Niche-ing down doesn't just apply to CPG brands creating a customer profile... It applies to every business, no matter your industry. Let's look at the brokerage world as an example. If I say to you "I'm a food broker and can get you into Retail" - do you believe me? Do you believe I can get you into Sprouts, Whole Foods, Target, Costco, Etc? What if I say "I'm a Target Broker" - do you think I can get you in to the whole store? Can I rep you as a Food brand, or a toy company, or an electronics product? How about I'm a Target Broker that works on the food business helping Branded companies gain placement & manage day-to-day operations. Does that paint a slightly different picture? Is that a little more clear if I'm the right fit for you or not? Too many people stay generic with what they say they are. And then they run around like chickens with their head cut off trying to service every and any business partner across an entire industry... And then wonder why they aren't breaking through anywhere. Back to the CPG learning.. Switchback Foods wanted to be the after workout Smoothie mix for replenishing glycogen, but we also wanted to be Mom's afternoon snack for her kids, or the future D1 Hockey player that needed more greens in their diet, or Dad's way to more fruits & veggies throughout the day. All those positions work - but we finally put a stake in the ground and just picked one. Clarity > Chaos
Matt Adelmann’s Post
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Retail Growth Strategist for Emerging CPG Brands | Faire Sales Specialist | Founder & CEO @Product & Prosper, @The Prosper Lab, @The Retail Lab
I've been seeing a *lot* of CPG brands make this same mistake: They're seeing closures of many key paths to market (like Foxtrot), and taking it as a sign that they should go straight to big retail. But let's be clear: **Most brands should NOT launch straight into big retail.** Historically, brands that have found success by launching straight into big retail share these characteristics (from what I’ve analyzed): → They have an extremely large addressable market → They have pre-existing brand awareness → They have access to capital and a retail execution network → They have a relatively simple product innovation that most people will understand immediately Think: Oreo’s Double Stuffed, Liquid Death Water in a Can, Sugar Free Coke If this doesn't describe you, proceed with caution. Retail can be your biggest sales channel...when you’re ready. But we need to respect the growth curve. Instead? Invest your time into other entry points to market for emerging CPG brands, like: 🌟 INFRA 🌟 Pod Foods 🌟 Faire 🌟 Pop Up Grocer 🌟 National Co+op Grocers Want to take this build-up approach to retail...but don't know where to begin? I'd love to support you on your journey going to retail. Shoot me a DM!
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When a product is marketed right.
Guess which bag sold better — even though the product was EXACTLY the same! The answer: When the bag said “chicken chips”, the product barely moved off shelves. When the bag said “protein chips”, sales exploded. Why? Answer: Nobody’s heard of chicken chips — so it sounded weird and unfamiliar. But people are very familiar with protein bars, protein shakes, and protein everything, so now it made sense. "A smart gentleman once told me, 'People don't buy what they don't know,'" Wilde Brands founder Jason Wright told me, after making this change. "And it's 100% true." It doesn’t matter how innovative you are — you must also build what I call the "bridge of familiarity." Start with what your customer already loves, in the language they already use. Then work backwards from there. 🚨 Are you an EARLY-STAGE CPG founder? If so, please DM me — I’m working on something exciting that could help you.
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I make startups GROW! Growth Mentor/Coach /Advisory /Tech Angel. Creating exceptional companies with exceptional founders.
Intriguing idea – the ‘bridge of familiarity’, don’t you think? The idea that you should start with what the customer already loves and build from a language they are already familiar with. Protein chips not chicken chips. Plenty of A/B testing possibilities here. Do you have any thoughts on brands that have got it right and got it wrong? When Tesla introduced their electric vehicles, they positioned them as high-performance luxury cars, similar to familiar brands like Mercedes-Benz or BMW. This helped build the bridge of familiarity for consumers with premium quality and performance brands. What about the Apple Watch? Apple positioned it as a wearable device, building on the familiarity of watches and helping customers understand the product's purpose and functionality more easily. And in #fundraising? Does this idea help? It can be a powerful tool to help investors understand and relate to your product or service. Founders – when you call your product / service the ‘Uber of’ or the ‘AirBnB of’ you’re using that analogy to build familiarity with a strong and familiar brand. This could be in terms of functionality, it could be a similar business model, you could possibly be imputing scale potential - but you better hope your product lives up to comparison. Think that through first. When you are trying to share with #investors who your ideal customer persona is, using familiar archetypes or demographics that investors can easily relate to, such as "millennials" or "urban professionals" can also help. The "bridge of familiarity" idea can help investors understand and appreciate the novelty and potential of your idea as well as provide them with a known framework to evaluate and comprehend it. You might use this to increase their confidence and willingness to invest – a useful insight. Try AngelThink for 150 insights on how to attract investors. #AngelThink
Guess which bag sold better — even though the product was EXACTLY the same! The answer: When the bag said “chicken chips”, the product barely moved off shelves. When the bag said “protein chips”, sales exploded. Why? Answer: Nobody’s heard of chicken chips — so it sounded weird and unfamiliar. But people are very familiar with protein bars, protein shakes, and protein everything, so now it made sense. "A smart gentleman once told me, 'People don't buy what they don't know,'" Wilde Brands founder Jason Wright told me, after making this change. "And it's 100% true." It doesn’t matter how innovative you are — you must also build what I call the "bridge of familiarity." Start with what your customer already loves, in the language they already use. Then work backwards from there. 🚨 Are you an EARLY-STAGE CPG founder? If so, please DM me — I’m working on something exciting that could help you.
