The Modern Retail Podcast

On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Podcast, the staff is going deep into modern marketing strategies. First up, executive editor Anna Hensel and senior reporter Gabriela Barkho talk about what was top of mind for executives at the Modern Retail Marketing Summit. Tariffs -- and how to respond to them -- were a hot topic of discussion. Marketers batted around ideas like adding a tariff surcharge to orders, pressing pause on some collaborations to save resources and taking a surgical approach to cutting SKUs. In some cases, they are still pushing forward on marketing spend while competitors pull back. Speakers from brands like Oura, Chobani and Bark also talked about their approach to growing their retail businesses, as they use insights from their DTC business to inform their pitch to retailers, and use their wholesale businesses to introduce themselves to new types of customers. Then, in this week's featured segment (19:42), Hanna Andersson's chief customer officer, Lisa Perlmutter, talks about how the premium children's apparel brand built its first-ever loyalty program.

On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Rundown, the staff gives an overview of what tariffs were announced on April 2, which President Donald Trump called "Liberation Day," and how the retail industry reacted accordingly. Then, a look which companies are trying to throw their hats into the ring to acquire TikTok. And lastly, an M&A streak in the better-for-you space continues as Hershey announced it will acquire popcorn brand LesserEvil in a $750 million deal.

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.”

On this week's Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses Dollar Tree's decision to offload its struggling Family Dollar segment for $1 billion. Meanwhile, GameStop plans to close a "significant number" of stores as it ponders investments in cryptocurrency. Finally, H&M reported weaker-than-expected earnings this week, pointing to high markdowns and inflation woes.

When Perelel launched its first prenatal vitamin products in September 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic had upended the startup's fundraising plan. Co-founder Victoria Thain Gioia said that rather than launch with splashy campaigns or a big retail entry, Perelel decided to use organic social media posts to help spread the word. For the first year, Gioia answered every customer service ticket personally. "The roadmap that we originally had for the first year to 18 months was very different than what we encountered, in terms of the world and how we had to pivot," she said. But the company gained momentum in the direct-to-consumer subscription world and has grown an average of 600% year over year since its inception. Sales have more than doubled in the last three years, with Perelel currently selling around 182,000 vitamins a day.  Behind the scenes, Perelel has invested in its growth by getting into new product categories. It has 21 SKUs, including a men’s supplement and products catered toward other wellness needs like hydration or sleep support.  Gioia joined the Modern Retail podcast this week to discuss the company's growth journey and its latest product launch, a protein powder with creatine and fiber. Though creatine may read as a masculine product, Perelel's research has tapped into a growing recognition of its benefits for women, too. It can be to help with brain fog, fatigue and muscle retention, for instance, during postpartum, menopause and perimenopause. The product has been in development for about two years as the team looked to perfect the formula, Gioia said.

On this week's Modern Retail Rundown, the staff starts off discussing various news from buy-now, pay-later startup Klarna, including the deals with DoorDash and Walmart it struck as it prepares to go public. Meanwhile, Edible Arrangements’ parent company, Edible Brands, launched a marketplace for THC-infused products called Edibles.com. Finally, Nike gave an update on its turnaround plan in its earnings this week, with the company expecting weaker sales in the short term as it adjusts operations.

