Mark Jones’ Post

Say goodbye to the drive-thru and say hello to Frosted Refreshers NOW available at Walmart! 🤩🛒 A huge shoutout to our team for making this happen! Have you spotted any in your nearest store? 👀 Let us know in the comments or comment below which store you'd like to see these in next! 👇 #cirkul #drinkcirkul #beverageindustry

Yesterday we sold out on Ulta.com… I know — it’s the week before Black Friday. We’re going to lose sales! We’re dissaponting our customers! Here’s why it happened, and why I think this the BEST outcome for us as a beauty brand. We launched our new Roller Rescue Soothing Serum less than 3 months ago! Every startup has costs and risk to manage. With this product we took a huge risk and made our 1st manufacturing run of 25,000 units. For us this was a huge investment. Typically we’d launch with only 10k units or less. The team was excited by the innovation, as it was our strongest formula ever with such a unique component — a stainless steel roller ball applicator. AND to top it all off it was only $19. Incredible value! Looking back you can say “wow if you were so bullish why didn’t you order more???” Well… sometimes as a business owner you are wrong! Imagine we bought 100,000 units and it was a flop? It’s impossible to predict success, but what’s amazing? Being successful and selling out twice as fast as expected. This product has sold out before we can keep up with demand. We expect a sold out period of about 30 days! Then we will see a huge spike in revenue this January. Sell outs aren’t fun, but if it’s due to a launch and immediate success! That’s a win! Consistent and frustrating sell outs? This isn’t what you want. Your retailers will be upset. Your team will be upset. And your clients will be upset. The lesson? Innovation in your product line will drive incredible success! AND with todays economic climate offering high quality products at affordable prices is a recipe for success 🎉

Listen, and learn -- from customers and the associates that interact with them. ✅ Walmart, ShopRite, Costco, Wegmans and Five intend to scale back self-checkout after widespread customer complaints. ✅ Walmart and other retailers are leaning in to creating a more inclusive in-store experience after positive reaction from pilot initiatives that create a more welcoming, less-sensory environment. Do you have a process in place for in-store feedback and observations to make its way to corporate decision-makers? What might you learn by listening? #customerexperience #inclusion #communication #retail

When you work in our trade, you really have to watch your filters. I looked at this Tony's Chocolonely display in Waitrose & Partners and at first thought there was a cheeky store manager putting private label on there, completely ignoring the messaging on the display. It’s good to have reminders like this. As soon as we forget to look at stores as shoppers, we’re not giving ourselves an honest appraisal. What’s your thoughts? Can you see what I missed at first! #shoppermarketing #fmcg

Such a refreshing and transparent post from Bushbalm's founder about the double-edged sword meaning of selling out for founder-led businesses in the beauty/well-being industry, especially as we approach BFCM.   → From a customer's perspective, we tend to experience 'sell-out' as 'frustrating.' From a founder's viewpoint, this is, most of the time, a cautionary mark (especially on the first run), as overstock is more troublesome than a sell-out. While repetitive sell-outs are undeniably hyper-frustrating and not a sustainable way for growth, as customers, we can offer kindness and support to those founder-led businesses in the arena during these times.   😊 Finally, it is super refreshing to see that there is a significant segment of the beauty and well-being industry moving towards inclusion—not just from the perspective of 'diversity & inclusion' (though obviously extremely important), but also from a financial standpoint, i.e., 'high quality at an affordable price.' The market has clearly spoken, with brands like #BeautyPie leading the way (the brand recently sold out their LED Mask in 1 hour, at an RRP which is one-third of their competitors - a clear testament to the quality of their products and their extremely engaged Beauty 'OG' audience, hats down!).   ✅Well-being should be accessible to all, and it's great to see that the market/industry is listening.

👶 In a crowded category and the even more crowded aisles of Walmart, DYPER needed to stand out. Informed by a sharpened strategy and defined codes, we reformatted their #packaging to craft a disruptive shelf presence that demands attention and maximises brand impact. Take a closer look ➡️ https://bit.ly/3Ajv2L5 #IdeasThatPowerProgress #CPG #CPGbrands

As the flight landed in Bentonville last December, Rachel Peters and I (knowing each other for just a few short months) both knew this was one of the biggest opportunities we'd ever get. Walking into HQ was pretty surreal – sitting in the special meeting room was even more surreal, but hearing, "We're thinking like 1800 stores now, not 400," was the most surreal. Our deodorant line would launch nationally, and we had nine months to prepare. In this industry, there's hardly any time to celebrate. Elation is immediately met head-on by fear. "Can we make this much deodorant? How are we going to get it there? How are we going to sell it? Will we make money?" So much work to do. So, for six months, the focus was on operations. We lowered our cost of goods by 19% by finding the right suppliers, reduced transportation costs by 40% with a new strategy and partners, and had countless meetings to dial in our forecasts.  We also aligned ourselves with the best in the business when it comes to sales and logistics. The team at Next Phase Enterprises (Diesha Smith, Rudy Lizaragga, Mista Asbury, Jason Hunt, Natasha Stamper) has a wealth of Walmart experience and helped guide us through some PO and item complications at the 11th hour. You're all legends. For the delivery side, we've partnered with RJW Logistics Group to offer the best service possible; reach out to our pal Jackie Marzano if Walmart is in your future! Getting to this launch week was not without some serious hiccups and hurdles, but our team worked through it with kindness and patience. I can confidently say the last six weeks were probably the most challenging weeks of my CPG career. And now, as we launch into 1867 stores in 50 states, it's even more surreal. Walking into Walmart and seeing our colorful deodorants sitting next to some massive players in the space is absolutely wild. I've been through my fair share of retailer launches, but right now, this one just hits a little different. So now we sell. Jessica Bruce, Rachel Peters, and I have been building the funnel, organizing our campaigns, and prepping for launch for months! Be on the lookout for fun content, coupons, and partnerships as we continue to build awareness. Thanks to all who helped get us to this point! Now we celebrate with tacos!

Here’s a snapshot of the Halloween Candy Leaderboard from our latest Amazon Market Watch. Read the full blog post to see who takes the top spot for Amazon sales and which treats from Ferrara, The Hershey Company, Mars Wrigley, Mondelēz International, and others make the board! 🔗 https://lnkd.in/g7zSpYHV You’ll also unearth insights on: ➡️ How much sales have spiked for costume brands like Spirit Halloween, Party City, Leg Avenue, and Rubies ➡️ The most popular Day of the Dead products on Amazon ➡️ Why fall is a crucial season for brands like The Yankee Candle Company, Inc. and La Jolie Muse ➡️ Which cold-weather treat wins in a sales battle of cider vs. hot chocolate And more!