Letter from the Editor

EDITOR'S LETTER

DEAR STARTUP CPG COMMUNITY,

In the past year, I’ve been hit with a hard truth: most of building a CPG brand is not the “fun stuff.” As someone without my own brand, I’ve spent nearly all of my life witnessing CPG as a consumer – the nutritional innovation, branding, and exciting flavors and ingredients. But because of this, I often fail to witness the realities of building a brand from scratch. This year, I’ve interviewed and worked with countless founders, and have learned so much more about the day-to-day work of the most successful founders. The truth? Most of it is wildly unsexy.

In this edition of The Spotlight, the (incredible) new staff writers and I will be breaking down the basics of some unglamorous topics, like trade marketing, couponing,* and obtaining certifications. And while these topics pale in comparison to buzzy influencer campaigns and hot new ingredient innovations, they may just become a new tool to add to your ever-growing toolkit of CPG expertise.

If you take the time to browse through the pages, you’ll also find some truly thrilling hidden gems, including an interview with Yishi Foods – who recently launched nationally in Whole Foods – and perhaps most excitingly, the official 2022 Shelfies Finalists list. Stay tuned for the Shelfies Special Edition of The Spotlight to come out in the next few weeks!

We hope you enjoy this edition, and cannot wait to kick off the start of Shelfies season with you.

Cheers,

Jenna Editor, The Spotlight

*: I’d like to extend an extra thank you to the amazing members of our very own Startup CPG team, Erin Fasano and Peter Boyajian, who both spent many hours explaining the ins and outs of trade marketing to a total newbie on the subject (me) – they are true experts in their field.

Jenna is the Editor of The Spotlight magazine and works on Startup CPG’s marketing team. She is passionate about emerging CPG, also working as a publicist for Knack PR and a freelance copywriter for several CPG brands.

THE SPOTLIGHT