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The Newspaper of Record’s Broken Record on Supplements

by Peter Littell | Published on September 4, 2011
If, like me, you spent this past Sunday safely nestled away from the ravages of Hurricane Irene reading the Sunday New York Times, then you will have seen yet another report from "the newspaper of record" questioning the legitimacy of the supplement industry. The article, "Here’s to Your Health, So They Claim — Ingredients of Shady Origins Posing as Supplements," by Natasha Singer, appeared as the cover story of the Sunday Business section.

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Natural Brands Get Naked and Trace Ourselves – Part 3: Trace Yourself

by Yadim Medore | Published on March 19, 2011
Before you can engage in any level of transparency, you need to have the data to share. If you’re currently following cGMPs and keeping good records, you may already have much of what you need to get started. Spend the time at the front-end to research what your consumer really cares about. Understand that even if you already capture the information, distilling it into a format that easy to understand, meaningful and user-friendly is time-intensive work.

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Natural Brands Get Naked and Trace Ourselves – Part 2: Getting Naked

by Yadim Medore | Published on March 18, 2011
Here’s the good news. The new consumer doesn’t expect you to be perfect, she merely expects you to be honest. It’s perfectly okay to say, “We are not happy about the social impact of our sourcing practices. We recognize this as a major problem and are taking the following steps to rectify the situation.” Lay it out on the table for everyone to see. Be honest about your intentions, and you will be.

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Natural Brands Get Naked and Trace Ourselves – Part 1: Get Prepared

by Yadim Medore | Published on March 7, 2011
In case you haven’t noticed, there is a new kind of consumer out there. The natural shopper is no longer just a dyed-in-the-wool tree-hugger who blindly believes that if a product comes from a natural brand she knows, it must be trustworthy. This new consumer is educated, informed, and engaged. And whether you like it or not, she knows what you’re up to. The good, the bad, the ugly.

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The Supplement Emotional Motivation Quadrant

by Yadim Medore | Published on March 2, 2011
If you market supplements, you know what sells. But do you know why? Before your product hits the shelf, you’ve made dozens of decisions about packaging, design, product names, advertising, placement, and trade programs. Yet are you clear on why a shopper is in the supplement aisle to begin with? What are they really seeking, and how committed are they to their decisions?

Article

Tell Me Lies, Tell Me Sweet Little Lies: Lessons in Radical Transparency

by Yadim Medore | Published on September 12, 2010
We buy natural products because they represent our values, our concerns, and our aspirations. We have an affiliation with these brands; their products are badges of our identity. So when brands and products we affiliate with stumble—whether it be Apple’s recent supplier audits that revealed sub-minimum wage pay and records of underage labor, or Whole Foods coming under