Stuart Straus

🔍 Curious about what goes on behind the scenes in supplement manufacturing? I know that choosing the ideal manufacturing process can make or break a brand’s success. Whether it’s private label for speed or contract manufacturing for customization, each approach offers unique benefits. Recently, I compared these two options to help you understand their main differences and benefits. Now, you can read a new blog post on our website focusing on: ➡️ The step-by-step process behind private label and custom supplement manufacturing ➡️ Considerations for your brand at every stage ➡️ Tips on choosing the right path for your brand If you want to create a high-quality supplement line, this guide is for you. You can find the link in the comment section. #supplementmanufacturing #foodsupplements #business

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Before 1936, the dietary supplements market was seen as an obscure product category marketed to the diseased and the elderly. But, thanks to the work of researchers, scientists, bodybuilders, and skilled entrepreneurs, this global market is worth over $178B! But how did we get here? AN EARLY HISTORY 🍋 Supplements didn’t become a formal industry until the early 1900s. Polish biochemist Casimir Funk spent years conducting research on what he referred to as "vital amines" (or "vitamines") and their impact on human health. In a landmark 1912 paper, he hypothesized that certain illnesses were the result of a deficiency in various “vital amenes”, causing pellagra, rickets, and other serious diseases. At around the same time, vitamins B1, A, D, and C were discovered, isolated, and identified as essential nutrients in the human diet. As the link between diseases and vitamin deficiencies became clearer, governments around the world began launching public health campaigns to educate the public. This helped lead to the rise of health stores like Lackzoom (now GNC), which was started in 1935. These health stores sold tonics, elixirs, medicines, vitamins, and other “cures”. But, similar to a pharmacy, their primary purpose was solely to treat illness or prevent diseases. A BOOST FROM BODYBUILDING 💪🏻 It wasn’t until the end of WWII that many people began viewing supplements as possible enhancements for the healthy, rather than just cures for the sick. The popularization of bodybuilding (and the accompanying performance-enhancing compounds) by Joe Weider and Arnold Schwarzenegger also helped introduce holistic health into the public consciousness. Over the next few decades, the range of supplements expanded gradually with multivitamins, amino acids, protein powder, herbal extracts, and more. The early 2000s brought cutting-edge brands that were applying rigorous scientific study to the creation of health compounds and supplements. INDUSTRY OPPORTUNITIES TODAY 💊 Now consumers are more curious and more sophisticated than ever before. The Baby Boomer generation is entering retirement age and millions of people, young and old, are set on improving their quality of life. Countless new opportunities are arising as a result of shifting consumer preferences, like: 1. An increased interest in personalized supplements tailored to individual health goals, genetic factors, and lifestyle preferences. 2. Demand for functional ingredients that provide measurable improvements to their health. 3. Curiosity about new packaging formats such as single-serve, chewable, and RTD. - - - - - Want to learn more? The Cartograph team recently published a whitepaper summarizing: - Key players in the supplement market and their strategies - Additional gaps and opportunities in the supplements space for Amazon sellers - Cartograph’s playbook for building and launching a supplement brand Check out the entire document linked in the comments below 👇💊👇

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What's up, Gang? Ready for another eye-opening episode of "Ask the Doc"? 🚀 This week Dr. V is diving deep into the future of our social security system. 💥 In Episode 23, Dr. V breaks down the 4 crucial changes our government needs to make to ensure social security is still around for younger generations. Will these changes benefit us? Or drive us deeper into financial crisis? What do you think? Will our social security system be a Boom or a Bust?! 🕵️‍♂️👇🌟 Got more topics you want Dr. V to cover? Drop your suggestions in the comments! We want to know what you're curious about! 💬✨ https://lnkd.in/ecTjdFTz #AskTheDoc #DrVPodcast #SocialSecurity #BoomOrBust #Episode23 #PatreonExclusive #PodcastGang #FinancialWisdom #InvestingTips #FinanceGoals #RetirementPlanning #SmartInvesting #MoneyManagement #FuturePlanning #WealthBuilding #FinancialFreedom #podcastlife

