This episode highlights how CPG brands can leverage natural grocers like Sprouts for rapid scaling and product discovery. It showcases how Sprouts' nationwide model and targeted in-store programs offer a fast track for emerging 'better-for-you' brands to gain market traction and cultivate repeat customers, ultimately driving growth in a competitive retail landscape.
Bea Dixon, founder and CEO of plant-derived feminine care brand The Honey Pot, got the idea for her startup in 2012 when she was suffering from bacterial vaginosis. Inspired by a visionary dream that centered around her grandmother sharing a list of ingredients, Dixon went on to start the Honey Pot, which now consists of washes, wipes, tampons pads and more, all containing straightforward, plant-derived ingredients. “I actually think the [vaginal wellness] space is changing for the better….better-for-you is the new conventional,” Dixon said, sharing how she thinks things like clean cotton have become table stakes for companies that sell tampons and pads. In turn, it’s been an exciting time for companies like The Honey Pot. Last year, the Honey Pot sold a majority stake to Compass Diversified for $380 million. And Dixon joined the Modern Retail Podcast to talk about what’s been going on at The Honey Pot since then. Dixon admitted that initially, talking about the sale was hard because “we have never been one to talk about how much money we raise, or how much money we make.” But now, she says “I feel great, I feel ucky to have a partner. I feel lucky that we were able to make whole the investors that had been with us since the very beginning.” And, being part of a bigger company like Compass Diversified has allowed The Honey Pot to spend more time and resources on bigger projects, like new packaging, which is rolling out in April. “We put several, it felt like hundreds of iterations in front of people so that we could really dial down to what would be the best version of said new packaging,” Dixon said. In the process, the Honey Pot learned how to more specifically call attention to certain attributes like the types of herbs that go into each product and what the benefit is of each. It points to a bigger evolution that Dixon is seeing in the space; namely that more brands are “leading with function.”