CASE STUDY:
CLEANING UP THE SOAP BUSINESS
MARKET CONDITIONS:
The soap industry is gigantic. $55Bn of completely commoditized, mature stage, consolidated CPG. Channel wars for traditional grocery and big box distribution supported by traditional consumer behavior.
Every year, a dozen or so incumbent soap
brands tweak their promos and their pricing
before duking it out on the golf course for higher value shelf space in hopes of catching the eyes
of nomadic consumers.
But there’s a modern consumer persona emerging that has grown more natural and health conscious over time. They tend to be conscious of what they put on and in their bodies. (and they also tend to enjoy an active lifestyle…)
The insurgent opportunity lies in a product that can
- Being a 100% natural product
- Perform or outperform incumbents
- At benchmark prices (not premium)
- Get a conversation started…
BRAND NARRATIVE
We strengthened the signal of this narrative by:
- Diverse formulations that increase basket size while reinforcing narrative
- Empathetic packaging design that supports lifestyle
- The quality through a base in science
Brand resonance
Community: We integrated with their culture in creative ways
• OCR Event sponsorships
• Niche D2C subscription boxes
• Integrative evergreen content
Loyalty: We made sure to give our customers plenty of variety to encourage return
• Product iteration & product co-creation
• Authentic messaging as sustainability is pursued
Advocacy: And we celebrated them when they shared our story with others
• Seasonal products oriented towards gifting
• Social UGC & niche retail
results
Dirtybird Energy relaunched in 2022 and has been growing ever since. With revised packaging and improved formulations, the brand’s position and social proof has been helpful for gaining traction in grocery.
As the brand generalizes slightly to a positioning tuned towards the broader athletic lifestyle, the close bonds forged within niche athletic support are proving invaluable as advocacy spreads into other communities.
No one has gotten the brand tattooed on themselves yet (that we know of) but 200% YoY growth ain’t bad either…
