Liquid Death started as a fun experiment for founder Mike Cessario, who just wanted to make his friends laugh. Turns out, it was a billion-dollar idea — but let’s start at the beginning.

As a former creative director, Cessario was tired of catering to corporate advertising clients. He wanted to sell his canned water company with as much creative freedom as unhealthy brands have. With less than $5,000, he launched his business and turned it into the most popular water brand on social media, outshining competitors with clever marketing strategies to “murder your thirst.”

“To come up with truly innovative ideas, you basically have to trick your brain to do something that it thinks is a bad idea,” Cessario says. “Your brain is so programmed to do the things it’s seen a million times before that most of the ideas you come up with, it’s already been done a million times or it’s not actually innovative because it makes too much sense. Almost always some of the best ideas come from unexpected places.”

Liquid Death’s magic isn’t just about good marketing; it’s also about doing good. Recyclable cans are infinitely better for the environment than plastic bottles, and 10% of the company’s profits go towards cleaning up oceans. Watch to learn more about how Cessario got his sustainable product in stores.