Have you noticed the rocket ship that is the Dymatize Nutrition brand? If you are a hardcore sports nutrition consumer, I would guess you haven't and that's by design with the strategic shift that made a few years ago. In this latest episode, I'll utilize the recent BellRing Brands (NYSE: BRBR) earnings report, earnings call, and publicly disclosed news as the backdrop to discuss what it could mean to the overall active nutrition market in the liquids, powders, and bars formats. BellRing Brands is a portfolio that owns a collection of convenient nutrition brands like Premier Protein, Dymatize Nutrition, Powerbar, and Joint Juice, which was previously wholly-owned by Post Holdings. We are in the midst of a health and wellness revolution that's pushing consumers to switch to quick and healthy meal options. This has resulted in the increased household penetration of RTD protein shakes that promote active lifestyles. Bellring Brands had a strong FY22Q1 with net sales reaching $306.5 million, which was up 8.5% YoY. Premier Protein (82% of BellRing Brands total revenue) grew 4.5% YoY off demand and pricing increases. Dymatize Nutrition was up strongly at 40.6% YoY stemming from volume increases and excellent pricing benefits. That being said, is it crazy to think that BellRing Brands could have actually grown quicker this quarter if it wasn't for supply chain shortages?

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You often hear me say “a great product is only the entry fee to compete in today’s CPG market”, but what’s at the heart of that statement? The hard truth is that there have never been as many CPG brands and products as there are today. If you didn't realize that, the easiest way to experience this reality is to do a non-branded search on Amazon within some sizable CPG category. I guarantee you will be overwhelmed at the endless shelf of interchangeable substitutes. Regardless of the current “COVID-19 Effect” aided higher than normal barriers of entry, it’s still relatively easy for interested entrepreneurs to enter almost all the CPG product categories, ultimately creating extreme levels of competition. Those low barriers of entry are a double-edge sword for entrepreneurs. The same ones that likely helped your CPG brand get products made with less investment or seen by more target consumers with less investment or offered for sale nationally with less investment are also the same ones that upstart competitors are using to fast-follow you. Having a unique product used to give you at least a few months of lead time over other players, but that advantage seems to matter less and less. In this context, how do you stay ahead of your competition when you know it’s only a matter of time before they copy your best product features? The solution is having a solid strategic narrative. This is what I mean when I say, “it’s what you build off that great product that determines the long-term winners.” A strategic narrative is a concept that enables brands to create a unique story that will guide their entire business activity.

Simon Sinek TED Talk - https://youtu.be/qp0HIF3SfI4

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I’ve always believed that Hip Hop and CPG entrepreneurship are linked together. Firstly, Hip Hop is seen as counterculture to other music genres, which is similar to CPG entrepreneurship in today’s “technology” filled founder landscape. Additionally, Hip Hop and CPG entrepreneurship are both centered around being salesmanship and the ability to hustle. Moreover, Hip Hop music is rooted in remixing (or sampling) previous music, and this iterative innovation process is also core to the CPG industry. Finally, Hip Hop is more than music, it's a cultural lifestyle...which anyone in the CPG industry knows it functions in the exact same way. This is probably why you see so many hip-hop artists that are involved with CPG entrepreneurship (or investing). If you’ve consumed the first three episodes of this content series, which covered Notorious B.I.G., NAS and Jay Z, you know that I select a collection of my favorite lyrics from the hip hop artist that provide keen lessons for any CPG entrepreneur. While his overall activity is lower compared to say Jay Z, you might be surprised to learn that Drake is both an entrepreneur (Virginia Black whiskey) and investor (Daring Foods) in the CPG industry. You can learn about business in different ways and inspiration or the motivation to succeed can come from everywhere around you. I’ve noticed that, amongst the lyrics of hip hop music, many artists pass on knowledge and experiences, just like your business mentors. For me, one of the best at providing me with business value for over the last decade has been Drake. Combine that with his CPG industry entrepreneur and investing success and it shouldn’t be difficult to see why Drake is someone every CPG entrepreneur could learn from. I picked out a handful of my favorite lyrics that I know will bring you value…

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Would you like to play a game [in my best John Kramer aka Jigsaw from the SAW movie franchise voice]? So, what’s this game exactly that I’m wanting to play? It’s inspired by a random Twitter post I made in November 2021. It’s really a fool’s game to be honest. One that I seem to enjoy playing a lot in my content creation. It’s where I try to put my oracle hat on and see if I can predict the future events of market convergence. Simply put, I'm going to explain ten massive M&A moves that make way too much sense to not happen. Additionally, to make it more insightful I will explain a bit of my logic that will be bring educational and entertainment value to any business professional. 

Companies named in this content include: Amazon, Kohl's, Peloton, iFit, Yeti, Solo Brands, eBay, NTWRK, Coca-Cola, Constellation Brands, Epic Games, EA, Take-Two Interactive, Pinterest, ETSY, Spotify, Sonos, Shopify, Klayivo, Chipotle, and sweetgreen. 

