Express Checkout #34

Commerce and CPG news from the week of 7/17/2023

Author

Nate Rosen
July 24, 2023

Hello hello!

We have our first exclusive discount for Express Checkout! And it’s for a product that I know I need, a new lactase enzyme supplement called Milky. 🥛🧀 🍕🍦 (not sponsored!)

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Nate in media 🎙️ 

I was also on another podcast recently! I wonder if I should do my own 👀

Check me out on the Hit Subscribe Podcast by Recharge, hosted by my good friend Kristen LaFrance! Listen here!

Also….

In case you missed it, I interviewed Jason Panzer of Hexclad and Joey Thomas of DUDE Wipes last week discussing their Prime Day 2023 experiences. You can read it here! 👇️ 

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Upcoming Event in NYC:

Join business leaders on July 31st at the Marketing, Content, and Commerce event hosted by Martech Record.

The event will discuss how affiliate marketing is being incorporated into the core strategy of very large businesses. Visit MARCC: New York City for more information! See you there!

🔥 Big News - 10 items or less 🔥

  • Whole Foods gets into palmistry - Amazon is expanding its palm recognition service, Amazon One, to all Whole Foods stores in the U.S by the end of the year. Amazon One is also being adopted by third-party businesses for identification and payment, as well as new use cases like age verification and loyalty linking. Creepy! (source)

  • An Odd IPO - Oddity, a beauty and wellness company that uses AI to develop cosmetics, IPOd at a price of $35/share on Wednesday (7/19) closing out that day around $48/share. The company aims to disrupt the beauty market and replace the in-store experience by using data and AI to develop brands and make tailored product recommendations. (source)

  • Battle of fast fashion - Chinese eTailer Temu is suing rival Shein in the Boston Federal Court for violating U.S. antitrust laws by apparently coercing clothing manufacturers into not working with Temu. Shein is also in a legal battle with Temu in Chicago. (source)

  • The big one - The Teamsters, representing 340,000 UPS workers, are preparing for a potential strike as their contract with UPS expires on July 31. Negotiations have broken down, with the union demanding better pay and working conditions for part-time workers, and UPS claiming the union has stopped negotiating. A strike would be costly for UPS, which delivers 6% of US GDP, and could cause serious disruptions. (source)

  • Daily Harvest is back! - Daily Harvest, a DTC meal delivery service, is expanding to grocery stores for the first time through a partnership with Kroger-owned locations. The move comes after some significant setbacks for the company, including layoffs and a recall of its French Lentil and Leek Crumbles that sent many consumers to the hospital. Daily Harvest will be launching in over 1,100 locations by August 13, with new packaging and a marketing campaign featuring Taylor Swift tickets giveaways. (source)

  • More coffee for Keurig - Keurig Dr Pepper has announced a strategic partnership with La Colombe Coffee which includes a $300 million cash investment by KDP for a 33% ownership stake. KDP will sell and distribute La Colombe ready-to-drink coffee beverages in its direct store distribution network and manufacture, sell and distribute La Colombe branded K-Cup coffee pods under a license agreement in the US and Canada. (source)

  • Skims at $4 billion - Kim Kardashian's apparel company, Skims, has raised $270 million in a new funding round, valuing the company at $4 billion, up from $3.2 billion last year. Skims plans to open its first flagship stores next year in Los Angeles and New York City. The company's success has drawn investors, including Wellington Management, which led the latest funding round. (source)

  • Bid to save Anchor Brewing - Employees of Anchor Brewing Co. have launched a bid to purchase the historic San Francisco brewery and run it as a co-op after executives announced its closure in early July. (source)

  • Coca-Cola launches new fund - The Coca-Cola Company and eight bottling partners have created a $137.7 million venture capital fund in partnership with Greycroft to focus on sustainability investments. The fund will seek to invest in companies at the point of commercialization. (source)

  • Alani Nu Explores Sale - Energy drink and snack maker Alani Nu is exploring a sale of the company at a valuation of over $3 billion, according to sources. The company is working with JPMorgan as it studies its options. (source)

🗞️ News from the week (7/17/23 - 7/24/23)

🛍 Retail

  • Just 3 years after being brought out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Sur La Table, the kitchenware and culinary retailer, plans to expand its national footprint through new store openings in the North East. The company has also expanded its private label offering and has added Calphalon and Great Jones cookware to its brand partners. Sur La Table is also expanding its in-store cooking classes, including its popular Date Night Series. (source)

  • CAMP has opened its 9th location in Chicago, featuring a 3,500 sq.ft. immersive experience created in partnership with multimedia brand Doodles. The family-friendly retailer's new store includes a slime creation station, a Splatter Room for paint-based arts and crafts, a "CAMPitheater" performance space, and party rooms. (source)

  • PacSun has opened its first-ever store dedicated to activewear, named PAC1980, at the Mall of America. Pacsun plans to expand dedicated PAC1980 spaces in the future. (source)

    • PacSun is not the first retailer to emphasize activewear in their product assortment, let alone build a whole store for it. Abercrombie & Fitch has an activewear line called YPB, Gap has Athleta, and American Eagle has OFFLINE by Aerie. Both Athleta and OFFLINE have dedicated storefronts popping up over the country.

