The outdoor recreation company Solo Brands recently experienced criticism after releasing a marketing campaign that included Snoop Dogg. The partnership was meant to broaden the company’s appeal, but it ultimately turned off its core customer base. Following the disastrous marketing campaign, former CEO John Merris resigned, and Rich Krause took over as CEO to help the company recover.
Solo Brands’ collaboration with Snoop Dogg, was initially hailed as a bold move to attract a broader audience. However, the partnership quickly proved to be a miscalculation, as the outdoor community criticized the collaboration for straying too far from the company’s roots and values.
This comes after Solo dominated the media landscape at the close of 2023 with a viral marketing campaign in which rapper Snoop Dogg teased the internet that he was “giving up smoke,” causing a stir. However, it was later revealed to be an advertisement for Solo’s smokeless fire pits.
The Snoop marketing campaign was viewed as a big Solo Brands success at the time. The partnership was ranked #18 on Ad Age’s list of the top 40 advertisements of 2023. Merris said that they added about 60,000 new social media followers in the days following the release of the advertisement. Solo also invested a significant sum of money to enter a float in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
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However, the company’s revenue has not increased as a result of the marketing campaigns, according to Interim CFO Andrea Tarbox’s statement in the press release announcing Metz’s appointment as CEO.
“While our unique marketing campaigns raised brand awareness of Solo Stove to an expanded and new audience of consumers, it did not lead to the sales lift that we had planned, which, combined with the increased marketing investments, negatively impacted our EBITDA,” Tarbox said. “We believe there is a significant opportunity for us to build awareness and that these new campaigns will expand our reach and benefit our brands over the long term.”
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With effect from January 15, Solo announced the appointment of Christopher Metz, a former CEO of Vista Outdoor, as its new president, CEO, and board director. John Merris, who will “mutually separate” from the company as its CEO, president, and director concurrently, is succeeded by Metz. With his background as the president of CamelBak, another Vista Outdoor subsidiary, Krause was seen as the right candidate to navigate Solo Brands through the aftermath of the Snoop Dogg collaboration.
Under Krause’s leadership, Solo Brands is expected to recalibrate its approach to collaborations and marketing campaigns, focusing on efforts that resonate better with its core audience.
The Snoop Dogg collaboration, while ambitious, ultimately proved to be a misstep that alienated the company’s loyal customers. Krause’s task is to ensure that future collaborations, while still seeking to expand the company’s reach, remain grounded in the values and interests of Solo Brands’ core customer base; hopefully before the company goes ‘up in smoke’.
Did you believe that Snoop Dogg ‘quit smoking’ after seeing the ad, like all of social media?
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