FounderMade event brings unique products to the fore
An airplane hangar in Santa Monica, Calif.?
Yes, an airplane hangar in Santa Monica. It was the setting of the semiannual FounderMade exhibition, an event designed to bring retailers and innovative suppliers together to see what might be up and coming in the months ahead.
This fall’s event, held in mid-October, did not disappoint attendees. More than 125 exhibitors and an estimated 2,500 visitors crammed the aisles of the hangar at the Santa Monica Airport. “Frankly, I was shocked at the amount of innovation I saw here,” said one attendee, a buyer for a West Coast retailer. “There were a lot of unique products here, which is exactly what I am looking for. We want to be different from the retailer down the street, and events like this can help in a very big way.”
Among the products at the show were six SKUs of toothpaste and teeth whiteners from Spotlight Oral Care. The products, which retail between $10 and $50 and will start shipping domestically in February, feature natural ingredients that are clinically proven to work. The products already are available in parts of Europe.
“There are a lot of products in the market that say they are natural, but they don’t do what they are intended to do,” said Lisa Creaven, co-founder of the New York-based company. “Our products are natural and do work. We have combined the latest advances in oral care research with the highest quality of ingredients. That is a big difference.”
Officials at Scanwell Health said that their urinary tract infection test kit is the first and only product of its kind, providing users with an at-home kit and same-day treatment options. The three-pack kit, which will be available early next year, sells for $15.
“Urinary tract infections are the second most common infections today,” said Candace Kim, marketing director at the Los Angeles-based company. “With our product, a person can find the results in 15 minutes and immediately go to work on getting cured. This will help the consumer avoid costs, and it will drive them back to the retail for a prescription or other medications.”
Mikah Coffindaffer, co-founder of Each and Every, also emphasized that being natural necessarily does not mean a product works. Products in the Cincinnati-based company’s line of deodorants are simple — just five ingredients in each, including essential oils — safe and effective. The 24-SKU line has a suggested retail price of $10 for the 1.7-oz. deodorant and $15 for the 2.5-oz. deodorant.
“A lot of natural deodorants just don’t work, and consumers have told us that they cannot find a solution for natural products in this category,” Coffindaffer said. “Natural products are very important to our consumers. They want to feel good about what they put on their bodies. We take transparency and being effective very seriously. Every ingredient is listed on the label, and we make sure that our products work.”
CV Sciences has added roll-ons to its line of topical CBD products that already include an original balm formula and extra-strength balm. The roll-on, available in 200-mg and extra-strength 500-mg sizes, is designed for consumers who are on the go and need a product that provides relief from joint or muscle pain and itch, or for proper skin health. It is priced at $34.95.
“The roll-on offers all the same benefits of our popular balm products, but it allows the user to keep it in her gym bag for easy use,” said an official at the San Diego-based company. “We back our products, and we make it clear to our consumers that these products work.”
FounderMade’s next show will be in New York in mid-May.