Today we’d like to introduce you to Brad Locke
Hi Brad, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in a close-knit family in the midwest. My mom worked as a production planner in the local steel mill and my dad was a firefighter. They also owned a carpet and furniture cleaning business, and my brothers and I worked there to support them. I took many lessons from my time there, including the value of hard work, that details matter, and the importance of customer happiness.
Growing up, we always took time to enjoy nature, and I loved to go camping with my family. And now that I have kids of my own, one of our favorite things to do is spend time at the incredible state and national parks this country has to offer.
So that was my foundation. My parents were amazing role models for integrity, hard work, respect for others, and importantly, nurturing a mindset that we can accomplish anything we want in this life with a plan and the discipline to stay the course.
I took these values into my career in the consumer packaged goods space. Throughout the roles I took on with various companies, I was very interested in how to drive healthy growth and build strong teams.
Over the last ten years or so, I’ve been fortunate to have found opportunities that let me focus in these areas, working to accelerate growth and profitability of early stage companies in high-growth segments in the natural space. And given my love for nature, I’m driven to support innovative companies that are working on solutions for consumers and the planet. That’s why I’m thrilled to be in the leadership role at Wondercide, a company that empowers families to protect the ones they love with effective, plant-powered pest control.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It’s been anything but a straight line. I’ve faced my share of headwinds: tight budgets, aggressive growth targets, and making big bets that could’ve gone either way. But every challenge taught me a lesson that’s guiding me as I lead Wondercide, a company I’m passionate about growing with purpose. Here are a few lessons learned.
Stretching Every Dollar.
With limited resources, you have to make every dollar count. Early on I used to think limited dollars was a limitation, with my focus on the things I couldn’t afford to do. The blessing of limited dollars is it creates extraordinary focus to identify only the most essential. You no longer waste time considering those nice to have options. It drove added discipline and diligence for each idea which increased confidence when it came time to make bets. It was a powerful way to reframe the situation.
Speed as an advantage.
One of the great benefits of being small is you can move fast, faster than the bigger established companies you are competing against. You can make decisions quickly, move right to implementation and make adjustments if it doesn’t work exactly how you planned.
Driving growth with innovation.
Bringing improvements that can improve lives in small but meaningful ways is very rewarding and what innovation is all about. But innovation is hard. It takes a deep understanding of your customer to know what would delight them followed by fanatical follow through and resilience in execution. Doing new things inherently faces resistance. Staying focused on the end goal while developing creative solutions to the challenges that get in your way will get you through the roadblocks.
Getting comfortable with change.
Change is uncomfortable when you fight it but manageable when you plan for it. When you change roles or industries you have to learn and adapt to a slightly different playing field. I’ve found if you embrace the moment of change with an open mind it is more fulfilling from a personal growth standpoint and certainly more fun than when you let it create stress.
Taking Calculated Risks.
Information will always be imperfect. I’ve learned you have to strike the right balance of facts and analysis combined with gut and the collective knowledge of the team. Also, not all risks are equal so don’t treat all decisions equally. For the smaller decisions, get more comfortable trusting your gut. For the larger ones, while you may have a gut instinct, ensure the depth of analysis is there and you pay attention to what it says. Ensure you and your team stay intellectually honest.
We’ve been impressed with Wondercide, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Wondercide offers lab-proven protection from bugs like fleas, ticks, and mosquitoes for pets, families, homes, and yards—all made with plant-based active ingredients. The most popular product line is Flea & Tick, which includes collars, spot ons, versatile sprays for dogs and cats that can also be used throughout the home, and yard sprays so people can take care of the bugs at the source. Unique in pest control, the spray for pets and home comes in four scents, including cedarwood, lemongrass, rosemary, and peppermint.
Wondercide also offers pet-safe pest control solutions that are safe around the whole family, including Fruit Fly Trap, Wasp & Hornet long-range aerosol, and Flying Insect Trap, which is powered by Blu-V™ technology with zero chemical insecticides.
The founder of Wondercide, Stephanie Boone, was on Shark Tank and got offers from three of the Sharks. She ended up not finalizing the deal but that opportunity put Wondercide in front of millions of families who learned about what inspired Wondercide and why we’re so passionate about our mission.
For those who don’t know the story, Stephanie thought she was doing everything to protect her dog Luna from fleas and ticks. She used the recommended treatment on Luna and conventional pest control in the yard. Then one day, Luna got gravely ill. The first vet recommended Stephanie put Luna down, but that was never an option for her. So she went to a second vet who suspected that what Stephanie was using to protect her beloved dog might have been causing the harm. Stephanie was shocked. She stopped using the products, and Luna began to get better. When nothing natural on the market worked like she needed it to, Stephanie rolled up her sleeves to create a solution for families everywhere so they didn’t have to compromise safety for effectiveness.
Wondercide created a new category in pest control: plant-powered solutions for pets, people, homes, and yards. We’re helping evolve the pest control industry by offering products that are both effective and safe, providing peace of mind for those who are looking to avoid conventional ingredients. Wondercide uses ingredients derived from nature like trees, seeds, and herbs. Most of our products are made with steam-distilled natural essential oils, sourced directly from plants including rosemary, lemongrass, peppermint leaves and the bark and branches of cedarwood trees. The ingredients we use are just as crucial as the ingredients we refuse to include in our products. So that’s why we don’t use artificial colors, dyes, or fragrances. Today, Wondercide has protected almost 20 million pets and people, and we’re just getting started.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Certainly, my parents instilled my core values and that is the basis for the personal and professional relationships built over the years. I’ve been very fortunate to work with many talented managers and leaders who have taught me the skills and provided the coaching that pushed me to grow through each phase of the journey. Without every one of them, I don’t think I would be the person I am today. And I’m grateful for Stephanie Boone who entrusted me to lead the talented and caring team I work with today. It is their dedication to our mission and the way they lean in every single day and execute with excellence that moves us forward. The dogs in our office also provide great joy to us, reminding us why we’re doing this in the first place.
I can’t possibly name everyone who has made an impact. The experiences we have each day with every single person in our lives shapes who we become. So, I always try to seek out and surround myself with people who have good values and positive energy.
Pricing:
- ● Flea & Tick Spray for Pets & Home in Cedarwood, Peppermint, Lemongrass and Rosemary, starting at $13.99.
- ● Flea & Tick Collar or Spot On, starting at $19.99
- ● Outdoor Pest Control for the yard, starting at $37.99
- ● Insect Repellent for family, $12.99
- ● Flying Insect Trap, starting at $12.99
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Wondercide.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wondercide/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wondercide
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/wondercide/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/user/Wondercide
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/wondercide-round-rock
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@wondercideatx
