Table of contents for February 22, 2021 in Adweek

WHAT IS A SPAC? A special purpose acquisition company, or a blank check company, is a shell that goes public with the promise of acquiring more assets. It’s a route for companies to begin selling shares on stock exchanges in order to raise money. A SPAC IPO is the vehicle of a shell company going public. In a traditional IPO, a private company files to go public, then goes through a road show to line up investors and determine what the price of its shares should be. For the past six months, there’s been a ballooning interest in media and marketing tech companies going public via special purpose acquisition companies (SPACS), which are shell companies set up by investors who raise money via an IPO to merge or acquire yet…

Nimble companies, those that do not carry the baggage of legacy marketing theories and processes, are well-equipped to capture consumer trust in today’s market. By leveraging real-time data to assess how much their brand matters, these brands can adjust marketing spends more effectively than slower competitors. These are human-centric marketers: the Davids. Concurrent with the pandemic, there’s been a renewed call to racial equity. Companies are engaging in the conversation to stay present and morally driven in the minds of their consumers. Unfortunately, some might not be engaging in earnest, believing that a reactive response will preserve growth. These are the Goliaths. In the handling of Covid-19 and racial justice efforts, successful Davids have discovered what their Goliath counterparts have not: Consumers do not need a shoulder to cry on.…

When the pandemic forced millions of cubicle dwellers to work from home last March, the morning commute wasn’t the only thing to disappear—so did the need for dress clothes. Nearly overnight, Americans consigned their suits and slacks to the closet in favor of sweatpants. But as summer approached, a desire for something a bit more stylish emerged—and the Nap Dress was ready. Billed as “the perfect hybrid garment to wear all day and night,” the Nap Dress (a crossbreed of the nightgown and day dress) is the core offering of Hill House Home. It’s also an outgrowth of founder and CEO Nell Diamond’s “philosophy to never create products that I thought already existed in the market.” The Nap Dress actually debuted in 2019 but, as with brands like Zoom, it…

“Never underestimate that existing cruisers love the idea of new ships,” Virgin Voyages CMO Nathan Rosenberg told Adweek over the summer. And no doubt, this new Virgin venture has them—two sleek, midsize vessels called the Scarlet Lady and the Valiant Lady. What it doesn’t have, of course, are those cruisers—at least not yet. But once Covid-19 is eradicated and the vacation industry returns, VV promises to be ready. And why would the world need yet another floating theme park? Actually, that’s just what this carrier tries not to be. The brand is confident there’s an untapped market of younger, hipper, pent-up travelers eager to set sail. In this reasoning, Virgin is following the trend the hospitality industry started with its shift toward boutique hotels. Aboard VV’s “super yachts,” you won’t…

If 40 is the new 30 and gray is the new blond, Randy Goldberg has his own cultural mantra: “Socks are the new shoes.” Goldberg told Adweek that last year, just as the pandemic was ravaging sales of office apparel. What he meant was that socks are now worn all day at home as though they were shoes, and Goldberg knows what he’s talking about. As the co-founder of Bombas, he worked 21st-century engineering improvements into the weaving process to produce remarkably durable, comfortable socks. He also grew Bombas exponentially by donating a pair of socks to a homeless shelter for every pair sold. Other brands have faltered with the “buy one, give one” model before, but Bombas has thrived on it. Earlier this year, Bombas expanded to briefs in…

The good news came shortly after the coronavirus lockdown last March, with cannabis dispensaries being declared “essential businesses” in most markets. The bad news? Many were unprepared for a digital-first world, having built their businesses on high-touch, in-real-life tactics. Dutchie, an ecommerce upstart, helped retailers and weed brands pivot quickly to online ordering, delivery and click-and-collect. The service, which debuted in 2017 in Bend, Ore., saw its numbers skyrocket to 85,000 orders a day, a 700% surge from pre-pandemic times, according to co-founder and CEO Ross Lipson. Dutchie now works with 1,850 dispensaries in 34 states and Canada, specializing in a broad product selection and ultra-fast response time. And filling the budtender gap, the platform gives consumers “rich content, lots of specific information and all the education they need to…

