Under The Hood: Joe From Modern Mammals

Let’s start simple. What is Modern Mammals in your own words?

We make an alternative to shampoo for guys.

Where did the idea originally come from — and what made you want to build a whole brand around it?

I used to do CrossFit in Santa Monica with a ton of paleo people who avoided different products, and that’s when I had the original idea. Actually, I also wanted to create a gym named "Modern Mammal" — that’s where I originally thought of the brand name.

But for years after that, I kept hearing the same thing from friends — runners, basketball players, weightlifters, etc. They wanted to wash their hair every day but always heard "shampoo is too damaging," so they were avoiding using it altogether.

How long did it take to get the brand off the ground?

Probably a full year. Another founder warned me about that in advance. We honestly kissed a lot of frogs in the beginning with manufacturers, but now we've been working with the same two for around five years.

Did you always plan to go DTC? Or did retail play a role from the start?

We started DTC, but we've since added Amazon and responded to some organic small retail. We like to make noise and tell guys about our product, and it’s worked for us this way so far.

But DTC has clearly been difficult — I think most of the brands who started with us are out of business.

What’s something behind the scenes that most people wouldn’t know — but has been critical to your success?

Every employee uses our own product. We believe we make the best product, and we put our hair where our mouth is. But not just employees for our brand — also the employees at our Amazon agency and fulfillment center. Everyone needs to understand the product.

What kind of feedback do you get most often from customers — and how has it shaped the brand?

We constantly take in feedback. Customers mostly ask about other products we might make or give us suggestions around making the packaging easier. The packaging feedback over the years has led to good changes — like making the bottle stand upside down. But there’s more to come!

Can you give us a sneak peek of what’s next?

You'll have to follow along! We brought on our new "Ambassador of Hair Flow," comedian and content creator Pete Holmes, last year.

Before we wrap, are there any tools or platforms you use daily that help keep the brand running?

We just signed up for Patrol, to help with ADA compliance.

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