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Capture, Clarify and Convince. It starts with the design but then, yes, how do you clarify your product to win the purchase.
Guess which bag sold better — even though the product was EXACTLY the same! The answer: When the bag said “chicken chips”, the product barely moved off shelves. When the bag said “protein chips”, sales exploded. Why? Answer: Nobody’s heard of chicken chips — so it sounded weird and unfamiliar. But people are very familiar with protein bars, protein shakes, and protein everything, so now it made sense. "A smart gentleman once told me, 'People don't buy what they don't know,'" Wilde Brands founder Jason Wright told me, after making this change. "And it's 100% true." It doesn’t matter how innovative you are — you must also build what I call the "bridge of familiarity." Start with what your customer already loves, in the language they already use. Then work backwards from there. 🚨 Are you an EARLY-STAGE CPG founder? If so, please DM me — I’m working on something exciting that could help you.
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The curse of knowledge. A phenomenon in psychology research that captures the idea that once you understand something well, it becomes difficult to imagine what it's like to not know it. As founders, we get so familiar (and passionate) with our products and services that we forget how confusing it can be for someone new. This often shows up in our marketing as: - jargon-filled messages - overly complex explanations - confusing messaging I continue to work on this as well. Things that I've found helped me are: - ask others - getting fresh outside perspectives is the quickest way to spot inconsistencies - focus on benefits, not features - keep it simple - where can I remove unnecessary details? What is understandable at first glance?
Guess which bag sold better — even though the product was EXACTLY the same! The answer: When the bag said “chicken chips”, the product barely moved off shelves. When the bag said “protein chips”, sales exploded. Why? Answer: Nobody’s heard of chicken chips — so it sounded weird and unfamiliar. But people are very familiar with protein bars, protein shakes, and protein everything, so now it made sense. "A smart gentleman once told me, 'People don't buy what they don't know,'" Wilde Brands founder Jason Wright told me, after making this change. "And it's 100% true." It doesn’t matter how innovative you are — you must also build what I call the "bridge of familiarity." Start with what your customer already loves, in the language they already use. Then work backwards from there. 🚨 Are you an EARLY-STAGE CPG founder? If so, please DM me — I’m working on something exciting that could help you.
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In retail, every setback is a lesson in disguise. The saying “Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor” couldn't be more spot on. Retail is fast and unpredictable. Trends change, customers evolve, and things don’t always go as planned. But those flops? They’re where we learn the most. Each failure teaches us something new, helping us refine our strategies and get better. Think about it – without those bumps in the road, our successes wouldn't be nearly as sweet. So, let’s embrace our mistakes and see them for what they are: essential ingredients that make our successes even more delicious. Here’s to learning from our failures and celebrating our wins! El fracaso es el condimento que da sabor al éxito. —Truman Capote #Retail #Success #Learning #Innovation #Growth
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As we reach the six-year mark since launching Viande Dry, I want to share some key insights. In these years, we’ve listened to consumer feedback, adapting our products to better meet their needs. It’s been a process of trial and error, one that has deepened our understanding of how our customers engage with what we offer. Despite our progress, there's still a long way to go. This experience has taught me that growth requires a genuine connection with our consumers. It's about more than just delivering a product; it’s about being in tune with their preferences and being willing to pivot when necessary. In a world that’s always changing, our ability to listen and adapt is key to staying relevant and building lasting relationships.
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Are you a frozen food CPG brand? Are you tired of the state of the distribution ecosystem? Disillusioned and confused with fees and opacity around every corner? Want to break into retail with a partner who is invested in your success as you are? Introducing Dr. DisCo (1000mg of FUN), from the makers of The DisCo. Did you know 100% of American doctors recommended lowering your stress? Just one dose of Dr. Disco from The DisCo is PROVEN to lower your stress and reinvigorate your brand. SIDE EFFECTS INCLUDE: Fun, increased fun, maximization of fun, hilarity, profit, and increased (brand) size. If you or someone you know could benefit from lower stress and transparent distribution ecosystem, feel free to shoot us an email at [email protected].
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Recovering Perfectionist | Storyteller learning to be human afresh everyday | Inclusion Guide | Experiential Marketer| Queer & Neurodivergent
The cost of ignorance can be the difference between where you are and where you want to be. I may be unpredictable, selective and biased towards creative folks but I am definitely not ignorant. I thrive on awareness of where I am today and where I would like to be in near future. Most people subconsciously pick up the phone on me for this and call it my problem solving skill. The truth is different Where is this coming from? So my business partner calls frantically worried that he's lost data from 2015 projects for showing our relevant credentials to a purchase manager in a FMCG major I laughed and let him know that it made a little difference to the decisions of a Quick Commerce and Modern Trade POS innovations chasing folks. They seek solutions of the future today from a team that will deliver them cheap and quick to satisfy their fantasy of having done their job well by achieving this. He agreed to look at benchmarks of portfolios others are presenting and meeting it's data, storytelling and design rather than worrying about 5 pictures of an expo stall branding done ages back What's your take on how ignorance keeps people limited? I say the cost can be business of a few millions because you didn't clear your mind #FoodForThought #LearnerForLife #Futurist #ChangeTheNarrative #MindfulnessAtWork #SupplyChain #DemandForecasting #Procurement #WorkplaceWisdom #BehaviourScience
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