  • Carhartt, in partnership with Trove, is expanding its Carhartt Reworked program to accept trade-ins at 35 company retail stores and begin mail-in trade-ins starting in late 2023. (source)

  • Macy's has launched a new private brand, On 34th, a women's apparel and accessories collection. The collection features over 750 SKUs and 250 unique styles. (source)

  • Abercrombie & Fitch has opened a new (and brighter) store at 668 Fifth Avenue in New York City, offering its women's and men's collections, as well as dedicated spaces for Abercrombie kids and YPB. (source)

  • Tanger Outlets has launched a refreshed loyalty program and a new mobile app. The app offers digital offers tailored to guests' interests and contextual to their Tanger location. (source)

  • Journeys (a brand I haven’t thought about since middle school) and thredUP have announced a resale program that allows customers to shop secondhand apparel directly from Journeys’ website and resell gently-worn items for Journeys shopping credit. (source)

  • Kroger is partnering with Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Drugs to offer prescriptions at its pharmacies. Cost Plus Drugs buys drugs directly from the manufacturer and ships them to patients at a 15% markup plus pharmacy fees. Kroger (and many other retailers) have been expanding its health-related offerings over the last few years. (source)

  • Schnucks and Instacart are expanding their partnership by deploying Caper Carts, Instacart's smart carts, in select stores. (source)

  • Ashley is refreshing its stores nationwide to reflect a more modernized look and feel. The refresh rollout comes after the company initiated a rebrand last year with a new logo and name change from Ashley HomeStore to Ashley. (source)

🛒 CPG & Consumer

  • Coca-Cola has established a new subsidiary called Red Tree Beverages to develop and manage its alcohol beverage business. The move highlights the growing demand for non-traditional alcohol products, and the diversification and fragmentation of the alcohol industry. The new division is cut off from Coke's non-alcohol business to appease regulators. (source)

  • Bowery, the largest U.S. vertical farming company, is expanding its partnership with Amazon Fresh to bring its greens and salad kits to more consumers on the east coast. Bowery's core lettuces and two flavors of salad kits will be available for home delivery via 18 Amazon Fresh Fulfillment Centers. (source)

  • Gay Water, a new canned vodka soda, has just launched. It aims to stand out in the crowded canned cocktail market by proudly displaying its support for the LGBTQ+ community. (source)

  • Nestlé has developed a new sugar reduction tech that reduces intrinsic sugar in ingredients such as milk, malt, and fruit juices by up to 30% without affecting taste or texture. The technology also increases prebiotic fibers in milk-based products. The sugar reduction method has already been applied to over 200,000 tons of cocoa and malt-based beverages, and Nestlé plans to roll it out globally across formats and categories. (source)

  • Claussen Pickles and Spritz Society have collaborated to create the first-ever pickle flavored sparkling wine cocktail. It will be available exclusively online for a limited time while supplies last. (source)

    • Who’s trying this with me???

  • General Mills has doubled the amount of Vitamin D in their cereals, providing 20% of the Daily Value of Vitamin D. This nutrition addition follows FDA approval earlier this year to increase Vitamin D fortification in ready-to-eat cereal. (source)

  • Actress and filmmaker Lake Bell has partnered with canned wine brand Nomadica to direct and produce the brand's first creative campaign for its new Orange offering. (source)

  • Novo Fogo Organic Cachaça has redesigned and reformulated their Brazilian canned cocktails, now USDA-certified organic. The cocktails come in three tropical flavors. (source)

  • Snoop Dogg has launched a new line of ice cream called Dr. Bombay Ice Cream, which is now available at Walmart stores nationwide. The brand offers seven flavors. Snoop Dogg, who has previously published a cookbook and founded the food brand Broadus Food and a new pet food brand. (source)

  • EssilorLuxottica, the owner of brands like Ray-Ban and Oakley, has been sued for allegedly conspiring with competitors to inflate prices. The lawsuit, filed in San Francisco federal court, also accuses the company's vision benefits subsidiary, EyeMed, of forming anticompetitive agreements with thousands of eyecare providers. (source)

