"I remember my friends ... joking like, 'Ethan, how is your tofu factory?'" he says.
Today, at 49, Brown has 12 years at Beyond Meat, a successful IPO and a personal reported net worth of nearly $400 million under his belt. Brown lives in the Los Angeles Area with his wife and two kids, a son and a daughter.
Here, Brown talks to CNBC Make It about his productive trick for dealing with negativity, quitting his day job, his daily routine and more.
On dealing with naysayers: 'You have to let it fuel you'
You have to let [criticism] fuel you. There is no other way to deal with it in my view.