How Matt Orlić Lost It All, Built a Skincare Empire & Found Meaning
OPERATORS · with Matt Orlić · March 18, 2026 · 66 min
Summary
Matt Orlić, a serial entrepreneur, shares his journey from losing $5 million in a retail venture to building a near 9-figure skincare empire, Kōl Skincare. This episode offers valuable lessons on resilience, strategic pivots from B2B to D2C, identifying market opportunities, and the importance of purpose-driven entrepreneurship beyond just profit.
Key takeaways
Embrace failure as a rite of passage: Orlić's $5 million loss fueled his drive for success and provided invaluable lessons.
Pivot strategically: After a major retail setback, Orlić shifted his entire business model to direct-to-consumer, leading to rapid growth with his first D2C brand, Skywalkers.
Identify product gaps and innovate: Kōl Skincare succeeded by bringing clinical beauty treatments, like LED masks, to an accessible at-home market, even patenting unique product designs.
Leverage influencer marketing for new product launches: Orlić used collaborations with Sony Music to get his headphone brand into major retail, and influencer marketing was key to scaling Kōl Skincare, especially for high AOV products.
Don't be afraid to expand into new product categories to acquire customers and grow: Kōl Skincare's growth exploded after introducing a new product category that brought more attention to the brand.
“The difference between authentic money and inauthentic money is that it has some kind of inherent meaning to it.” Sean Frank (CEO of Ridge) and Matt Bertulli (CEO of Pela Case and Lomi) sit down with Matt Orlić — Co-Founder of Qure Skincare and founder of Ecomm Architects. Together, they trace one of the most unconventional paths in ecommerce. From losing 80% of his net worth at 25 to reverse-engineering the habits of successful founders, Orlić’s story is a masterclass in resilience and reinvention. The conversation covers how Qure scaled toward nine figures by building distinctly designed, clinically inspired products and pairing them with a sophisticated influencer strategy. They dig into the “spherical scaling system” Orlić developed for creative angles and awareness-level ad spend, why building on someone else’s land is a risk worth managing rather than avoiding, and how coaching 150 ecommerce brands gave him something money never could. Orlić also unpacks the messy realities of TikTok Shop, bootstrapping globally without access to institutional capital, and why focus — ruthless, unglamorous focus on one thing — was the single biggest unlock in his career. Connect with Matt Orlić https://youtu.be/rX-bqR3deNk?si=bZQXYRYsqvYP8uci www.ecommarchitect.comPowered ByFulfilhttps://bit.ly/3pAp2vuAftersellhttps://9ops.c
What does this episode say about founder & leadership?
Embrace failure as a rite of passage: Orlić's $5 million loss fueled his drive for success and provided invaluable lessons.
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Pivot strategically: After a major retail setback, Orlić shifted his entire business model to direct-to-consumer, leading to rapid growth with his first D2C brand, Skywalkers.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Identify product gaps and innovate: Kōl Skincare succeeded by bringing clinical beauty treatments, like LED masks, to an accessible at-home market, even patenting unique product designs.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
Leverage influencer marketing for new product launches: Orlić used collaborations with Sony Music to get his headphone brand into major retail, and influencer marketing was key to scaling Kōl Skincare, especially for high AOV products.
What does this episode say about founder & leadership?
Don't be afraid to expand into new product categories to acquire customers and grow: Kōl Skincare's growth exploded after introducing a new product category that brought more attention to the brand.
