For many CPG companies that experienced a decade of inconsistent growth, COVID reshaped the selling landscape for good (some items were flying off the shelves unlike ever before) and worse for others (those that couldn’t keep up with demand or had lost core usage groups.) Revenue growth moved aside as many found themselves struggling for survival.

The phrase “The New Normal” evolved into “The Next Normal” while businesses and people learned to pivot and adapt to whatever was the norm at that moment. How do you plan for growth, or even think about launching in the US, when everything is in flux? We found two things that helped CPG companies thrive instead of just survive:

  1. Understand Your Shopper
  2. Know Your Channel Strengths & Weakness

Understanding your shopper became more than just looking at demographics. We shifted our focus to truly see what was in their heads, their hearts, and their hands. What were they thinking about when they were getting ready to shop? What did they care about that made their life just a little better at that time? What did they ultimately decide to buy – was it our brand or a competitor’s? Through qualitative surveys, and online tracking of sales we could find answers to many of these questions. One key finding was the renewed commitment of so many shoppers to buying “better for you” products. Never had health been so important and looking for healthier alternatives became an everyday pursuit.

Knowing many channel’s strengths and weaknesses ensured the right products were in the right place at the right time. And as we all saw, many times those stores had to become echannels. Some CPG brands were just not set up to ship directly to consumers. Nor were some channels. We worked hard to find solutions and many times identified delivery and pick up options to work through any roadblocks. The key here was the ability to transform to what was needed and foster growth in unexpected ways.

Our successes were part of what drove us to create our FOSTER Brand Management program. Designed to help CPG brands navigate this “Next Normal” here in America, we want to mitigate risks and help you navigate uncharted courses through our practical knowledge and expertise.

Long story short: is it time for you to do something different? If you are ready to watch your brand grow in these uncertain times, check out what we offer at arthurelliott.com/foster.