The CQ: The Rise of the "Shoppy Shop," powered by Faire
NY Mag's feature on the increasingly homogenous feel of boutique retail, "small" as a brand strategy, and Faire's growth
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By Kira McCroden, VP of Communications
@KiraMcCroden
Hi everyone, 👋 Kira here from Forerunner. This week, it seemed like everyone in our community was buzzing about the new New York Magazine story dissecting the rise of the “shoppy shop” — AKA: the growing class of calculatedly charming boutique indie retailers — as well as the role Faire plays as critical infrastructure in this growth. Our friend at ThingTesting put it well — this story feels like it's in our front yard, sitting at the center of several trends we care deeply about. It calls into question the increasingly homogeneous feel of products and retail experiences — and the complexities of that when what’s “in” hinges on being small and unique. Is a small CPG business still small when it’s venture-backed and sold through countless boutiques and third wave coffee shops? Or is being “small” increasingly about a marketing strategy than it is a company stage?
To understand the current moment, we think it’s best to contextualize this all with where we were 10+ years ago. In the ‘90s, P&G, General Mills, and Nestle had it really good — shockingly sparse bottoms-up competition meant decades of steady growth and complacency. But in the 2000s — thanks to lowered costs for starting a business, the sharp rise of more progressive grocers like Whole Foods, TikTok and Instagram fueled product discovery, and increased consumer attention to personal health — smaller CPG brands started to pop up and gain serious market share (including a recent ~$12B annual loss from Big Food to small CPG). It wasn’t so long ago that Clif Bar was the healthy new underdog on grocery aisles, followed by brands like Kind Bar, Revolution Foods and Annie’s Organics — but there has since been a gold rush. And there’s a saying: in a perceived gold rush, it’s better to sell picks and shovels than it is to mine for gold.
This is where Faire comes in. Faire is providing infrastructure for this fast-rising wave of emerging brands, enabling them to grow via distribution in ways that weren’t possible before. In doing so, they are helping dramatically expand the pie within this sector of the market — and, perhaps, redefining what it means to be a small- to mid-sized brand in the process. Whereas before we had Frito Lay and Hershey Bars in corner stores, we now might have Graza, Fishwife, Diaspora, and (my personal favorite) Fly By Jing. I think we are questioning whether these brands are small — which, of course, is all relative — simply because we aren’t used to having such a wide and diverse class of brands at this stage in the first place. This reminds us of how Spotify unleashed exposure for small- to mid-sized artists amid a time while indie music was becoming wildly popular — and similarly, when indie artists cracked The Top 40 or played at Coachella, people were confused and even a bit emotional.
Finally, as early investors in Faire, we’d be remiss if we didn’t add that its model is uniquely designed to support creativity in curation. Its vast and varied selection, paired with its unique capabilities for retailers to return goods and products that aren’t selling, unlocks a level of experimentation and risk-taking in curation that, at one point, was never even imaginable. And if the lion’s share of retailers still choose to supply Fly By Jing — maybe that’s telling. Maybe it’s a great hot sauce that people want to buy.
What did you think of the NY Mag story? Let us know and we’ll get back to everyone.
What the team is talking about on Slack
Consumers have embraced the split-brain budget. Fatigued from constant scrimping and scraping for savings amid inflation, people are opting for the occasional splurge to remind them they have a good life. “Think shopping for staples at the dollar store dressed in Gucci sneakers.” This rhymes with The Lipstick Effect, a term dubbed by Estée Lauder in 2001 to convey that in an economic downturn, people are more likely to indulge in personal luxuries.
The Big Quit. A new report from LinkedIn revealed that almost 70% of Gen Z and Millennials are considering leaving their jobs in 2023, which feels like a lot given the current economic climate. A few of the reasons are — naturally — wanting to work on their own terms and find jobs that align with their values.
The World Economic Forum reveals shocking stats on the state of caregiving in the U.S., including that caregiving requires nearly as many hours per week as full-time work.
The latest in the rise of flip phones: one “chronically online” writer used a 2000s flip phone for a week to try to break her social media habit and improve her mental health. Some TikTokers even bring flip phones to parties to avoid making embarrassing posts or texting their exes. The Wall Street Journal continues the nostalgia kick with their most-missed list of outdated tech.
Digital Native writer (and Forerunner friend) Rex Woodbury provides an interesting deep dive into how America’s obesity problem started in the 1980s, and the modern solutions digital startups are wielding to combat weight issues today (including mentions of Oura and Calibrate).
Considering how quickly kids grow, the lifecycle of children’s clothes is alarmingly short, creating an enormous amount of waste. So it makes sense that the resale market for kids clothes is starting to take off.
The fourth wave of e-commerce is upon us: Brand manufacturers are creating their own online vertically-integrated brands, leading to the potential for large amounts of invaluable end consumer data.
Creators are earning startlingly less on TikTok relative to other platforms. Though it’s the number one app used by teens and preteens, creators are discovering that Pulse, the platform’s advertising revenue share program, pays out paltry amounts in comparison to YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram.
Could mental-health counseling be the next big thing on the horizon for AI? One therapist calls the idea both exciting and scary: “AI may expose many more people to the experience of therapy, and if it is done safely and ethically it might help us understand the human condition more clearly.” Keywords: safely and ethically.
Some brands are seeing an uptick in TikTok inspired offline sales, thanks to the popularization of haul videos, with one brand estimating TikTok is driving a 30-40% lift in its offline purchases.
Portfolio Highlights
Architectural Digest profiles The Expert’s expansion with a digital storefront, furniture line, and gallery.
The Wall Street Journal reports that Carla Dunham will be the new chief marketing officer at Away and plans to boost its marketing budget.
Real and Hims & Hers are included in WWD’s story on the future of digital mental health platforms.
Business Insider includes founders Max Rhodes, Jeff Kolovson, Marcelo Cortes, and Daniele Perito, in its roundup of former Square staffers, and what led them to launch Faire.
The Hollywood Reporter touts the Oura ring as one of the favorite high-tech health gadgets of celebrities.
Forerunner Highlights
Jason Bornstein joined The E-Commerce Playbook podcast to talk about all things responsible, smart growth in times of economic uncertainty and limited marketing spend.
Work at a Portfolio Company
Head of Retail at Oura | Oura is on a mission to empower every person to unlock their inner potential through owning their sleep health. The award-winning products, the Oura Ring and its accompanying app, help its global community gain a deeper understanding of their health, lifestyle, and sleep quality. This role will organize, build, and lead Oura’s global online and offline retail sales strategy, systems, and team.
Data Analyst at Fora | FORA is a team of entrepreneurs and technologists building a new kind of travel agency, with travel advisors, creators, and enthusiasts at the center. This role will join Fora’s growing Product Operations team and will be the first team member dedicated to data and our business insights platform.
Senior Strategic Sales Engineer, Narvar | Narvar is a platform focused on driving customer loyalty through seamless post-purchase experiences that allow retailers to retain, engage, and delight customers. This role will engage with the sales team in the pre-sales process and propose the appropriate technical solutions to meet their needs.
There are ~585 other openings on our jobs site. Check ‘em out.
Great read. Thanks for organizing.