It's a law of marketing seldom discussed, but first popularized by Byron Sharp many years ago. What's the gist? Well, the evidence shows that consumers with a robust set of brands they're content within a category are much harder to distract with a new brand
The face-to-face social bonding aspects of trade shows stand out to all of us as the most irreplaceable feature of the trade show. But do we need after-parties and cocktail events to move our businesses forward? Really? How many warm relationships become 'hot' after 10
When early-stage businesses struggle in the premium end of consumer-packaged-goods, a shocking number of founders and operators leap to the conclusion that they need a "brand refresh" or a "re-brand." Look, branding agencies are numerous, and they network heavily at Expo West. They sponsor events
If you’re not getting retail buyer meetings for annual reviews, what do you do? How do you push past this barrier? Here is how I would triage your thinking. Step back and re-evaluate your tactical approach to the buyer. Was it a partnership offer or a chest-beating pitch? Do
Co-manufacturing is how 95% of new CPG founders produce their goods. They have neither the capital nor the patience to finance and operate their own production facilities. It’s a lot to take on, so I get it, even if you can find an expert plant
The unspoken problem with encouraging more investments in female and minority-owned companies is that it encourages an already ongoing problem in the early-stage universe: predatory male investors targeting startup founders for manipulation/take-over. Women especially get targeted by these bad faith actors and have the most
For those of you who are launching online first and recognize that traditional retail is definitely in your future as you try to scale, a nagging question may arise: should I price online, assuming that in the future I'll need to accommodate retailer, distribution margins
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