Bee Bald's Fisher: Wide assortments aren’t always best

Sometimes, the avenue for growth in shave isn’t just with razors, blades and cartridges. Dennis Fisher, founder and CEO of Bee Bald, tells DSN why merchants should consider unique product areas.



DSN: What are the biggest challenges your company faces in the shaving (and related products) marketplace?



Dennis Fisher: Many retailers continue to embrace the status quo, notwithstanding the success of so many smaller, quirky companies like ours that are the ones actually driving growth in this category right now. So educating the category managers is still a challenge, although not nearly as much as it was in the beginning.



DSN: What trends do you currently see in this market? For example, are more men shaving their heads?



Fisher: If a man looks and feels better “clean,” it’s highly unlikely he will ever go back to having just a “horseshoe of hair” around the side of his head, so to that extent, head-shaving is here to stay and definitely not a trend. It’s important to point out, however, that Bee Bald is not a “head shaving” or “bald” company. It’s a skin care company, and while much of our marketing emphasizes the need for men with less hair than others to take better care of their skin by using premium, high-quality products like ours, we have gently shifted gears to make sure that all men, with hair and without, understand why Bee Bald products are the right choice for them.



DSN: How should retailers be merchandising the category for greatest return?



Fisher: Retailers need to recognize that adding yet another facing of the largest manufacturer’s product does nothing to facilitate category growth. In fact, it does the opposite by cannibalizing its own sales. Retailers should be broadening the base of brands they carry and phasing out some of the older, tired ones. With the right mix of vendor partners, they will see dramatic change.



DSN: What's on your new product "hot list?"



Fisher: We launched online in late 2012 with five SKUs and now have 11, including a best-selling moisturizer with SPF 30 and several “kit” options. Our focus for the next 12 months is on our existing products, and educating both consumers and retailers about their quality, benefits and market appeal. While innovation is critical, it makes no sense to introduce new products for the sake of saying something is “new.”