Express Checkout #108

Hey there.

LA is on fire, and has been for days.

The pictures, videos, and stories leave me truly at a loss for words. It's unfathomable. People's homes are gone—celebrity or not, rich or poor, it doesn't matter. Lives are ruined, forever changed. Even from here in New York, I feel the weight of what our West Coast friends and families are experiencing.

Brands, local restaurants, and organizations are stepping up to help. I've compiled some resources below—please check them out and share them. And if you're a brand looking to get donations to LA, the team at Linkt are willing to help and cover costs for transport, so please email me directly.

For Families & Immediate Needs: Airbnb has opened their doors to provide emergency shelter. For parents, Babyletto is not only providing essential baby gear to affected families but also offers guidance on how to talk to your children about these challenging times.

For Pet Owners: If you've been separated from your pets or need support for them, Cleo & Hooman and Dogdrop are coordinating lost & found services, providing food, veterinary care, and emergency shelter for animals.

For Health Protection: Planet Halo is providing free KF94 masks to LA residents (use code BREATHELA), and Resbiotic is offering their resB Lung Support Probiotic at no cost to those impacted.

Food & Shelter Support: Equip Foods and Wellious are providing protein to our tireless first responders. Sweetgreen is preparing meals for both first responders and those in need—reach out to them directly via DM. The LA Times Food section has compiled a comprehensive list of restaurants offering shelter and food assistance.

Supply Donation Drives: Lifeway foods is collecting supplies for relief efforts from January 13-17th.

Comprehensive Resource Lists: Several groups have created detailed spreadsheets covering all aspects of aid:

• LA Fires Mutual Aid Resources

• MALAN Fire & Wind Storm Resources

• Groups Packing Supplies + Providing Shelter

• LA Fire Resources Navigator

Remember, if you're a brand wanting to help with donations, please email me—I have connections with 3PLs who are ready to assist with logistics and cover costs.

News From the Week

Battle for the dairy. Lifeway Foods and Danone are currently embroiled in a contentious acquisition attempt and legal dispute.

Here’s the situation ⬇️ 

Lifeway has reported strong financial performance, using its results to support its rejection of Danone’s offers:

• 2023 Net Sales: $160.1 million.

• 2024 Projected Net Sales: $185–$186.5 million, reflecting strong year-over-year growth.

• Lifeway’s stock has soared over 85% in 2024.

Lifeway’s resistance is notable given the recent wave of high-profile acquisitions in the food and beverage space: Siete Foods to PepsiCo, Sauer Brands to Advent International, and Simple Mills to Flowers Foods.

It’s a clash of vision versus valuation. Danone sees an opportunity to dominate a growing market, while Lifeway is betting on its trajectory to justify staying the course. Whether this battle ends in acquisition, litigation, or further stalemate, one thing is clear: CPG M&A is anything but simple.

CPG & Consumer Goods

• 2025, is the year of the smoothie 🥤 :

  • Odwalla (AKA your childhood favorite RTD smoothie) is back after being discontinued by Coca-Cola in 2020. Now, it’s bringing a new range of smoothies and juices in the U.S. in collaboration with Grupo Jemex.

  • Bumpin Blends, dietitian-designed smoothie cubes, expanded its availability to nearly 1,500 Target stores nationwide, following successful launches in Walmart and Sprouts.

    • I recently interviewed Founder Lisa Mastela—check out some great tidbits here.

  • Slate Milk, makers of protein-packed and lactose-free chocolate milk in a can, just launched a high-protein SKU—coming in at a cool 32g of protein 💪 .

    • Just last week Koia also launched a 32g shake.

• Just for the boys. Fine’ry, Target’s private-label fragrance line, launched 12 new men's fragrances.

  • Fine'ry has gained a ton of popularity as a solid dupe to high-end fragrances. This trend aligns with the broader movement towards "affordable luxury" in the fragrance, apparel, and accessories industry. As costs of living continue to challenge consumers, there's a growing demand for more budget-friendly options that don't compromise on quality

• It’s about time! Monin announced yuzu 🍋 as the 2025 flavor of the year. I feel like Yuzu has been a thing, at least in emerging brands, no thanks to YuzuCo!!

eCommerce

• Missed your return deadline? No problem. Poshmark partnered with return management platform Loop to allow consumers to resell non-returnable items directly on the Poshmark site.

