retail Tag

Negotiating With Buyers Like a Pro

You probably think the photo here must surely be an exaggerated analogy. But this is only because your physical life is not really at stake when a retailer takes advantage of you. It’s just a business, after all. Yet, I continue to work with clients

How Trader Joe’s Survived COVID-19 Without Online Services…

Wait. What? TJ's doesn't do curbside pickup? Curbside bag dump? Won't let Instacart inside? Really? They must be bankrupt by now? Yeah, Yeah, this is where my mind went in summer when I discovered that Trader Joe's made no precisely no changes to its no

Get Real on Barriers to Premium Uptake in Retail

I know “barriers” is a downer word, but it’s not just a marketing concept. It’s one of the more sobering realities entrepreneurs must face as they pursue growth. Deny barriers to trying your brand at your peril. Some premium innovations have few obstacles to uptake

Walmart Shoppers Don’t Care Much About Premium Goods

It continues to amaze me how many premium CPG startups get sucked into the PR machine of Bentonville, Arkansas. 4,800 stores sound like a ton of volume. Except for the fact that the majority o shoppers who buy their groceries there just don't care about

Using a Retail Account as a Word-of-Mouth Marketing Trigger

In the early years of growing a consumer brand, just getting to $1M in trailing annual sales is a near-death experience for the vast majority of founders. Unicorn velocities bless very few CPG startups. The temptation early on to add together any retail account that