I run Beardbrand, a direct-to-consumer provider of men’s grooming products, and host “Ecommerce Conversations.” I periodically repurpose episodes to share details about my business in hopes of helping others. I’ve done this three times in the last year, which has been a tough time for many ecommerce companies, including myself.
I initially Sales decline, Recovery Planand more recently, Year-end summary.
In this episode, we talk about the recent changes Beard Brand Keep working hard for a better time.
The full audio of my conversation is embedded below. The transcript has been edited for clarity and length.
logistics
Since our last update, we have been focused on reducing costs. One of the key initiatives was transitioning to a new 3PL to be closer to our new manufacturers. The goal was to reduce the time between completing manufacturing and shipping product to our customers. We are consolidating our manufacturing under one provider, which should strengthen our supply chain.
The new manufacturer is located in the Midwest US. The 3PL is located in Dallas, Texas. We could have transferred fulfillment to the new manufacturer and had them provide that service. Instead, we chose a different 3PL that was closer to our manufacturing facility.
The cost of direct fulfillment is roughly the same whether you use a manufacturer or a new 3PL. We chose the latter primarily because it would result in a faster initial setup.
The transition from our previous 3PL to our new 3PL went pretty well. Although we had some issues, we had great team members who managed the process well. We will wait to judge how many savings, if any, we achieve with the new 3PL.
ADA Litigation
Beard Brand is ADA Litigation In response to a complaint about an inaccessible e-commerce site, many of my industry colleagues encouraged me to settle and move on. I couldn’t do that on principle. The plaintiff was suing 50 companies at the same time and never contacted us to address the complaints. For example, the plaintiff falsely claimed that images had no alt tags. This was a money-making scheme and I didn’t want to reward such behavior.
Settling a lawsuit may save you money, but it has its drawbacks. If all entrepreneurs and business owners would fight bogus lawsuits and lawyers instead of settling, the problem would be lessened. By settling, we are encouraging them to continue litigating. If you have the means to fight a lawsuit, please do so. We will fight.
sale
Sales continue to be slow. We are in the slow season and typically start to recover around September. Meta has historically been our primary customer acquisition channel, but recent efforts have had little success.
Last week we Brought X As a marketing platform. Let’s take a look at how it works.
To combat the economic downturn, we are launching new products. We are currently developing a new deodorant that is natural and aluminum-free. Hopefully, we will have it out by the end of the year. We will also be launching new products on Amazon. We have lots of ideas for new products, but we are focusing on small batch fragrance development, which is at the heart of our expertise.
Raw material costs for some of our products are skyrocketing. This is forcing us to make decisions: either raise prices for our customers or change our product formulations. We have always developed our products purely with a focus on quality. For the first time in 12 years, I am questioning that approach and asking myself if it is worth investing so much in raw materials. My answer is no. We have to evolve. We will test, provide prototypes to our customers, and see if they meet their expectations. If not, we will consider a higher price point.
Youtube
Traffic to Bearbrand’s videos on YouTube DiminishedStarting around 2019, our organic views dropped dramatically. So we came up with a new approach. We now have two channels and are tweaking how we film. But nothing seems to be working. Our videos just don’t seem to resonate with viewers or the algorithms. We’ve had some hits on YouTube Shorts, Instagram, and TikTok, but they’re not creating the same affinity with viewers as the longer versions.
We plan to host regular livestreams to get back to basics: truly connecting with our audience. That kind of direct communication with our customers is so important. We’re excited to launch this.
Advance
Despite the challenges of the past two years, I’m encouraged and optimistic for change. Businesses must be sustainable. They must be profitable. Dealing with declining sales is no fun, but entrepreneurs can’t pick their problems. We prioritize, align resources, and move forward. That’s how we’ll succeed in the long term.