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The LITTLE stuff Matters BIG. Product subcategory nuances get overlooked today. These gaps are where we find ways to win, so I hope my thoughts here helps some of you! Consumption format, packaging, ingredients, etc… Everything matters, and some way more than others, depending on the overall category. This is where the uniqueness for brands can really get granular. The trick is to do without confusing the customer! Instead, you have to lean into what you’re good at, but with unique points of differentiation — that solve the most important problems for the sub-demographic you’re targeting. It’s harder than it looks and I’m always amazed at what some of the great brands out there can do here. Some like C4, are inspiring. It all comes down to messaging and marketing what the differences are, and why you have these “other options”. What do my fellow cpg brand people think?? Below is an example of our we VMI Sports® try to delineate the different versions of our KXR®️ Pre Workout. Graphic credit to our very own Andres Sierra PS— if you’ve read this far, I’ll tell you, we have another version of KXR®️, coming soom 👀 #cpgbranding #dietarysupplements #preworkout #protein #supplements #brandingandmarketing #innovation Ryan Fitzgerald Christopher Alicea Brandyn Alejos Frank Fenimore

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My thoughts 💭 on the Marketing Technology Utilization based on the latest CMO Survey 📊. It's not all about chasing the shiniest new tool ⚙️. It's about picking what works for your customer journey 🗺️ and marketing processes 🔄.

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Is the “often imitated, never duplicated” influential epicenter of all ingestible CPG categories ready to disrupt its next market? No...this isn’t another content piece about the competitive landscape “changing of the guard” happening within mega categories like energy, hydration, or protein. Instead, I want to provide further support for another one of my ongoing sports/active nutrition predictions…which is that more brands will begin disrupting the global stock markets soon. It was confirmed by British media that UK-based sports nutrition brand Applied Nutrition was moving forward with plans for a potential late-2024 IPO on the London Stock Exchange…seeking to value the company at more than $1.25 billion. Based on its projected current fiscal-year revenue of $110 million (and $32 million in pre-tax profit), that reported valuation sought seems more inflated than the Michelin Man! But don't get it twisted, I'm not stating my opinion around that non-sensible valuation because I think Applied Nutrition is a garbage company. On the contrary, I very much respect the asset-heavy build model, consistent top- and bottom-line growth, and overall ethics of Thomas Ryder (and his company). And finally, I'll breakdown arguably the most important market for Applied Nutrition, which is also the largest in terms of global supplement sales. There has already been big changes within the U.S. subsidiary of Applied Nutrition (AN Performance) and I'll share my thoughts around what strategic challenges Aaron Heidebreicht could face ahead... #strategy #trends #markets #fmcg #cpg #sportsnutrition #supplements #food #beverages #protein #energydrinks #wellness #nutrition #health #investing #innovation #marketing #branding #productdevelopment #retailing #merchandising #retail #grocery #business #businessintelligence #entrepreneurship https://lnkd.in/g-ij7RiY

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Hey guys/gals! You have to take a moment and invest in yourself by listening to these insights shared between myself and David Shriner-Cahn. If you've been thinking of reinventing yourself whether in business for yourself or within a company, this may be the best 30 minutes you spend investing in your career / business growth. Check it out and while you're at it, please connect with David Shriner-Cahn; truly a great human!

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Almost every CPG brand and manufacturer I've worked with has these 3 problems -lack of patience -limited technical knowledge -reliance on relationships vs data You can be patient AND move quickly if you learn how to plan and stop pretending your scrappiness is a competitive advantage You can build on technical familiarity to become a SME, if you are offered the resources and take it seriously Most client<>supplier relationships are great when its easy, has yours been challenged? Slow is steady, steady is smooth, smooth is fast In the startup environment, you have a new business every day and making decisions with incomplete information is sometimes worth the risk I get it and I agree to some extent After all, we're a startup too When you STOP being a startup, but still behave like one, you are playing with people's lives at a massive scale Take the time to do things right If you miss opportunities because you weren't prepared with data, documentation, etc., that's not the fault of your quality and compliance team in many startup environments It's the fault of your CEO for not taking those functions seriously until it's too late Patience, technical training, and data-driven decisions can save your business and maybe even a life or two And that's pretty cool #quality #compliance #manufacturing #CPGindustry #dietarysupplements #foodandbeverage #cosmetics #beautyindustry #food

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We don’t pay attention to price point when creating our products… We prioritize dosage. Why? Because we want our products to actually provide what we’re advertising. If you’re putting price first – you’re going to sacrifice on the quality of the product and it’ll easily be seen and felt by consumers. Especially in the health and wellness space, if you’re going in with that mindset, you’re not going to succeed. We build the ideal product we want, note dosage, and then decide COGS and price point. Manufacturer prices it out [depending on the type of product (pill or powder) prices vary], but we make sure we have the proper dosage we’re looking for.

