Bob Groux Joins blk. As Senior Vice President of Sales
Functional water brand blk. welcomed beverage industry veteran Bob Groux as its Senior VP of Sales this week. Groux has launched and consulted for dozens of brands in the non-alcoholic beverage space, was a founding and managing member of Coast Brands Group and also served as CEO of Wolfgang Puck Beverage Company. Groux consulted for blk. back in 2014 and said he has always believed in the product and its benefits.
Over the past year, blk.’s team has focused on growing the business online and reached a point where its e-commerce numbers began to exceed brick and mortar, which Groux said, prompted his hiring as blk.’s in-house retail expert. In the two months since Groux took on his new role, the company has signed with Acosta as its national accounts broker, brought on John Kim from Fiji Water as COO, hired two national sales representatives and made significant distribution gains at retail.
“We have everything we need,” stated Groux. “We have a product that is different from anybody else’s on the market with incredible health benefits. We’ve got a first class team; we are well capitalized and we’ve got a plan. We just need to execute against it and I think we are going to be very, very successful.”
According to Groux, the brand’s social media presence is the driving factor behind its recent success, hitting 600 million views on TikTok alone this week with the projection of surpassing one billion views by the end of the year. However, he said the lack of distribution at retail was beginning to threaten the blk.’s momentum, noting they receive upward of 50 consumer calls a day asking where the product is available to purchase.
Blk. is an alkaline water with a pH of 8.0+ that is infused with electrolytes and fulvic trace minerals which give the liquid its black color. The drink is available in a range of flavors from Strawberry Rhubarb to Dirty Lemon and can be purchased in both RTD and concentrate formats. Groux said the functionality of the fulvic acid and trace minerals in the product, backed by clinical studies, differentiates the company and its product from all other brands he has worked with during his 30-year career in the industry.
“I have had successes and I have had setbacks,” said Groux. “I have been part of companies that have skyrocketed and ones that have peaked and then tanked. When I look at brands that I consult with – it’s very rare that I join a company. I typically just consult for 6 months to a year, but this one was just so exciting because of the product itself.”
Blk. recently launched at Walmart and GNC in addition to expanding its national distribution with CVS and building a team to target small format distribution on college campuses. Groux said his goal is to break into the top 20 retailers in grocery, add another retailer in the drug channel, sign with several national convenience store chains and finalize a buy/sell deal with the military through Acosta. The California-based company is also focused on building out operations closer to home and has signed with John Lenore & Co for distribution in the San Diego area while also opening its own DSD in Los Angeles.
“We wanted to make sure that we own our own backyard. Where we have 600 accounts we plan to get that to 6,000 and really penetrate the market,” said Groux.
Paul Hodge Steps Out Of Role As Laird’s President and CEO
During a quarterly earnings call last week, Laird Superfood founder Paul Hodge announced he is stepping down from his role as President and CEO of the company. Hodge says he will be a “highly active board member” in addition to remaining a majority shareholder in the company. The announcement comes almost a year after the company’s initial public offering of over 2.5 million shares at $22 a piece.
According to Hodge, since he filed “that first piece of paper in 2015” he has known that eventually the company would get to a point where a “specialist would be more effective in taking the company on chapter 2 of its growth journey.” He said that the growth he has facilitated – from building factories to taking the company public – set the stage for Laird to become one of the next major multi-billion dollar CPG platforms.
“We are now at that place where supplementing the team’s skill sets with that larger brand experience, with strong experience in building out the conventional grocery channels to get us access to those 40,000 doors is ideal timing,” said Hodge. “Our online channels are best in class and we perform really well in natural. We have a few products designed for the conventional channel, and now are looking to make a strong push there. This supplemental skill set will be valuable in that effort.”
Laird’s portfolio consists of a variety of plant-based protein mixes, the Picky Bar brand, functional coffee beans, coffee creamers, baking mixes and a range of other better-for-you food and beverage products, many of which are in powdered form. Laird’s growth will continue to accelerate, Hodge said, reporting that it saw 94% direct-to-consumer growth year-over-year last quarter and 77% wholesale growth. Hodge said his resignation and expanding the executive team’s skill set with a broader range of expertise is essential for the company to continue pushing towards its goal of becoming a multi-billion dollar platform.
“I will be a highly active board member and will benefit from having that detailed inner working knowledge of the company,” said Hodge. “I can use that to contribute to the board’s responsibilities and decision-making. We have an amazing board with a strong group of diversified talents, and my role will add to that.”
Sagan Schultz Leaves WellWell
Functional beverage brand WellWell’s founder Sagan Schultz has stepped down from his role as CEO, while the current status of the company itself is unclear.
Schultz founded WellWell in 2016 and in March closed a $164,271 crowdfunding campaign on the platform Republic back which noted that the company had previously raised a total of $4.5 million in capital and was generating $1.8 million in annual sales.
However, according to recent updates to his LinkedIn profile, Schultz has taken a new role at management consulting firm McKinsey & Company, while all products marked on WellWell’s website are marked as “Sold Out” and its social media accounts have been set to private.
Schultz declined a request to comment on his departure and the current status of the company.
Peter Kaye Joins Hungry Harvest Team
Former CMO at Honest Tea, Peter Kaye has joined the Hungry Harvest team as Chief Revenue Officer. Kaye previously served as Founder and Principle of PK Consulting, CMO of NuTek Natural Ingredients and Chief Revenue and Marketing Officer of Share Our Strength with a focus on developing the No Kid Hungry campaign. Kaye also serves as an advisor for numerous CPG companies.