The Backorder: 14 August, 2024

Supply chain headlines

• Retail returns fraud and policy abuse at an all-time high. According to Loop’s latest Retail Industry Insight Report, 90% of affected global retailers have experienced a significant increase in fraud in the last 12 months.
• £200,000+ in illegal tobacco and vapes seized in raids. The Bournemouth raids targeting off-licenses in Wollisdown, Winton, and Boscombe resulted in the seizure of roughly 31kg of illegal rolling tobacco, 145,000 cigarettes, 10kg of illicit shisha, and over 7,500 unregulated vapes, reports Talking Retail.
• Amazon shifts Black Friday inventory deadline forward for sellers. The online eCommerce giant has set an October 19 deadline for third-party sellers sending their inventory to Amazon fulfilment centres ahead of the Black Friday ordering rush, explains Supply Chain Dive.

7 ways to keep an eye on consumer behaviour and product trends

You no doubt know the value of having your finger on the pulse of customer shopping trends. But it’s often easier said than done. We aren’t all privy to swathes of detailed consumer behaviour data – so where can you learn what you need to know?

1. Google Trends. This platform shows the popularity of search terms and topics over time, with geographical breakdowns to help you tailor your marketing for each region.

2. Business analytics. If you’re using a business intelligence tool like Unleashed’s BI Vision, you can break down your historical sales performance to identify trends, seasonality impact, and declining products.

3. Competitor reviews. Compare positive and negative reviews of your competitors’ products. What are other brands doing that customers love? What do customers wish your competitors would do better? These are your best opportunities.

4. Social media. Many trends start and end on social channels. Keep up with influencers in your industry to see which products they’re promoting to their audience, and follow relevant hashtags to stay across what’s big right now. Facebook groups and Reddit threads can also offer some golden insights.

5. ‘State of the industry’ reports. Large research firms and thought leaders like PwC, Shopify, Deloitte, McKinsey, Ipsos, and Gartner frequently publish detailed market reports featuring analyses of consumer trends and shopping behaviour.

6. Exploding Topics. Similar to Google Trends, Exploding Topics is a website that helps you spot trending categories and topics based on search volume and growth rate.

7. Google. Look, we know telling you to ‘just Google it’ is like saying ‘go left’ when asked for directions to a specific address on the other side of town. But try searching your industry or product category + a modifier like ‘research’, ‘trends’, ‘insights’, or ‘report’ (e.g., “yoga equipment trends”) to find insightful data you can apply to your business strategy.

Lifting spirits without the spirits – meet Paul Duncan

Paul Duncan is the Founder of Elta Ego, an alcohol-free cocktails brand based in New Zealand. Unlike other non-alcoholic beverages, Elta Ego’s product range contains healthy and scientifically proven ingredients for lifting your mood – without delivering a nasty hangover the next day. We asked Paul about the journey of starting an alcohol-free drinks business.

What made you decide to launch an alcohol-free drinks brand?

“I started going alcohol-free several years ago. I found my overall mood, motivation, and sleep quality significantly improved. I had more energy and time to do things I enjoy. But one thing I found challenging was socialising without alcohol. All the alcohol-free options I tried weren’t satisfying and were too high in sugar. They also didn’t satisfy my need for something that could help me relax after a big day or give me the mood lift I enjoyed from alcohol.”

How did you settle on the current Elta Ego product range?

“We used a science-based approach to find the ideal combination of healthy adaptogens (l-theanine, red maca, and ginseng), and developed delicious alcohol-free cocktails that are truly satisfying and help people reduce their alcohol consumption. [Now] they have more energy to do the things they enjoy and lead healthier, happier lives.”

What are the hardest and best parts of being a business owner?

“It was a real challenge having to sacrifice a lot of my spare time to work on the business, but I really enjoy it. I know that at some point in the future I’ll have more time to do other things I enjoy. The best part is hearing how it’s really helped customers reduce or stop their drinking and lose weight, or have more energy and motivation to do things they enjoy – all whilst not having to sacrifice their social life.”

How important is it to use natural, locally grown ingredients?

“We choose to use locally made ingredients over cheaper overseas ingredients because we want to be as sustainable as we can and support local business and industry. After all, it doesn’t make sense to import something that is grown right here. We also ensure that all of our ingredients are natural and healthy, as we want to create a beverage that is truly the opposite from alcohol – whereby it is actually making you healthier with every sip.”

What have been some of your biggest learning experiences?

“Finding the right advisors was key to learning a new industry from scratch quickly without making too many mistakes.  It was also a real challenge to find the optimum combination of adaptogens that not only worked well and had a robust safety history, but also tasted great in a cocktail. That took hundreds of hours of researching medical studies as well as methodically testing them.”

How do you set your business apart from competitors?

“We created an alcohol-free cocktail range that tastes better than other options (we are the most awarded alcohol-free cocktails brand in NZ), whilst being half or less of the sugar content (only 2.2g per 100ml with no cane sugar and only around 30 calories per can). A key differentiator is our addition of the Elta Ego Adaptogen Blend of Maca, Ginseng, and L-Theanine which actually helps lift your mood and relax after a busy day, instead of just being a flavoured drink.”

What are your top tips for anyone wanting to start their own business?

“Truly understand the customer’s needs and work out a solution that will solve these needs better than [anything else]. Start by talking to people in the target market and learning everything about the problem they are facing. If you talk to enough of your target market, and they respond positively to your idea, it can really help get you motivated to start. Lastly, make sure it is an industry and a problem that you believe in and know you’ll have fun creating a product or service for. If you don’t truly enjoy it, it’ll be hard to go all in.”

On the lighter side…

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