Anyone who’s wandered down the drug store aisles and stared at the vista of shampoos, conditioners, serums, sprays and treatments knows that the world probably doesn’t need another haircare brand. Or does it? While big brands have churned out an endless stream of products for hair that’s straight or curly or coily, flat or stubborn or thinning, seemingly none of them have catered to the owner of the hair. Enter Prose, a startup that creates a formula specific to each customer. To purchase one of Prose’s shampoos or conditioners, shoppers reserve an online consultation that features questions about their hair and lifestyles. The brand then uses the intelligence to create a tailor-made formula that’s then shipped directly to consumers. How does Prose deal with manufacturing all these one-offs? A 60-foot,…

When the pandemic first tightened its grip last spring, millions of Americans stampeded to supermarkets and began a wave of panic buying. Then, as winter approached, they did it all over again. According to data from Inmar Intelligence, the two most-stockpiled items were toilet paper and hand sanitizer. But not far behind were snacks, with close to half of respondents saying they’d replenished their larders with crackers, cheese balls and, of course, potato chips. None of this surprises Dylan Lissette, who doesn’t need surveys to confirm what he’s seen firsthand. Lissette is the CEO of Utz, whose potato chips constitute the core offering in a snack empire that turns 100 this year. As a family-owned brand, Utz was accustomed to steady, if not spectacular, year-over-year growth. But the pandemic buying…

How does Roblox stand apart from legacy brands? We are building a platform that we expect will ultimately enable billions of people to share experiences together. This concept is often referred to as the Metaverse, which means persistent, shared 3D virtual spaces in a virtual universe. As the Metaverse quickly moves from vision to reality—driven by a new generation growing up online—we are creating this new category of shared experiences that combines media, gaming, social and entertainment. We’ve built complex technologies behind the Metaverse, and continue to innovate in this space where our users’ imaginations will power what Roblox can be and how people will use it. What also sets Roblox apart is our developer community. Most of the millions of immersive experiences on our platform are built by nearly…

As hard seltzers balloon in popularity, brands have co-opted a term once reserved for a specific style of craft beer: sessionability. It’s often used in tandem with descriptors denoting healthy, refreshing attributes. But on its own, the term means that a product can be consumed in a “session” of more than one or two drinks. And now, nearly every category of alcoholic beverage wants in. While even that vague quantification puts drinkers over the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s recommendations for alcohol consumption, it’s not unrealistic given the habits of American drinkers. Per a 2018 study, 40% of Americans are “heavy” drinkers. Research also shows that people have been drinking even more during the pandemic. So, is sessionability a safe way for brands to promote their products? “People are…

Women often attribute much of their success to the support of the people they surround themselves with. How do you foster strong professional relationships as you grow in your career? I’ve had lots of support and encouragement, starting and ending with my husband. We partnered in raising our children, being available to our extended family, and now caring for elderly and ill parents. I am also a founding member of 100 Hispanic Women and an alumnus of the National Hispana Leadership Institute, networks of powerful Latinas who serve as role models, sounding boards and confidants. The key to a successful career is finding people who are your advocates and sponsors. ‘If there’s an obstacle standing in your way, knock it down not only for yourself but for the other women…

As the country was locking down last March due to Covid-19, Jennifer Garner and fellow actor-activist Amy Adams started brainstorming ways to get food and supplies to poor kids who would be cut off from crucial resources at their shuttered schools. Within days, they launched #SaveWithStories to benefit nonprofits No Kid Hungry and Save the Children, where Garner has a yearslong history as an artist ambassador and board member. #SaveWithStories raised money through text-to-give donations and recruited Hollywood’s elite to read more than 230 classic storybooks on social media. Stars participating included Drew Barrymore, Pink, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Meghan Markle and Steve Carell, with the video series logging 90 million views and 241,000 followers. Meals, books, study guides and other supplies went to hundreds of thousands of kids affected by school…

Just because bandages have a boring purpose doesn’t mean they should look that way. Or so believe the people behind Welly, billed as “premium bandages with style.” Band-Aids have covered America’s boo-boos with those pale, sandy strips since 1920, so it was only a matter of time before someone shook things up with bright colors and geometric designs. Welly bandages now sell in some 10,000 retailers, craftily nudging the category away from products people store in the medicine cabinet or under the sink to something more akin to a lifestyle accessory. Cuts and bruises, after all, are a sign that life is being lived; Welly’s chromatic bandages treat them as badges of honor. “Welly is on a mission to make everything about getting better better,” says marketing vp Laura Conlon.…

