Smoothie-Bar SMO on growth course

Successful as a small brand under the umbrella of LSH subsidiary Nutrisun

23-Aug-2018 - Germany

Young, dynamic, innovative and authentic - small brands make the product landscape more diverse and lively, but also bear risks. Germany's first smoothie bar supplier "SMO", which was launched in 2017, is already proving successful on the market in its first year. The business concept that distinguishes the entrepreneur from other small brands is the integration into a medium-sized family business, the LSH subsidiary Nutrisun.

"Smoothies aren't just for bottles," was the original idea of Alexandra Ash. The SMO inventor and today's Senior Brand Manager & Innovation Nutrisun developed the concept for the new brand: SMO is an innovative fruit and vegetable smoothie bar and a delicious alternative to liquid smoothie or chocolate bars. After three years of development work, SMO was launched in 2017 with the four fruity, exotic varieties Dragonfruit-Guanabana, Carrot-Orange, Spinach-Kiwi-Matcha and Mango-Kurcuma. Alexandra Esche and her team attach importance to honesty and authenticity: "As a brand we are what we are - we do the things we like as people. He who constantly thinks about what people like, runs after them bluntly - instead of inspiring them." SMO is cool and hip. The bar has a unique taste, super soft consistency and 100 percent naturalness, without preservatives, artificial flavors or colorants and without flavor enhancers. SMO thus has the potential to take off as a new lifestyle brand on the bar shelf.

Think big, even if you - still! - you're little
Small brands often have more freedom in brand management and communication than medium-sized companies. At the same time, they bear risks: Is the brand accepted by the consumer? Can it assert itself on the market? "Our motto is'Think big, even if you - still! - are small', explains Ash. "We are convinced that small, bold small brands can score with consumers as well as established players." This is supported by a special business concept that distinguishes SMO from other small brands: The brand was created under the umbrella of Laurens Spethmann Holding (LSH), a medium-sized family business known for its Meßmer tea brand, among other things. Within Nutrisun, a subsidiary of LSH, which has been marketing fruit slices, cereal bars and modern sweeteners throughout Europe for over ten years, SMO acts practically like a startup and lives the spirit of such a startup. At the same time, the entrepreneur is embedded in the structures of Nutrisun and can use the experience, resources and infrastructure of the family business.

After just under a year in the market, the success of this constellation is already clearly visible: SMO has been clearly on a growth course since its foundation in 2017. The smoothie bars are already listed and represented by several trading partners in the German food retail trade. "Our goal is to establish SMO on the market in the long term," says Alexandra Esche. "A trustworthy and credible brand develops over the years - like a deep friendship."

https://www.yumda.com/en/news/1157031/smoothie-bar-smo-on-growth-course.html