grew into a multimillion-dollar skincare brand rooted in community and purpose.
After losing their Manhattan jobs during the 2008 recession, Brent and Josh moved to a farm in upstate New York and agreed to take in 80 homeless goats from a neighbor. That decision led to their first product, a bar of goat milk soap, and to a philosophy of entrepreneurship built on kindness and long-term thinking.
Together, we talk about scaling a values-driven company, turning The Amazing Race into PR that fueled their growth, and how to make purpose authentic instead of performative. We also explore why kindness and discipline can coexist, and how the best brands instill a sense of belonging.
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Where to find Dr. Brent Ridge:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brent-ridge-md-0641791/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brent.ridge.12/
Where to find Josh Kilmer-Purcell:
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josh-kilmer-purcell-956b0b10/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/josh.kilmerpurcell.5/
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Where to find Eric:
• Newsletter:https://ericries.carrd.co/
• Podcast:https://ericriesshow.com/
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In This Episode We Cover:
(00:00) Intro
(02:18) The Beekman 1802 origin story
(04:25) How goat milk soap became their first product and sparked research on skin health
(05:36) How Brent and Josh partnered with a local soap maker
(06:58) Why Brent and Josh bootstrapped Beekman 1802 and how they found their market
(12:48) How Brent and Josh enlisted neighbors to fulfill their first national order
(16:58) A heuristic for decision making
(18:01) The power of thinking beyond transactional relationships
(19:30) Why Brent and Josh see kindness as a competitive advantage
(22:28) How to stay kind without getting taken advantage of
(24:20) The business upside of Cloudflare’s decision to give its product away
(25:23) The step-by-step approach Beekman 1802 used to scale without outside funding
(28:33) How Brent and Josh made kindness a core operating principle at Beekman 1802
(35:04) Why authenticity can’t be bought and purpose shouldn’t be confused with morality
(40:44) How Beekman 1802 stays true to its values while working with investors
(42:44) The crucial difference between being nice and being kind
(45:54) How Brent and Josh turned The Amazing Race into a million-dollar win and free PR
(49:10) How Brent and Josh’s upbringings shaped their values and resilience
(50:20) The role of family, community, and optimism in Beekman’s enduring success
(52:31) How Brent and Josh think about succession and protecting the brand
(56:02) Other companies Brent and Josh admire
(56:58) The reception to G.O.A.T. Wisdom and how timeless lessons still apply today
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You can find episode references at https://www.ericriesshow.com/
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Production and marketing by Pen Name.
Eric may be an investor in the companies discussed.
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