From the Introduction to Ramping Your Brand Every year, I meet more smart and capable entrepreneurs who either set unrealistically fast growth rates or want to grow quickly but struggle to grow fast enough to gain leverage with the trade. Many have a distorted view of what
Before the pandemic, I routinely did store visits by key banner and channel to keep up to date one highly revealing variable: % of perimeter end caps with premium brands (early-stage or middle-market). It seems too simple at first until you step back and think about
In most major cities now, there are local CPG startup communities. Some cities, like the Bay Area, have multiple competing 'clubs.' This is where very young founders new to the industry tend to find themselves for support and peer-to-peer information sharing about operational basics. I have
Writing a creative brief is one of those BigCo professional practices that should be taking place at every consumer brand startup. Yet, I rarely meet founders who even know what I'm talking about when I mention this. It's partly because it's a stuffy BigCo term.
"Why did I get delisted at some stores and am growing velocities at other stores? Shouldn't my performance be similar in one metro area?" Well, no. No, not at all. New founders often experience the velocity continuum and get overly worried. It's basically a universal function for
Look, would you climb a 14,000 foot mountain without vetting your optimal route given current weather conditions or without making sure you have the right supplies and physical training? Would you go on a 200 mile bike ride without planning your route, bringing spare tubes,
It’s not uncommon for new consumer brands in retail to get caught up in a B2B mindset where founders unwittingly outsource sales strategy to brokers. Then, they’re basically managing the package graphics supply chain and a co-manufacturer. This situation describes at least ¾ of the businesses
Here’s a great anecdote from a very experienced Costco broker that is instructive for all fast-growing founders tempted to exaggerate their performance in PR: “I have lost count of brands bragging about their Costco numbers when they are on podcasts or on LinkedIn. Then I work
Let’s discuss an important, barely discussed, and uncomfortable truth: friends who are service providers. Maybe you went to school together. Pretty weak. Maybe you both surf. Weak, but interesting. Maybe you worked together. Better. Tell me more. Maybe you met and developed a she-mance at some founder round-up event.
Getting seduced by your own success is a thing. Whether it came right away or after years of struggle, it doesn’t matter. If you simply look at wholesale case volume growth, you may be in for a rude surprise in 6-9 months. You may find your