BEST FITNESS BRAND Obé Fitness has only two words of wisdom for people who are looking to stay active amid the pandemic: “Do something.” Something, they mean, is better than nothing. At a time when sofa dwelling is the norm and luxe fitness equipment like Peloton can feel a little 1%-ish, Obé, which offers livestreamed and on-demand fitness classes, has staked out the middle ground with a blend of normalcy and encouragement. “Just show up and do your best,” its homepage reassures, “no perfection needed!” Obé cofounders and co-CEOs Ashley Miller and Mark Mullet launched the digital fitness platform in March 2018 with the goal of blending entertainment and fitness into a community-driven experience for people of all exercise levels. Little did they know that two years later, a nation…

Megababe was born out of the real-life frustrations of founder Katie Sturino. Every year, when summer rolled around, she suffered from thigh chafe. Sure, a handful of existing products claimed to remedy the problem. They just weren’t ones that Sturino felt like using. “I was always disappointed with either the ingredients, the packaging or the performance,” she says. “Everything out there was for athletes—for men. Or [it] was so cheesy that you wouldn’t want to carry it because it was embarrassing.” At a certain point, Sturino did what few shoppers have the courage or wherewithal to do: She created what the market didn’t have. Megababe is a personal-care brand whose products “check off needs for my own bathroom,” as Sturino puts it. Le Tush, for example, addresses butt acne. Body…

Four years ago, an hourlong wait at a chain drugstore sent Eric Kinariwala home without the meds he was prescribed. It was then that he began to think of a smarter alternative. Today, that alternative—called Capsule—is shaking up the $300 billion retail pharmacy segment with a simple premise: to speed medications to consumers without making them go to a pharmacy. Capsule is a no-fee prescription-drug delivery service that, through an easy-to-use app, promises same-day deliveries to members’ homes and communicates with insurance companies and doctors so patients don’t have to. Its customer service team can advise on how to administer meds, and the app can sort out refills. While the brand declined to share financials, it has raised $270 million in three funding rounds since it launched in New York.…

Whether it’s to absorb the ever-changing news or simply find distraction from increasingly stressful days, more consumers—particularly Gen Z and millennials—are reaching for their phones to watch videos. Recent data from Omnicom Media Group and Snap Inc. shows that Covid-19 caused video consumption to increase across apps, such as social media (61%) and streaming, both in the platforms themselves (56%) and streaming apps on phones (52%). Even when using apps like Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram that don’t specialize in videos, users are spending more than half their time watching videos of some kind. In total—and unsurprisingly—both groups increased video consumption on their phones, with Gen Z at 67% more and millennials at 51%. “Sixty years ago, marketers were told ‘the medium is the message.’ However, this study reveals that for…

INSPIRE ON THE INSIDE FIRST When we think about branding from the inside out, we consider the role we play as a communications function in inspiring each one of the 75,000 employees at Delta. If your company hasn’t given you a reason to bring 100% of yourself, then the customer’s not going to get 100% of the person standing before them. We’re big believers that if we take good care of Delta people, Delta people will therefore take better care of the customer. If we don’t have the hearts and the minds of our employees, we don’t have anything. IMPLEMENT SUSTAINABILITY AS A CORE VALUE About a year ago, we made the commitment to be the first global carbon neutral airline in the world. It’s at least a billion-dollar commitment…

For a brand partnership to make sense to Jennifer Garner, “it has to knock my socks off” and afford her some creative control in the messages and marketing, she says, noting that “so few are the right fit.” One potential suitor that didn’t pass the litmus test early in her career was a sizable beauty brand that wanted her to pose with an oversize pair of plastic lips for one of its campaigns. “I just said, ‘I can’t do it. That’s so not me.’” Garner, with her manager and co-founder of Linden Entertainment, Nicole King, has winnowed a flood of offers over the years down to a few carefully selected endorsements. Those include Neutrogena, Capital One Venture Card and Virtue haircare, a female-founded brand where her longtime hairstylist and friend…

