Our goal was to create the most comfortable socks in the history of feet. In addition to online research, he did a lot of networking. They're out of business. And just the reaction alone of somebody looking at him and saying, how did you know, how did you know this is exactly what I needed, convinced him that this was an important space. And so, theyve tried to control that growth as much as possible with the vision and the goal of rather than growing the fastest, this is quoting Heath actually that rather than growing the fastest, to stay in the game the longest. Excited, they get to work to design a high-quality product with a consumer-focused approach and best quality cotton. We spent over two years on research and development, to improve upon everything about the commoditized productfrom the toe seam and the materials used, to arch support and the way the sock wore and washed, cofounder and CEO, Heath toldForbes. View most popular send days, email frequency, and recent email campaigns from Bombas. Bombas is not just selling high-quality socks, they are selling that amazing feeling you get about yourself when you help someone(emotions). However, they also wanted very much to donate socks with those same properties. The name, Bombas, is Latin for "bumblebee" bees work together to make the hive a better place. Im going to ask you to start by telling us whats the central issue of the case, and whats your cold call that you use when you start the case in the classroom? When you're a one person show in the early days with no cash or resources, and the only time you have to work on it is from 6:00 P.M. until midnight and on weekends, you have to grind it out, the cofounder says. Their slogan is Bee Better, and that is exactly what Bombas is striving to do. Four years ago, David Heath and Randy Goldberg learned what the most frequently requested item was at homeless shelters: socks. To meet their ambition, Goldberg and Heath foundedBombas, an eCommerce apparel company that uses theone-for-one business modelmade famous by TOMS Shoes. You mentioned earlier that they had relationships with a couple of retailers, but theyre still doing everything primarily through their website and direct to consumer. Why is it that Bombas was able to outperform other companies in the same niche who have been in the business for longer than them? Now, most of the sales for them have been direct to consumer. I think its going to be one of the approaches that an organization can take. Do you think its because of the great material, high-quality cotton or merino wool? Heath began noting features in the performance models like a seamless tower arch support, a cushioned foot bed, ventilation over the toes, stay put cuffs and moisture and temperature regulating fabrics. He began wearing these specialized products and noticed that the features translated into a more comfortable pair of socks to even wear casually., I took these features and benefits and leveraged a design that I thought was more approachable, Heath shares. Product, price, place, and promotion. If you have any suggestions or just want to say hello, we want to hear from you. According to the Harvard business review, When a company helps its customers to fulfill deep, often unconscious desires, the customers go from being fully satisfied to emotionally connected brand ambassadors. help with returns or exchanges, and listen to feedback to inform better company strategy. The concept for the company came about after the founders learned that socks are the most requested item in homeless shelters. All In for Bombas' One-For-One. About Bombas one-for-one business | by But these firms are different because they were founded for the purpose and its intrinsic to their DNA, right? So they have an amazing marketing strategy (business model) and high-quality socks, now what? Recently, Bombas added pima cotton T-shirts that they describe as, the first shirt that you want to wear out of the wash. Next on the list is underwear, which is the second most requested item at homeless shelters; T-shirts are third, Heath shares. I have three pairs and Im constantly washing them because I want them available. Our thought is, Let's take a slightly lower margin if that translates into more sales, the cofounder explains. Im wondering why that is. I cant let you go without asking one last question. Its a luxury item for over 640,000 people who experience homelessness in the U.S. annually.. When a new team member joins Bombas, they become a part of the family, or hive, as the company would say. But Ive increasingly become interested in looking at how firms will use pro-social aspects of their companies to attract consumers in. They're not responding to us. Marketing Final Flashcards | Quizlet When you know you have a product that fits the markets needs, its important to stick with it. Elizabeth Keenans research explores individuals pro-social choices and behaviors within the domains of charitable giving and environmental sustainability. Bombas also partnered with a company known as Brooklinen to help meet a heightened demand for sheets among homeless shelters. In the process, theyve built a thriving, $50 million/year business. ELIZABETH KEENAN: Thats a really good question. Without the strong mission statement and value proposition, Bombas would not have been able to accomplish this. If you want to sell a sh*t load of fill in the blank like Bombas, consider forming an emotional connection with your audience. Again, Brand Culture goes beyond public perception. And according to research by McKinsey, you care deeply about the truth. This business showed me that the true gift and purpose in life is to give back. We've significantly built out our internal team - specifically, the actual channel management and creative teams because we ideate and produce the majority of our creative assets in-house. David finally felt comfortable seeking outside funding and raised $1 million in seed financing from private investors. YouTube Channels. It boosts the reach of their message and supports the idea of Bombas as a socially conscious brand. BRIAN KENNY: Right. Bee-ing Better at Bombas - Case - Faculty & Research - Harvard Business How did you hear about Bombas and what made you decide to write the case? ELIZABETH KEENAN: Absolutely. The hashtag can also be used to show the product in action, which builds a running social media stream of customers who are promoting their accomplishments while promoting the Bombas brand and mission at the same time. And once they raised that money, they started to create their first pairs of socks and sell them. Their plan was to design the ideal heel, a honeycomb arch support, a seamless toe, a blister tab, and stay-up technology. ELIZABETH KEENAN: It definitely played a role. Most people thought I was crazy., From an early age Heath practiced, the art of not giving an F. While it was intense holding a job and starting the company, Davids entrepreneurial spirit kept him from burning out. It was a nightmare. Heath says. You would think that would somehow limit their ability to grow a