Disrupting the Pickle Aisle: How Two Founders Made Pickles Hot Again | Leah Marcus and Yasaman Bakhtier of Good Girl Snacks

In this episode of Shopify Happy Hour, Dan sits down with Leah Marcus and Yasaman Bakhtiar, the best-friend duo behind Good Girl Snacks, creators of the now-famous Hot Girl Pickles. From launching in public on TikTok to landing Erewhon as a retail partner within a year, Leah and Yasaman share their journey of building a pickle brand that’s bold, crunchy, and anything but traditional.

They dive into:

• How they used TikTok to build a loyal audience (before ever launching the product)
• Why social media is their most powerful (and free) growth tool
• Tips for building in public, going viral, and managing content without a big team
• Balancing best-friend energy with business structure
• Their advice for new brand owners and how they’d approach hitting 7 figures from scratch

Grab a snack (maybe a pickle?) and get ready for a fresh, fun, and insightful conversation with two sharp ladies disrupting the sleepy pickle category. 🥒✨

Brands mentioned during this episode:

• Good Girl Snacks
• Erewhon
• Shoedog by Phil Knight
• Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle
• Pistakio
• Brave Sauce
• Reformation

Chapters

00:00
Welcome to Good Girl Snacks

01:14
The Art of Pickle Tasting

02:45
Flavor Innovations and New Releases

05:10
The Journey of Founders

09:27
Growing in Public: Social Media Strategy

13:35
Consistency and Authenticity in Content Creation

16:28
Roles and Responsibilities of Co-Founders

17:56
Maintaining Friendships in Business

20:04
Retail Success and Market Positioning

22:30
Balancing D2C and Retail Strategies

24:07
The Future of Social Commerce

25:32
Lessons Learned and E-commerce Insights

27:12
The Secret to Crunchy Pickles

28:49
Speed Round: Quick Insights