  • Bubble, a gen Z targeted skincare brand, is expanding its partnership with Ulta Beauty to distribute its products in all locations nationwide and online. The brand is also launching Cloud Surf, a water-cream moisturizer, exclusively in-store at Ulta Beauty for one month. (source)

💻️ eCommerce 

  • Maybelline has partnered with Microsoft Teams to launch the Maybelline Beauty App, which uses Modiface virtual try-on technology to offer 12 virtual makeup looks to users during video calls. The app also provides a product breakdown to help users recreate the look in real life. The virtual makeup looks are available globally as an option in Teams video calls. (source)

🏭 Supply Chain

  • General Mills has added warehouse automation to four facilities to optimize its warehouse and logistics network. The projects include adding "cutting edge unique layer picking" tech to facilities, which allows companies to leverage mixed-SKU pallets in their operations. (source)

  • Vroom Delivery and Uber have partnered to improve c-store delivery options for consumers. Stores using Vroom Delivery's products can now leverage enhanced integrations to Uber Eats to power orders from the Uber Eats app, as well as a new integration with Uber Direct to power orders from merchant-owned channels. (source)

  • Kraft Heinz plans to invest ~$400 million to build a 775,000 sq ft national distribution plant in Illinois, which will be one of the largest automated CPG distribution centers in North America. The facility will feature state-of-the-art automation tech and national railway access to distribute products faster than ever, and will include a 24/7 automated storage and retrieval systems. (source)

  • Nestlé plans to transition over 100,000 acres of its wheat supply chain to regenerative agriculture practices, partnering with ADM and Ardent Mills to help farmers in Kansas, North Dakota, Indiana, and Missouri. (source)

💸 Funding, Exits, M&A, and VC

  • Lion Pose, a beauty brand focused on inclusivity and science-led formulations, has raised $3 million from investors and celebrities including Mindy Kaling and has launched exclusively at Sephora. (source)

  • Botanica, the makers of Mr. Moxey's and Journeyman cannabis-infused edibles, has raised $9 million in Series B funding led by KEY Investment Partners and GreenAxs Capital. (source)

  • Whop, an online marketplace for digital goods, has raised $17 million in a Series A round with participation from Insight Partners, The Chainsmokers, Peter Thiel and others. Whop aims to centralize all products on the internet and differentiate itself through its selling experience and product discovery engine. (source)

  • Aurora Innovation has raised $820M in fresh capital through a public offering. The raise will help the autonomous trucking developer get through the commercialization of driverless trucks in 2024 with a financial runway into 2025. (source)

  • Flora Ventures, an AgriFood venture capital firm based in Tel Aviv, has launched an $80 million fund, with commitments of $50M from strategic partners including Sadot Kibbutzim, Haifa Group, and Harel Group. (source)

  • Doehler Group has acquired SVZ for an undisclosed amount, a producer and supplier of liquid fruit and vegetable ingredients known for sustainably sourced vegetables and red berries. (source)

  • Seven Sundays, a clean-label breakfast food company, raised $6 million in growth capital led by investors including Sidekick Partners, Clover Vitality, Bobby Parrish, GRT SHT Ventures and existing angel investors. The company produces gluten-free and/or grain-free breakfast cereal, granola, and muesli. (source)

  • JPalmer Collective has provided a line of credit up to $1 million to Nona Lim, a San Francisco-based producer of fresh, better-for-you noodles, broths, and stir-fry kits. (source)

  • Grit Road Partners has closed its Ag-Venture Fund, raising over $11 million to invest in seed-stage AgTech companies. (source)

  • CubicAcres, a Long Island-based vertical farming company, has raised $3.7 million in funding in partnership with Intelligent Growth Solutions to expand its production capacity and meet growing market demand for its lettuce. (source)

  • Mike Repole, founder of Bodyarmor, has invested in performance training brand Nobull through his family office's private equity arm, Impact Capital. (source)

  • FullBeauty Brands has acquired CUUP, a US-based size-inclusive intimates brand. CUUP will be added to FullBeauty's growing portfolio of high-growth brands, including ELOQUII, June+Vie, and Swimsuits for All. (source)

  • Brynwood Partners IX L.P.'s newly-formed portfolio company, West Madison Foods, has agreed to acquire the Marie's salad dressing brand and the Dean's Dip business from Ventura Foods, LLC. (source)

🧐 Interesting reads

💡 Data, reports, and trends

😋 Brands and things I’ve tried this week

I got a delicious delivery of Wunderkeks “fudgiest brownies ever”, and hot damn were they fudgy af! Their cookies, brownies, and crownies (a layer of brownie batter on top of cookie dough) are all freaking amazing! Highly recommend you try to snag some!

Thanks for reading! If you have any suggestions, feedback, or stories or posts I missed, let me know!

Nate :)

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