Recess CEO Benjamin Witte challenges the notion that selling on Amazon harms brand perception, advocating for a holistic brand-building approach. He reveals a significant surge in e-commerce sales amidst the pandemic while discussing the complexities of navigating retail distribution and regulatory hurdles for CBD products. This episode offers valuable insights for CPG brands looking to build strong brand equity and adapt to evolving market dynamics.
Key takeaways
Brands should view themselves as media companies that monetize through products, building community and content around their core audience.
Leverage direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels and compelling online content to build brand equity and loyalty, especially during retail disruptions.
Critically evaluate assumptions about marketplace selling (e.g., Amazon) and consider how these platforms can complement a broader omnichannel strategy rather than dilute brand value.
Anticipate and adapt to regulatory landscapes, particularly for novel product categories, to strategically plan retail expansion.
Look beyond direct competitors for brand inspiration; draw lessons from successful "world-building" brands like Disney to create immersive customer experiences.
If Benjamin Witte talks about his beverage brand Recess as if it were a budding empire, it's because he's noticed the same broad ambitions among the sector's big players.
"Red Bull is a media company for the action sports community that monetizes through selling cans," Witte said on the Modern Retail Podcast. "We're speaking to creatives, just like Red Bull is speaking to the action sports community, and Gatorade is speaking to athletics."
To that end, Recess -- which sells fruity sparkling waters infused with that relaxing CBD -- is planning on rolling out compelling online content (without the help of influencers), merchandise, and "IRL experiences," Witte said.
The company launched in late 2018, and the coronavirus crisis isn't exactly slowing it down. E-commerce sales are up 5x, according to Witte, though he conceded that retail is predictably down. "No one's in Manhattan. We have a huge part of our sales come from the lunch crowd, the office crowd, the coffee shop crowd. That's gone. We're also not in the Targets and Walmarts yet because of the regulatory [element]. So we don't benefit from that, which is a lot of where the foot traffic is."
Witte talked about what CBD does for him, entering a retail sector without prior experience and why he looks to Disney instead of LaCroix.
Brands should view themselves as media companies that monetize through products, building community and content around their core audience.
What does this episode say about dtc strategy?
Leverage direct-to-consumer (DTC) channels and compelling online content to build brand equity and loyalty, especially during retail disruptions.
What does this episode say about amazon & marketplaces?
Critically evaluate assumptions about marketplace selling (e.g., Amazon) and consider how these platforms can complement a broader omnichannel strategy rather than dilute brand value.
What does this episode say about retail & omnichannel?
Anticipate and adapt to regulatory landscapes, particularly for novel product categories, to strategically plan retail expansion.
What does this episode say about brand & content?
Look beyond direct competitors for brand inspiration; draw lessons from successful "world-building" brands like Disney to create immersive customer experiences.
