The Founder Files with Rach Tucker from Smooch Drinks: Before You Have a Product, You Are the Product
Welcome to The Founder Files, an inside look at the women building the next generation of category-defining companies. These conversations capture founders in moments of becoming. No polished retrospective or glossy highlights reel. This is where we catch ambitious women in motion: when the decisions are still hard, the outcomes still uncertain, and the lessons are still fresh enough to actually be useful.
Rach Tucker is no stranger to brand strategy or commercial problem-solving. By day, she’s a strategy director at one of Australia’s most iconic creative agencies. By night, she’s the founder of Smooch Drinks, Australia’s first arousal-enhancing functional beverage.
The problem she’s solving is one many of us are familiar with. Between stress, burnout and loneliness, we’re more disconnected than ever. Some experts are even calling it a “sex recession”: nearly one in five adults not experiencing intimacy in over a year, and only 53% of Aussies are satisfied with their sex life.
That’s where Smooch enters that chat: a sparkling elixir that makes getting in the mood as easy as cracking a can from the fridge.
Like many early-stage founders, Rach is navigating the challenge of building hype and growing a community pre-product. Her growth strategy is both simple and clever, offering a practical playbook to other founders asking the question, “How do I market my brand before we’ve launched our first product?”
In this conversation, Rach shares how she's tackling the sex recession one sip at a time, and why building in public before you have a product might just be her smartest move yet.
Q. Tell us about Smooch in your own words. What are you building, and why does it need to exist?
“Smooch — an arousal-enhancement functional beverage — is the antidote to this disconnected world. A sparkling elixir laced with natural actives to boost blood flow, melt stress, and ignite those pleasure pathways. It’s the first drink of its kind in Australia, but it builds on an age-old truth — humans have bonded over beverages for millennia. How many love stories or deep friendships started with ‘let’s grab a drink’?
Now, as nearly half of us swap booze for low or no-alcohol alternatives, the ritual of sharing a drink needs a glow-up. Smooch delivers that. The same sharing of a moment and flirtatious cheers, but optimised for meaningful connection. In a heavy world, this playful, chic, sexy little can is a catalyst for intimacy in a way that feels light, shared and accessible.”
Q. What does building this business actually look like right now? What's consuming most of your energy this week?
“Right now, building Smooch feels like a full-throttle hustle — all systems go for our target drop in July. By day, I’m a strategy director, by night and (and every crack of spare dawn) I’m a founder wearing three hats at once.
The first hat is brand storytelling. I’m hell-bent on growing Smooch before a single can is sold — letting people in on the journey. I’ve taken a page from the “building in public” playbook, sharing the process on social media, crafting TikTok and Instagram posts, and injecting personality and vulnerability at every turn. I hope it’s forging an early community that’s emotionally invested in Smooch and me as the founder.
The second hat is product perfectionist. A killer brand means nothing without a kickass product. So I’m obsessing over the liquid (tweaking sweetness, carbonation, and arousal actives) and the look (every design detail from the logo to the can’s sheen). I’ve pulled in three incredible partners to make this happen — one biochemist-formulator crafting what’s in the can, one operations expert navigating GTM and supply chains, and one design lord shaping Smooch’s visual identity. Together, we’re making sure that Smooch works and wows.
The third hat is money hunter. You can’t vibe code your way around a CPG product; beverages are famously capital-intensive. So I’m pitching investors, drawing up SAFE notes, hunting down grants, even contemplating tapping into my home equity (much to my boyfriend’s and parents' dismay).
I know this frantic juggle is the price of admission for launching something truly special.”
Q. What do you know about arousal enhancement/functional beverages that most people are still sleeping on?
“Two big lessons have hit me as I delve into sexual wellness and functional beverages.
First: in the intimacy realm, language matters. When it comes to challenges in the bedroom, there’s no silver bullet. In researching with sexologists and therapists, I learned to never position Smooch as the cure or solution, but as one tool in your pleasure toolbox. People struggling with intimacy don’t need overblown promises that leave them feeling even more broken. I even became a student of vocabulary: understanding that libido (overall sex drive), desire (the mental want for sex), and arousal (the body’s physical response) are distinct facets. Framing Smooch clearly within this is critical.