• Betting on ads. Amazon is expanding its ad business by allowing other retailers to use the technology behind its $50 billion ad operations on their websites.

• eBay x Meta. Meta is testing a feature that allows users to browse eBay listings directly on Facebook Marketplace in select countries, including the U.S., Germany, and France.

• Porch pirates, BEWARE. Hyve, a new smart home delivery pod designed to prevent package theft, launched at CES 2025. The hyve pod will be available for purchase in June 2025 for $299.

  • It was started by retail serial entrepreneur + founder of $12M company PackIt that sells freezable lunch boxes, snack bags, and bento containers.

• Instant content. Avataar launched a new tool called Velocity that enables the creation of AI-generated product videos from a product link. It’s already in use by notable companies like HP and Victoria’s Secret.

Retail

• Is Target the new wellness hub? Target is expanding its wellness assortment with over 2,000 new items, with more than 600 being exclusive to Target and over half priced under $10.

  • New and exclusive brands will include: Bloom colostrum & collagen drinks, BERO non-alcoholic beer (co-founded by Tom Holland), Being Frenshe haircare from Ashley Tisdale, Blake Brown haircare from Blake Lively, and Dr. Squatch body care.

• The year of gardening 🥦. DoorDash launched a new product page for cannabis-derived THC- and CBD-infused gummies, drinks, and candy, available for delivery in select markets where marijuana sales are legal.

Funding news

• First big acquisition of the year. Flowers Foods acquired Simple Mills for $795 million in cash (yea, you read that right). Simple Mills will join Flowers' brands like Dave’s Killer Bread, Tastycake, Wonderbread, and Nature's Own.

• A(nother) new wellness beverage co. Safety Shot (Nasdaq: SHOT) acquired Yerbaé Brands, which is expected to add ~$12 million to its annual revenue.

  • The partnership aims to combine innovative wellness solutions with Yerbaé’s popular plant-based energy drinks, targeting health-conscious consumers seeking healthier alternatives.

• Have you bought anything on a live? Whatnot, a leading live shopping marketplace, has announced $265 million in Series E funding, bringing its valuation to nearly $5 billion.

• The future of ecom? PrettyDamnQuick, an eCommerce tech company, raised $25 million in Series A funding focused on facilitating customizable shipping and checkout processes for retailers.

• A massive mayo acquisition. Advent International acquired Sauer Brands Inc., a condiment, spice and seasoning brand known for Duke's Mayo, for approximately $1.5 billion.

• It’s very tasty gin! Renais, a UK gin brand started by actor Emma Watson and her brother Alex, has secured nearly £5 million ($6.3 million) in funding from US private-equity firm InvestBev and others to support its international expansion. The investment will facilitate growth in the US market following successful launches in California and New York.

• Consortium Brand Partners acquired Jonathan Adler, known for quirky home decor products like a Rocket Vodka Decanter and Quaaludes Canister.

• Wellness is SO HOT right now. The Equity Studio has made a multimillion-pound investment in Trip, a rapidly growing British wellness brand known for its plant-powered beverages and supplements.

• Tru Fragrance acquired the clean fragrance brand Lake & Skye, which has been profitable and is projected to double its sales in 2025.

Weekly Pickups

Curious Elixrs - with NA on the rise I love it when brands craft something special! Plus these bevvies do mix well with some spirits.

Broth Masters - the first thing I made with this was a high protein tomato sauce! Turned out sooooo good.

Foodberry - Foodberry isn’t a CPG company—it’s a food tech company that partners with brands (like Nada Moo!) to make magic happen. Inspired by how fruits naturally have their own “wrapper,” they crafted plant-based coatings to create poppable bites across a variety of products. They sent along their Ice Cream Bites, which are truly delightful. Fresh and fruity on the outside, creamy on the inside, all-around the perfect two-bite treat that satisfies any sweet craving. - Jenna

See ya next week!

Nate + Jenna :)

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