Happy Wednesday. We’re excited to see some of you IRL today, but we’re always excited to get to know all of our readers better. So we put together this three-minute survey to find out more about you and your interests. Plus, completing it will land you a chance to win a $500 AmEx gift card, or score a free ticket to Retail Brew’s summit in October!
In today’s edition:
—Erin Cabrey, Katishi Maake, Glenda Toma
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Adrian Hancu/Getty Images
Hitting Sephora’s shelves is most beauty brands’ dream come true, so when the retailer approached skincare startup Eadem in 2020, co-founder Marie Kouadio Amouzame was “over the moon”—but also “super, super anxious.”
“We’re like, ‘Wow, Sephora is a huge thing. Are we ready?’”
It ultimately decided it wasn’t. As a pre-launch, self-funded brand, Eadem “had literally nothing,” Amouzame told Retail Brew. But it found a way to work with the retailer while priming for its on-shelf debut: the Sephora Accelerate program.
Eadem was selected to the 2021 cohort, Sephora’s first since it underwent a “significant overhaul,” which included a commitment to bolster BIPOC-founded brands, Rauvan Dulay, its VP of global merchandising, business development, and strategy, told us.
- Started in 2016, the accelerator has mentored ~75 early-stage brands so far, initially centered around international beauty tech and social impact.
In line with joining the Fifteen Percent Pledge in 2020, Dulay said the program is now focused specifically on diversifying its in-store assortment and “what it takes to be successful” on shelves, from financing to merchandising.
Beauty school
Sephora picks participants based on “brand storytelling, their vision, innovation, and where they are with product differentiation,” Dulay explained, adding that they’re typically evaluated like any prospective brand for its store.
The six-month program welcomes accepted brands in its cohort in mid-January (the class of 2021 had eight companies; this year’s has 10), and orientation and curriculum kick-off extends through March, with founders forming partnerships with merchant sponsors. Then comes the boot camp in April, a “fairly intensive” week of sessions covering everything from investment strategy to marketing—the two topics participants appreciate the most, Dulay said. Finally, there’s Pitch Day—where brands give presentations to industry leaders, investors, and Sephora execs—followed by graduation in late May.
- Sephora also provides all participants with a grant, though it declined to disclose the amount.
Strong foundation: Amouzame also described the program as intensive: “I felt lucky that we are two running this business because I don’t know how other founders did [it.]”
She said she and co-founder Alice Lin Glover had meetings about three days a week for a “good chunk” of the day in the beginning, though the time commitment tapered off toward the end.
A lot of that time, Amouzame noted, was spent with Cindy Deily, Sephora’s VP of skincare merchandising, who was able to “accelerate,” of course, discussions Eadem “hadn’t even thought about”—like how to set the right price and whether it should include a spoon with its moisturizer. (Final decision: Yes.)
- Plus, Amouzame said the program helped it form a category-focused product launch strategy that would help Eadem establish consumer trust.
Click here to read more.—EC, KM
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llustration: Francis Scialabba, Photo: onurdongel/Getty Images
Vertical farms have the vision, but do they have the energy?
The sector is set to skyrocket in the next four years—the global indoor-farming industry was valued at $79.3 billion in 2021, per Pitchbook, with the potential to climb to $155.6 billion by 2026. But Emerging Tech Brew’s Jordan McDonald notes that “there are structural challenges the industry needs to overcome before controlled-environment agriculture can hold a candle to traditional farms.”
The biggest might be energy consumption. So, some major vertical farms say they’re adjusting their power mix to be more sustainable and efficient:
New York-based Bowery Farming told Emerging Tech Brew each of its growing operations runs on 100% renewable energy, including hydropower. Brooklyn-based Upward Farms’s new farm in Northeast Pennsylvania—which it claims will be the largest in the world when it opens in 2023—is expected to run on 100% renewable energy, the company said. And some growers, like Kentucky-based AppHarvest, use greenhouse techniques to supplement their power mix, only turning on LEDs when the sun doesn’t shine.