Not so long ago, consumers might have crinkled their noses at pasta made from … chickpeas? But no more. Since its 2014 debut, Banza has created 30 varieties—from angel hair to ziti—whose signature bright-orange boxes line the shelves in some 15,000 stores nationwide. The reason is simple enough: Consumers have picked up on the fact that chickpea flour is high in protein and fiber but free of gluten and lower in carbs than traditional semolina. Not incidentally, it also tastes pretty good. After conquering the rice and pasta aisles, Banza has invaded the frozen food section. In October, the company introduced ready-made pizzas, and has been selling about one every minute. Convincing Americans to rethink their diets by embracing reimagined comfort food is no small task, but the brand is…

The Instagram handle @sauce started about as you might imagine, based on the name—serving up a stream of luscious food pics and drawing a culinary community that has since surpassed 150,000 followers. Building on that base of fans, Nick Ajluni and Nick Guillen created Truff, a hot-sauce brand whose defining ingredient is truffles. This “pinnacle of heat experience” now boasts the largest following of any hotsauce brand on Instagram and TikTok. That kind of visibility can get a brand noticed by anyone—including Oprah, who put Truff on her Favorite Things list in 2019. Amazon and Whole Foods sell plenty of Truff, though fans can still buy it direct from “Nick and Nick,” as Ajluni and Guillen’s colleagues know them. The brand continues to work with a diverse array of social…

After online luxury resellers like The RealReal and Poshmark removed the stigma of buying used designer apparel, it was only a matter of time before a mass-appeal reseller made a grab for the thrift-shop market and put it online. That reseller is ThredUp. An online consignment platform that boasts a huge inventory for under $20, 11-year-old ThredUp isn’t exactly a newcomer, but a nation stuck at home for a year provided the flush of shoppers to make it a formidable presence. ThredUp sold its 100 millionth piece of clothing in 2020 and has filed with the SEC for a hoped-for IPO. While the site might offer used duds, its positioning has as much to do with sustainability as thrift. The store not only promises “thousands of labels you love” but…

Amazon’s one-click purchasing made ecommerce pretty fast back in 1997—but today, one platform allows consumers to “shop at the speed of culture.” This is Ntwrk, the video-commerce site that’s been called “the QVC for Gen Z.” Pronounced “network,” Ntwrk is riding the crest of social commerce, which is quickly becoming online shopping’s latest thing. Having drawn over 2 million subscribers since its 2018 launch, Ntwrk features daily episodes hosted by influencers such as Japanese pop artist Takashi Murakami that give viewers a chance to buy exclusive products. Ntwrk also hosts interactive panels, musical performances and even digital shopping festivals. In January, CEO Aaron Levant told Adweek he considered these events (seven of which are slated for this year) to be “the biggest innovations in the ecommerce landscape. They are two-day…

While Americans have relied heavily on food delivery during the pandemic, DoorDash has emerged as the sector’s leading force (its market share is 48%) by thinking about more than just speeding hot orders to the door. The brand’s PR and financial support of mom-and-pop restaurants has made consumers feel good about using DoorDash, giving the service a significant edge. Last year, DoorDash launched numerous campaigns and relief programs that shone a spotlight on local and Black-owned eateries. These included #OpenForDelivery, reminding customers that delivery was safe and restaurants needed their support; “Without Restaurants,” in which celebrities shared their past experiences working at restaurants; and the #PlayItForward Challenge, encouraging basketball fans to support Blackowned restaurants with help from NBA players. The brand also made its way to Sesame Street for its…

Many people have heard how Ben & Jerry’s got its start—in 1978, childhood friends Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield sunk $12,000 into an abandoned gas station in Burlington, Vt., and opened a scoop shop. Far fewer people, however, know how the pair made it big: They took on the mighty Pillsbury—and won. It was 1984, and Ben & Jerry’s lucked into a distribution deal for the Northeast. But they had a problem: Häagen-Dazs. The Pillsbury-owned colossus threatened to pull their own pints from any store that dared stock the challenger brand. Ben & Jerry’s responded with a campaign called “What’s the Doughboy Afraid of?” a not-so-veiled reference to Pillsbury’s mascot. It also placed an ad in Rolling Stone that read: “Help Two Vermont Hippies Fight the Corporate Giants.” The public…