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Great to see what a difference branding and positioning can make.

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Industry pundits are going to analyze the heck out of this, but it’s really not that complicated. One. Can’t make money if the payor is your competitor and they pay you less than cost. How exactly do you downsize your way out of that? You don’t…just sticking fingers in the dam to hold it together a little bit longer... maybe until the FTC lawsuit works itself out? Everything else below is a subpoint. Pre-PBM monopoly this was a 23% gross margin business. Hard to believe today. Two. No one wants to go to a damn Walgreens for their medical care. Stop with the primary care destination garbage. It’s the one part of medical care that’s reimbursed even worse than pharmacy, only a pharmacy business would think it looks lucrative. Three. Non-pharmacy sales are a matter of convenience, end of story. Anyone including Walgreens current CEO who thinks they’re going to be a shopping destination is in fantasyland. People go there for convenience or out of necessity, that’s it. Before e-commerce this side was a 35% gross margin business. Not anymore. They don’t even let their store managers make any merchandising decisions today. Which brings me to my next point… Four. Quality of leadership has taken a nose dive because they don’t let the front line do anything anymore or make any decisions. Extremely unfulfilling job I’d imagine. People are surprised to hear this, but the quality of the general managers used to be superb. Five. Walgreens didn’t go after the PBM market 20 years ago when they had the chance because they thought the FTC would never allow it… Boy were they wrong. But I think they’ll be on the right side of history when the PBMs get broken up. At least I hope so.

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Pepsi just acquired seed-oil free Siete Family Foods for $1.2 BILLION and I have been seeing A LOT of people freaking out that Big Food is going to ruin their favorite brand. Y’all need to chill out. Big Food buying smaller start-up brands does NOT mean they are going to destroy all of the values that made them great to begin with. Here are examples to help you settle down… 🥩 EPIC Provisions, makers of meat bars and snacks, was acquired by General Mills in 2016 and since then they only increased their distribution meaningfully (I can buy them at airports!), fund studies on regenerative agriculture, and launched fully regenerative products. The founders also turned around and plowed their proceeds into a legendary bison ranch and Force of Nature Meats. (cc Robby Sansom) 🥗 Primal Kitchen, avocado oil mayo and dressing, was acquired by Kraft in 2019 and has increased their distribution massively and is now rolling out sophisticated purity testing on all of their avocado oil. (cc Mark Sisson Morgan Buehler Zanotti) 🐓 Pasturebird pasture-raised chicken was acquired by Purdue in 2020 and now they are having much more impact on transparency and soil building, rapidly improving their technology, and the founder is spreading the gospel of pasture-raised chicken throughout an otherwise stagnant corporation. (cc Paul Greive) 🍫 Hu, makers of chocolate bars, was acquired by Mondelez in 2021 and put a no ingredient change clause and now their bars are displacing other trash products in way more locations. (cc Jason H. Karp) 🐮 Vital Proteins, the brand responsible for building the entire collagen market, was acquired by Nestle in 2020. They have since dramatically improved their own manufacturing, brought the cost of collagen down for millions, and now are rolling out far more sustainable paper packaging. (cc Kurt Seidensticker) Just because your favorite chip brand sold to a larger business doesn’t mean they “sold out.” If anything, it shows huge outcomes are possible in the better-for-you space and that is a GREAT thing. We are a society based on incentives. Smart people focus their attention where the money is. “Make healthy products, make tons of money” is an excellent perspective. If motivated entrepreneurs see that it’s possible to make over a billion dollars creating seed-oil-free products, maybe we’ll have better innovation in the food space and more smart people building great things instead of useless apps and AI widgets no one needs. And ultimately if PepsiCo ruins Siete and you don't like the outcome, then stop bitching from the sidelines, get in the arena, and build what you want yourself like they did back in 2014.

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Check out the new Market Insider article over my book, The 80/20 CEO! It is such an honor to be showcased on this platform as I have been an avid viewer for many years. The insight this article offers into my novel is extraordinary, I hope you all are able to get as much out of it as I have! Read the article here: https://loom.ly/Wkpn020

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