market. Theyre not leading with the purpose, theyre leading with the product, but the purpose is still such an important part of what theyre doing, but they dont thump their chest about it. The other thing they recognized is one of their core competencies was to figure out how to distribute supplies and items to those in need. Talbot:To be a brand thats going to endure, that will be around for a long time, what kind of messages do you want your marketing to convey? And they wondered maybe if we could embed these innovations into these everyday socks, we could charge a higher price. In the beginning, David would go out and listen to peoples stories, which invoked a sense of empathy inside him. Socks are a small item but can have a big impact on someone's life.. From the start, Bombas' co-founders knew an inspiring mission wouldn't be enough to drive sales. Bombas has experienced rapid growth and overarching success; however, there have been bumps in the road that tested the company. And socks, really themselves dont last very long, and sooner or later we have a hole in the heel or the toe and they fall apart. Their impact channels became a platform for other companies trying to make a difference. As Heath toldGlamour,When we first started, I stopped to hand a man on the street a pair of socks, and he proceeded to take off his shoes and show me the make-shift socks he was wearing made out of plastic shopping bags and to tell me how crucial a fresh pair of socks were to him. In fact, some companies reached out to Bombas about co-branding products and asked if they could get a discount if they didnt donate a pair with every one sold. Rather than having to "figure things out," who Bombas had become as a brand and culture led to a natural response. And we're able to donate product to a charitable organization they've got a tie to. Founder/CEO of We First, & author of new book at LeadWithWe.com, Purpose At Work: How Bombas Gains Competitive. I was always exercising my entrepreneurial muscle, he says. ELIZABETH KEENAN: Absolutely. They use these posts to engage with customers who share in their dedication to a social cause, as well as reinforce the feeling of charity that is tied to making a purchase through their service. To ensure that Bombas customers are satisfied with their purchase, its socks come with a 100% Happiness Guarantee which assures customers that the Bombas Customer Happiness Team will be happy to assist them with any issues or questions. Heath invested $18,000 of his own money to develop a minimum viable product (MVP). And a number of the students in the class that I had learned about this aspect of their business, because they read the case though, they had also already owned Bombas socks. Huyett:One of the biggest things we did very early on was making sure that we looked at every channel on a standalone basis and overall blended performance. Before I raised a single dollar of capital, I wanted to go out and prove market validation, the pragmatist says. Companies Embracing Buy-One-Give-One Strategies: Warby Parker ELIZABETH KEENAN: Thank you. Bombas was started in 2013 with a dual mission: to deliver quality socks and donate much-needed footwear to people living in shelters. Us humans, we love to make ourselves feel good and happy. The 4 P's of marketing are price, promotion, place, and productthe four key factors every marketer should use to guide their campaign strategy. Theyve taken these values and transformed them into a $50 million business. Crowdfunding: Introduce your mission and product with a fundraising campaign Its one of the first sets of things you put on every day, and the story still works. The Bombas marketing strategy is simple, building a great community that knows they are making a difference, selling premium quality clothing that people would die for, and solving major problems. When the company. We've worked to reach customers across a wide variety of touch points and that's also meant that no single channel constitutes the majority of our spend, which sets us apart from some of our DTC peers. The venture firms want to mark up their books and if they can give you more funding or higher evaluation that allows them to go raise more capital.. And then for the print and for commercial, they focus on speaking to the mission along with the product. Initially the company had to figure out how to price its product. They may adopt it over time and due in part to any number of pressures, whether external or internal that drive the need for focusing in on a mission-driven purpose. BRIAN KENNY: Im sorry, that explains the title a little bit. Getting this buy-in from team members is important for a mission-based company like Bombas because they act as evangelists for the brand. Well, not quite. But in the case of TOMS, Warby and even Bombas, the items for the most part from the beginning, at least had been the same product they were selling, they would also then donate. From there they were able to create a product that met the needs of the homeless community and turn it into a viable business plan. How do you even begin to scale an effort like that? Social Media Analytics and Insights on Bombas - Unmetric And that would be, what do you want our listeners to take away from this case? This focus on social issues helped Bombas connect with their customers and solidified their place as a mission-based eCommerce brand. ELIZABETH KEENAN: No, they dont. After confirming that they had the community to support their cause, Bombas doubled down on their efforts. You have high expectations of the role that business should play in the world, but by a margin of five to one, you just dont trust them to do it. How do they do it? What do you think about startups utilizing the Toms one-for-one business model for new ventures? To take advantage of the low prices, Bombas did some bargain brand-building on Facebook, Instagram, and other digital channels, shifting its messaging to talk about its charitable work--the. The young founder graduated from Babson Colleges business school and his father was an entrepreneur. And what we did is we took a look at firms that are both trying to do well and do good at the same time. My eyes and ears were constantly looking for problems to solve utilizing business. What are some of the important ways your marketing has evolved as the business has grown? LinkedIn Accounts. And together they started doing some research into why socks are so limited in homeless shelters and whatnot. They fostered a company culture of shared values and found ways to build the mission of giving back into everything they did. [CDATA[ By the end of 2013, Bombas had reached $400,000 in sales. My next question was, Once I get these products on everyone's feet, are they going to love it enough to come back? Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. This is what our brand is built on, Heath declares. David gained insight from meetups, charity events and gatherings. The Bombas Marketing Team is responsible for bringing in new customers and growing their relationship to the company and its products.