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How did I think Sharon Leite, CEO of The Vitamin Shoppe, did on her episode of Undercover Boss? I’ll be honest, I was super excited when The Vitamin Shoppe shared the news a month or two ago that they would be featured on the wildly successful CBS reality show. Firstly, because as many of my community knows I’m a big fan of Sharon Leite and the job she was doing at The Vitamin Shoppe. Secondly, because I’ve been a longtime fan of Undercover Boss. Finally, how cool is it that the functional CPG industry as a whole and many of the individual brands that I work with get national positive mainstream exposure. I'll share all of my reactions to the Undercover Boss The Vitamin Shoppe episode and explain why Sharon will be a better leader because of this experience and The Vitamin Shoppe will be a better company because of this experience. This will help The Vitamin Shoppe reach Sharon’s goal of tripling revenue in five years and becoming the largest health and wellness focused retailer.

My Sharon Leite First Impressions Article = https://joshua-schall.medium.com/first-impressions-of-sharon-leite-ceo-of-the-vitamin-shoppe-1531fcff2339

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The metaverse is coming, but is your CPG brand ready for it? Do you hear the words web3, crypto, blockchain, NFTs, and/or metaverse and instantly think how far behind you are? Don’t worry, I’m right with you at times. I hear people are getting married in the metaverse. I hear people are holding business meetings in the metaverse. I hear people are spending millions to acquire virtual real estate in the metaverse. I hear people are collecting digital art to I guess hang on the walls of their virtual real estate in the metaverse. Walmart is even quietly preparing to enter the metaverse. No…No! It’s not this 2017 Walmart virtual shopping video that’s been circulating around the Internet lately. Finally, in what was maybe the most eye opening to the mainstream public was the fact that Facebook changed its name to Meta. That made the word metaverse almost instantaneously shoot up the Google search rankings and making it one of the biggest topics in business today. But does the metaverse actually even exist right now? I'll explore that question and ponder if it even matters since today's walled gardens that are called metaverses actually provide massive opportunities for the CPG industry. 

If you are interested in supporting my sponsor, more information in GHOST Energy drinks can be found 👉 https://ghostenergy.com/

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Based on the popularity of this event prediction video from the last three years, I decided to again put my reputation on the line and try and predict the five Sports Nutrition Industry events that could happen in 2022. My one big rule for these annual trend prediction lists is that I don’t allow carryover from previous years. Additionally, since these are outlandish predictions, I try and take Happy Gilmore level swings. That makes it more entertaining for both myself to compile and you guys to consume. Plus, if I get any of these correct it makes for a great callout clips hahaha. Also one disclaimer because I don’t want some federal agency calling or emailing me. Despite getting lucky on several outlandish predictions throughout the previous years, I do not have any insider information on any of these mentioned predictions and this list was thrown together for entertainment purposes only.

In no particular order, here are my predictions for the outlandish Sports and Active Nutrition Industry Events that could happen in 2022:

If you are interested in supporting my sponsor, GHOST Lifestyle products can be purchased 👉 https://www.ghostlifestyle.com/

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Monster Beverage Corporation, maker of Monster Energy drinks, is purchasing CANarchy Craft Brewery Collective, a portfolio of craft beer and hard seltzer brands, for $330 million in cash. What? Why? OK. This shouldn’t be that big of a surprise for those of you that consume my content regularly. The deal gives Monster Beverage Corporation a foothold in the alcohol market through a nationwide network of breweries and distribution connections. This has been a goal the energy drink company has telegraphed since 2019 when CEO Rodney Sacks stated on an earnings call that they had an appetite for the alcoholic beverage market. So, why did Monster Beverage buy and not build or partner to make its alcohol dreams become a reality? However things play out in the future, this Monster Energy and Canarchy deal will certainly be an early case study to the converging beverage landscapes. Depending on success, it will likely set off a domino effect of other deeper strategic partnerships and acquisitions.

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Based on the popularity of this trend prediction video from the last three years, I decided to again put my reputation on the line and try and predict the Top 5 Retail Industry Trends or Event Predictions in 2022. My one big rule for these annual trend prediction lists is that I don’t allow carryover from previous years. This makes it more challenging, but also a little odd since trends are multiyear in nature with the strongest ones lasting a decade or more. That makes my previous predictions valuable to review as they likely still have huge commercialization value.

In no particular order, here are my prediction for Top 5 Retail and Commerce Industry Predictions in 2022;

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If you haven’t heard yet, Starbucks and Amazon recently entered into a retail partnership. This new store concept is called the Starbucks Pickup with Amazon Go Experience. My gut reaction to hearing this news leak a few months ago was one of exuberance. Now that the first official location in midtown Manhattan NYC is open, it’s easy to see that these pickup-only Starbucks stores paired with Amazon Go are going to be a fucking work of business partnership art. While long-term plans for this partnership are still unknown, three Starbucks Pickup with Amazon Go locations are planned for the initial test, with two more scheduled to open this year. So, why is this a really exciting retail partnership for both companies?

My Amazon Go Experience = https://youtu.be/pG_4FVLWtik

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