PopSockets is the leader of what its CEO, Jiayu Lin, likes to call the phone grip category. The company is known for small, retractable circles that come in a  wide variety of prints and colors and attach to the back of someone’s phone, making it easier to grip. But, the company really wants to be known as a lifestyle brand. It’s an inflection point that many accessories brands reach at one point or another, as they want consumers to know them for more than just a single widget. And, Lin is thinking day in and day out about how to position PopSockets as a lifestyle brand through events, collaborations, new product launches and more. “I want to take [PopSockets] to the next level by transitioning the company from a tech accessory to a mobile lifestyle brand,” she said.  Lin joined The Modern Retail Podcast to talk about her vision for PopSockets. She’s been with the company since 2022, starting out as its gm of APAC and becoming the company’s CEO in September.  PopSockets has been focused on product expansion for the past few years, and it now sells phone cases, wallets and more, in addition to its ubiquitous grips.   One concept Lin is particularly interested in is the idea of the mobile lifestyle — that is, as people carry their phones everywhere, phones are increasingly becoming an extension of people’s identity. So, PopSockets is focused on launching a greater variety of products that speak to people’s interests and hobbies — for example, a music festival survival kit.  “This idea of a mobile lifestyle – we want to be part of you, and an extension of you, to help you express yourself — whether it's at work, at home or at play,” Lin said.  Creating exclusives for different retailers like Walmart, Best Buy, Apple and more is also a big part of this. In addition, PopSockets is looking at more pop-up opportunities and events this year, Lin said.  “It’s very important for us that we find the right channels for the different products we carry,” she said.

This week's Modern Retail Rundown kicks off with news of CVS opening mini pharmacies, as part of an overall plan to scale back its large footprint. Elsewhere, the beauty and skin-care segment is showing signs of slowing sales as brands like Futurewise shut down and Ulta reports weak growth, reflecting softness among U.S. beauty sales. Similarly, apparel retailers like American Eagle are forecasting a drop in sales during Q1, a potential harbinger of things to come.

Hair-care startup Crown Affair has had a big couple of years. After launching in January 2020, Crown Affair entered Sephora in 2022. The brand’s profile has grown as Crown Affair’s products have made the rounds on social media, most notably with Doja Cat donning the brand’s hair towel on the 2024 Met Gala red carpet.  This year, the brand aims to do around $30 million in revenue, up from $20 million last year.  And one of the people who has been instrumental in helping Crown Affair hit bigger and bigger milestones is Elaine Choi, who joined the company shortly before its launch as its founding president and COO. Recently, Choi was elevated to CEO, and she joined the Modern Retail Podcast to talk about her vision for Crown Affair this year.  Dianna Cohen is the founder of Crown Affair. The company’s goal is to help people redefine their relationship with their hair and build new hair rituals with high-quality basics, like “the oil” and “the dry shampoo.” Many of the Crown Affair’s customers were introduced to the brand through Cohen’s videos on TikTok and Instagram, where she has amassed tens of thousands of followers, and shares everything from hair-care tips to behind-the-scenes looks at product development.  "[Cohen is the] creative, visionary founder, and she needed an operator to come in and work with her and launch the brand," Choi said. "So we got connected through a mutual friend. … It was just, like, an instant kismet connection.” Choi ended up joining the brand four months prior to launch, moving from her hometown of Los Angeles to New York to work on Crown Affair.  In the more than five years that she’s been with Crown Affair, Choi has been responsible for the operations side and, overall, making sure the brand is moving where it needs to go. Choi, a former cross-country athlete, likened the process to preparing for a race.   “You know where the finish line is, but how are you setting those milestone markers to keep you going?” she said. “I remember I would practice for a race, and there was always, like, a tree at the one-mile mark. And I was like, 'OK, cool. So I just have to get to that tree in this amount of time, and then I'm on track.' And that was kind of like the beginning stages [of building Crown Affair].” Now, as CEO, Choi said she’s focused on a few key markers: helping the brand grow through increased distribution as Crown Affair launches in more Sephora stores, honing in on what marketing tactics are working, and keeping Crown Affair’s employees happy and focused as the business continues to evolve.

On this week’s Modern Retail Rundown, the staff discusses the drama surrounding a planned Neiman Marcus store closure in downtown Dallas. Elsewhere, reports swirl that Forever 21 is preparing for a possible bankruptcy, its second in six years. Lastly, Modern Retail looks at the battle that's brewing in the convenience store space as 7-Eleven’s parent company tries to fight off a takeover bid by Circle K’s owners.