Lee Jeans is over a century old, but it's trying to remain hip with younger generations. One way it does this is with collaborations. For example, the apparel brand recently worked with the menswear company Brooklyn Circus on a new joint collection. The products are an update on some of Lee's oldest designs -- an attempt to bridge a heritage brand with something newer. According to Chris Waldeck, evp and co-chief operating officer at Lee's parent company Kontoor Brands, the philosophy behind the...
Dec 08, 2022•40 min
Voyage Foods envisions a world where the most popular food products aren't reliant on their source ingredients. And it believes business-to-business is the best way to reach its lofty goals. The company, which is only a couple of years old, currently makes peanut-free peanut butter spread, cocoa-free chocolate and coffee-free coffee. The idea is that these are some of the most popular foods in the world, but they all carry their own allergen, environmental and political baggage. CEO Adam Maxwell...
Dec 01, 2022•38 min
Livestream shopping has yet to hit true mainstream levels in the U.S. but Ntwrk thinks it can help. The platform has been around since 2018, and says it has doubled in size every year since launch. Ntwrk's approach to livestream commerce consists of a combination of brand, retailer and celebrity partnerships, along with limited-edition drops. As Aaron Levant, Ntwrk's CEO, described it, the idea at inception was to create a "live, engaging, entertaining platform where some of the biggest brands a...
Nov 17, 2022•34 min
PetSmart is trying to maintain its dominance as a leading pet retailer. The privately-held company, which has been around since 1986, reportedly brought in $2.5 billion in revenue in the second quarter of this year. But the retailer is also trying to stay relevant with its shoppers and find new ways to engage them. Stacia Andersen, PetSmart's chief customer officer, joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week and spoke about her role and the evolving pet space. PetSmart is not a startup by any me...
Nov 10, 2022•36 min
Bala Footwear is the latest apparel brand going after working professionals. The company makes shoes aimed specifically at medical professionals. Co-founder Brian Lockard worked at Nike for nearly five years. And the ethos of that brand informed Bala's thesis. "At Nike, one of the phrases that was so important that we always used was: Always listen to the voice of the athlete," said Lockard on the Modern Retail Podcast. "And we've decided we would build a company where we always listen to the vo...
Nov 03, 2022•37 min
Levi's Latin American business is growing -- but it's very different from its Northern counterparts. The apparel brand's svp and managing director of Latin America, Rui Carlos Da Silva Araujo, spoke on the Modern Retail Podcast about how the company approaches this part of the business -- and its overall approach to DTC. This episode was recorded live at the Modern Retail DTC Summit held in Miami. Levi's Latin American business grew by about 70% in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022, and Arau...
Oct 27, 2022•28 min
Outlines is trying to be the Quip toothbrushes for bathroom and home cleaning products. The company launched earlier this year with a shower liner subscription service. The idea is that customers can buy the shower liner along with other accessories. Then, every few months they can pack up their used musty one, send it to Outlines who will recycle the material and then send another brand new clean liner. But Outlines isn't stopping at shower liners -- the startup is launching both a replenishabl...
Oct 20, 2022•37 min
Cloud Paper is trying to get more people -- and businesses -- to try its products. The company makes bamboo-based tree-free toilet paper. When it first launched in 2019, co-founder Ryan Fritsch said the goal was to grow via business-to-business partnerships by selling to businesses like corporate offices and hotels. Its first major account was a Seattle WeWork. But then the pandemic hit, and office buildings shut down. As a result, Cloud Paper had to pivot its business to be consumer-facing. Two...
Oct 13, 2022•40 min
Better & Better is taking an unconventional approach to oral care. The startup makes a toothpaste infused with vitamins -- a way to kill two daily-needs birds with one stone. But educating shoppers about how the product works is easier said than done. On the Modern Retail Podcast this week co-founder and CEO Vladimir Vukicevic spoke about how he's been positioning the company. "I [wanted] to build something that's really personal and near and dear to my heart," he said. "Better & Better ...
Oct 06, 2022•35 min
Grocery and CPG are certainly hot areas for startups, but it hasn't always been that way. Brooklyn Delhi, a company that makes Indian-inspired sauces and condiments, has been in the business since 2014. This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, founder Chitra Agrawal talked about growing the business -- and the current DTC landscape. Brooklyn Delhi began as a predominately local company. Agrawal got laid off from her marketing job but had already been building a following as a food blogger. It see...
