This is How I Work, a series where founders, CEOs and leaders share the essentials that help them do what they do, from their morning routines to productivity tools. Are cold plunges a fad? Or is the trend of submerging yourself in freezing cold water — preferably while filming yourself for your social feed — here to stay? For that answer, look at the year Plunge just had. “We launched 12 new products this year,” Ryan Duey, co-founder and CEO of Plunge, which makes cold plunge tubs and saunas, said on a Zoom call last month. “We went from a single product to this whole portfolio, different categories this year. We’re fundamentally a different business now.” That’s a business that did $4.9 million in sales in their first year after launching in 2020, as noted in their pitch on Shark Tank. In 2024, Plunge surpassed the $100 million revenue mark. Other than jumping in a frigid 48-degree tub every single day of his life (that’s his ideal temperature, though the tubs can get colder), how does Duey manage a company of 150 full-time employees who are making and selling tens of millions of dollars worth of plunges and saunas? As he detailed, his routine involves a personal trainer, Sundays for the boys and thinking a lot about the Roman Empire. |