Still, it can be tough to get energized.
Click here to read the full story on Emerging Tech Brew.
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Let Square help you manage the day-to-day so you can focus on where to go next. Click here to learn more.
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On Wednesdays, we wear pink spotlight Retail Brew’s readers. Want to be featured in an upcoming edition? Click here to introduce yourself.
Kate Harper is the chief brand curator at Hive, an online grocer founded in December 2019. But in less than a year—and amid the “Covid supply-chain craziness,” she noted—the startup signed up 100+ brands and debuted its marketplace in October. Today, Hive works with close to 300 brands, like Tony’s Chocolonely and LesserEvil Snacks, focusing on sustainable and socially conscious foods and home goods. But before that, they need to pass Harper’s (taste) test.
How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? I discover incredible food makers you’ve never heard of and help grow those businesses.
One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile: It’s not all sitting around comparing candy or discussing the merits of one popcorn over another. We look at a lot of data, from knowing what our customers want to understanding national grocery trends. We do try a lot of popcorn, though.
Name your favorite accounts to follow: @food52, @warbyparker, @goodeggs.
What trend are you most excited about right now? Sustainability continues to be top of mind for shoppers. We know that 60% of shoppers say they want to be more sustainable, and 75% of millennials are actively changing their habits to reduce their impact on the environment.
Hopefully, this year, retailers really listen. Studies indicate that food production is responsible for nearly a third of global greenhouse gas emissions and that food packaging accounts for 50% of plastics. These realities are brutal and every player in the system needs to do more than their fair share to get us back on track.
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Authentic Brands Group is suing Bolt, the payments startup, for alleged breach of contract, claiming losses of $150 million in online sales at ABG’s Forever 21 chain during Bolt’s integration.
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Walmart revved up its gas discount from 5 cents per gallon to 10 cents per gallon for Walmart+ members, and added 12,000 Exxon and Mobil stations to the program.
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Mattel is reported to be in discussions with PE firms about a possible sale, which presumably would involve a Fisher-Price cash register.
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Dick’s is piloting a resale program in a partnership with Out&Back.
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Amazon opened its largest Amazon Go format store yet, and the first one with made-to-order offerings.
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Chipotle’s Q1 earnings surpassed expectations, though margins shrank with inflationary costs of beef and avocados.
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Morning Brew Leadership (MB/L) has officially launched! And we put the Morning Brew spin on it, giving you actionable lessons in a fun, engaging environment—unlike what some other leadership programs offer.
So, what is MB/L? In this 8-week education program, students will learn about the tactics of leadership, including hiring, delegation, strategy, and execution. This might sound like what you’d get from a run-of-the-mill leadership course, but MB/L is designed to make topics that can feel overwhelming feel approachable instead.
What’s more, MB/L helps you build authentic relationships with your fellow students that go beyond the virtual classroom. To top it all off, access to alumni benefits means your professional growth won’t stop at graduation.
Download the syllabus now to find out everything you’ll learn in Morning Brew Leadership. (Psst: You can also save $500 on tuition if you join our founding cohort!)
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Today’s top retail reads.
It is what it is: Furniture retailers have adapted to ocean shipping delays and backlogs by simply accepting supply-chain uncertainty. (Retail Dive)
Full circle: Meanwhile…shipping congestions at Chinese ports are exacerbating global supply-chain issues amid Beijing’s stringent Covid-19 restrictions. (Bloomberg)
Digital first: True Religion’s CEO on the retailer’s DTC transformation, as it hopes to triple online revenues and bolster its e-comm biz. (Modern Retail)
Listen: Check out Morning Brew co-founder Alex Lieberman’s interview with model-turned-CEO Kathy Ireland, who talks about transitioning careers and shares how she ultimately overcame doubt and criticism to create the multibillion-dollar business she runs today. Listen to Imposters here.
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Catch up on the Retail Brew stories you may have missed.
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Written by
Erin Cabrey, Katishi Maake, and Glenda Toma
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