Sep 29, 2022•40 min
Evite has big plans to be more than just a free digital invitation service. The online platform has been around since 1998, providing essentially the same service: online invitations. But the business has had many ups and down. Two years ago, David Yeom and George Ruan purchased the business -- Yeom hails from e-commerce businesses like the Honest Company and eBay; Ruan co-founded Honey. Yeom joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week and spoke about the company's transformation. "Evite, from a ...
Sep 22, 2022•32 min
Nearly five years ago, Aaron Luo co-founded the DTC luxury bag company Caraa. Now, his latest venture zeroes in on Spanish meats. Luo and fellow Caraa co-founder Carmen Chen Wu launched charcuterie brand Mercado Famous this past summer. Both Luo and Chen grew up in Spain, and have fond memories of tapas hours with friend and family. "The mission behind Mercado was to bring not only the best we can find in Spain when it comes to charcuterie, but change the narrative around charcuterie a little bi...
Sep 15, 2022•41 min
For the Swiss athletic apparel company On -- known by many as On Running -- the focus has always been on being both premium and exclusive. According to co-founder Caspar Coppetti, the concept when it first launched in 2010 was "we want to be the most expensive product on the market." On's shoes retail for between $130 and $200 a pair. It took a few years, but the strategy worked out. In its most recent earnings report, On's quarterly revenue hit around $307 million and direct-to-consumer sales r...
Sep 08, 2022•37 min
Home goods sales may be cooling, but Fernish is still seeing growth from furniture rental. On the Modern Retail Podcast this week, Fernish co-founder and CEO Michael Barlow joined to speak about the state of the industry and how he's been growing his company. Fernish first hit the market in 2018 as a furniture rental service. The idea was that many young professionals often moved to cities and were expected to move into new apartments and completely furnish them. For a monthly fee, they get acce...
Sep 01, 2022•39 min
Express was a ubiquitous mall retailer, but it's now trying to become much more than that. CMO Sara Tervo gave some insight into this brand. This week, on the Modern Retail Podcast, Tervo spoke about the Express's evolution. The apparel retailer first began in 1980, and was known as a mall mainstay. Now, Tervo has spent the last three years trying to refresh the retailer's image. "When I joined the brand, we were needing a transformation," she said. Slowly but surely, that change has started to ...
Aug 25, 2022•31 min
The coffee business changed overnight when the pandemic first hit, and Counter Culture Coffee has been rolling with the punches. This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, Counter Culture founder and president Brett Smith spoke about where the industry is going and how his company has evolved over more than two decades. Counter Culture, which first launched in 1994, was one of the first roasters to focus on direct trade, meaning it took great pride in working directly with coffee growers and suppli...
Aug 18, 2022•41 min
The eyeglasses industry is very competitive, but EyeBuyDirect is focused on cornering the market via affordability. The EssilorLuxotica-owned company has been around since 2005 and its primary focus has been on value: a pair of frames from EyeBuyDirect can be as cheap as $6. This week on the Modern Retail Podcast, CEO Sunny Jiang spoke about the company's trajectory and how she's been steering the ship. Jiang has been at EyeBuyDirect for 15 years -- she first took a job there when she was fresh ...
Aug 11, 2022•34 min
The next billion-dollar brand probably won't be a DTC startup. That's according to Jason Bornstein, principal at Forerunner Ventures. He's out there trying to look for the next big business to invest in, and he's not so sure online-only brands are the best way to go. Instead, he's focused on bigger innovations. Bornstein joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week and spoke about his background, investing thesis and the areas on which he's focusing right now. "What we're really looking for here a...
Aug 04, 2022•41 min
Prose is a hair care company in growth mode, but it's also laser-focused on remaining a responsible brand. One of the people behind this push is Helen Nwosu, the company's vp of social impact. On this week's episode of the Modern Retail Podcast, Nwosu spoke about how she juggles the needs of a scaling brand while maintaining Prose's core values -- which include being transparent about its sustainability efforts, providing a safe and equitable workplace and making its products accessible to more ...
Jul 28, 2022•38 min
Maev is a startup that believes dogs should be eating as well as humans. The company first hit the market in 2020 and has been steadily growing ever since. For its first year in business, it was faced with the problem of selling out of products. This led it to bulk up its manufacturing and raise a $9 million round of funding. Now, Maev founder and CEO Katie Spies says the company sees sales growth of about 15% month-over-month. She joined the Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about the company's g...