Second: the functional beverage space is exploding. This is the one corner of the drinks market that’s growing like crazy (we’re talking a global market racing toward $314 billion by 2035). Why? Because people are tired of empty calories and next-morning regret — we’re all about optimisation now.
“We count steps, swallow supplements, let our ring track our sleep — of course, we want our drinks to do more for us too. Functional drinks deliver benefit —focus, calm, immunity, you name it — while still feeling adult and fun. Intimacy and sexual wellness, though, remain a largely untapped function.” - Rach Tucker
It’s wild because a healthy sex life isn’t just about joy and connection in the moment; it’s linked to better mental health and longevity. So I see massive potential at this intersection of wellness and pleasure. My vision is a whole lineup of sexy, good-for-you products that help people optimise their sex lives the way they’re already optimising everything else.”
Q. What's the hardest call you've had to make so far - and would you make the same decision again?
“The 'hardest' call I’ve made so far is one that didn’t feel hard at all. I gave up a slice of my business to bring on an expert advisor. Conventional founder wisdom says 'hold onto your ownership,” but I’d choose a smaller piece of a bigger pie over 100% of nothing any day. By trading a few percentage points, I gained a powerhouse partner who’s already multiplying Smooch’s value. My advisor has deep FMCG experience, a sixth sense for product development and supply chains, and she fills the gaps in my own skill set. To me, that’s priceless. I’d make the same decision again without blinking.
“My advice to other founders? Don’t let ego or fear of dilution stop you from onboarding someone who can massively level up your business.” - Rach Tucker
Just choose wisely — make sure they bring something pivotal that you don’t, that they believe in your vision, and that they’re as passionate as you are. If they check those boxes, giving up a bit of equity isn’t a cost, it’s an investment.”
Q. What's the one thing you wish someone had handed you at the start - a framework, a rule, a piece of advice - that you've had to figure out the hard way?
“When I first set out to turn this idea into a real company, I was hit with information overload. Confession: one of the first things I asked ChatGPT was ‘How to make a business legit’. I got 40 dot points back. Fucking overwhelming.
I didn’t need paragraphs on registering for an ABN; I needed a damn checklist. In hindsight, I wish someone had handed me a simple, prioritised to-do list for setting up shop. Something like: make sure your name is free on IP Australia’s trademark search, register the business with ASIC, file the trademark application, grab all your social media handles, lock down your domain name, and link it to your Shopify.
Founders are generally smart, scrappy people. We can figure stuff out, but we’re also insanely busy and often flying solo. We don’t need a novel on the process, just the crib notes. I ended up piecing it together myself the hard way, but you can bet I’m writing it all down to pay it forward to the next newbie who asks.”
Q.As a founder in the pre-product stage, what tactics have you found most effective in building hype and increasing waitlist signups? Any tips for other early-stage founders?
“Before you have a product, you’re the product.” - Rach Tucker
“With no actual beverage on the market (yet), what I’m really selling is me — my passion, perspective, the why behind Smooch. So I’ve made a pact with myself to be unflinchingly authentic and present on social media. TikTok, especially, has been a game-changer. I’m still in awe of how one quirky clip can reach thousands of strangers overnight.
The strategy is simple in theory and labour-intensive in practice. Capture everything and share it in a relatable way. I rope in friends for cameos, I riff on whatever pop culture moment is trending (a reality show, a meme, you name it) and spin it back to the startup grind or sexual.
I spill the behind-the-scenes tea: the nerves, the inner monologue, the victories, the late nights. You have to give a big piece of yourself to get people to care. I haven’t quite bared all (my own sex life hasn’t hit the feed… yet), but I’m inching towards deeper transparency because I feel the audience can sense realness and they crave it. The upside of all this is a growing waitlist and community that isn’t just vaguely aware of Smooch; they’re rooting for it and me.”
Want to follow the Smooch journey?
Smooch is launching in mid 2026, and trust us, you want to be first in line.
Join the waitlist for early access, exclusive updates, and first dibs when the cans drop.
Keep up with the build in real time by following Smooch on Instagram and TikTok — Rach shares the unfiltered behind-the-scenes so you never miss a moment.
And if you're a founder who resonated with Rach's story, follow her journey on LinkedIn.