Jul 21, 2022•35 min
Jacob Zuppke’s tagline for his company is “cats keep pooping.” It's a blunt way to help people understand what his company does: Zuppke is the CEO of Whisker, the company behind the Litter Robot, an electronic-self cleaning litter box that retails for as much as $649. And, the tagline has born out; and the parent company is trying to expand beyond just litter boxes, with an automatic pet feeder and its own cat litter. The pandemic didn't slow Whisker's sales, and that's thanks to the Covid pet a...
Jul 14, 2022•39 min
Digiday Media is proud to present The Return, a podcast about what the return to the office can look like as corporate America adapts to the new, not quite post-pandemic normal. The Return follows the staff at one Atlanta-based advertising agency through Covid outbreaks, as well as the highs and lows of transitioning to hybrid work after two years of pandemic lockdown and working remotely. While the future of work is still under construction, employees across the country are forging their own pa...
Jul 12, 2022•3 min
Pistachio milk startup Táche has big plans to take on Oatly and its ilk. Founder and CEO Roxana Saidi joined the Modern Retail Podcast and explained how. Táche has been on the market for a little less than two years, but it has already begun making a real dent. The company has sold over 1 million units and has expanded its retail and coffee shop footprint nationally. According to Saidi, things are just getting started. The first hurdle, according to Saidi, was making sure she could build a viabl...
Jul 07, 2022•37 min
King David Tacos began as a Brooklyn-based taco cart and has expanded to dozens of locations, and has big expansion ambitions beyond New York City. According to founder and CEO Liz Solomon Dwyer, this is thanks to its persistent branding and ability to grow a rapt customer base. She joined this week's Modern Retail Podcast and spoke about the company's growth and ambitions. King David began in 2016 after Solomon Dwyer quit her job in advertising and made the bold move to go into the food busines...
Jun 30, 2022•41 min
Maude is trying to redefine the sexual wellness space. The brand -- which sells condoms, lubricants and vibrators, in addition to other products -- has been growing its presence and business over the years. It first began as a direct-to-consumer brand, but is now sold in stores like Sephora. According to founder and CEO Éva Goicochea, the company is only getting started. Maude began as a predominately DTC business in 2018. But Goicochea said she focused early on getting the word out -- and makin...
Jun 23, 2022•40 min
Temporary tattoos are no longer relegated to children's birthday parties -- they're becoming a bigger and more widely accepted part of the body part industry. Much of that is thanks to Inkbox, a Canada-based company that was acquired by Bic last January for $65 million. Inkbox's co-founder and CEO Tyler Handley joined the Modern Retail Podcast this week and spoke about the brand's growth and sales -- as well as the overall temporary tattoo industry. Inbox uses an active ingredient its founders d...
Jun 16, 2022•38 min
Italic is trying to become a luxury brand in its own right. The company has been around since 2018 and has gone through many iterations. At the same time, the underlying model has remained consistent: Italic forges partnerships with the manufacturers of well-known brands like Staub and Samsonite and sells unbranded products directly from the facilities at a fraction of the price. While the company has seen growth over the last few years, it's changed some of its business mechanics. Most recently...
Jun 09, 2022•36 min
The last few years have been a rollercoaster for travel companies. But Australian luggage brand July says business is now beginning to boom. "Things have changed, lockdowns have come to an end now -- 2021 was a progressive lift on that. And this year, in 2022, things are flying again," said co-founder and chief strategy officer Athan Didaskalou. Didaskalou joined this week's Modern Retail Podcast and talked about the brand's growth and expansion plans. July was first devised in 2018 with the int...
Jun 02, 2022•36 min
Things got scary for Neighborhood Goods in 2020. "We went through layoffs and furloughs -- all sorts of challenging things," said co-founder and CEO Matt Alexander. "And we had just come into the year on a real tear, and it was just really gut-wrenching to suddenly be in that moment." But business has returned, and his updated department store model -- which has retail space in city centers like Manhattan, Austin and Plano and hosts a variety of brands in exchange for a revenue share -- is doing...
May 26, 2022•34 min
The e-commerce portfolio model has been getting a lot of press of late. And OpenStore thinks it may have cracked the code for finding and acquiring DTC brands. OpenStore launched in 2021, and the idea was the use proprietary technology to suss out which online brands have the most upside. It's raised over $130 million both in venture capital and debt. E-commerce brands can go to OpenStore's website and share their Shopify sales data with the portfolio company. "We've built an engine, powered by ...
May 19, 2022•28 min
