From bootstrapping to big box store shelves: Love+Chew CEO shares tips for growth

Founded in 2017, Love+Chew offers a range of gluten-free superfood cookies, including cherry almond, chocolate chia, mocha chip and seasonal flavors like pumpkin.

While working in the technology industry, Chew initially started the brand as a side hustle but found that there was enough demand to spin it into a full-time business. Currently, Love+Chew is available in 1,500 stores and will soon go on rotation in Northern Californian Costco stores, where it will offer a 16-pack of mini Banana Bread cookies, Chew said.

‘I like being in control of my own destiny’

Unlike some of her peers, Chew bootstrapped her business and has not accepted VC funding, instead relying on a line of credit to fund production runs and raw materials. She decided not to go that route after discussing with her husband — who works in VC — about the pros and cons of accepting VC funding, Chew noted.

“[My husband] said, ‘If you have a business for $20 million, and you own 100% of the business, that is the same thing as selling the business for $100 million and owning 20% of the business. It is literally the exact same outcome,’” she explained. “Not that my intention is to sell the business, but that hit home with me, and I like being in control of my own destiny.”

Without VC funding though, Love+Chew’s business “did not scale as quickly, and it grew more organically,” and the company had to be “conscious about trade spend, and just spending in general,” Chew noted. Chew also focused her limited resources on ensuring that her product and packaging resonate with consumers.   

“This business is just a very capital-intensive business, and especially in the earlier stages, it is really important to understand who your customer is, what type of packaging resonates for your product, what the product call-out should be on your packaging [and] where in the store you should be. There are so many different considerations, and we have seen this with different brands where they raise a bunch of money and then they just throw money at things whether it is digital ads or going into 10,000 doors at once, and sometimes, that does not always turn out that great,” she said.

Using Costco distribution as a ‘billboard effect’ to grow ecommerce sales

Love+Chew found its Costco distribution serves as a great "billboard effect" for the brand, which drives sales well beyond its rotation at the retailer.

“We will be in there about six to eight weeks and then will disappear, and we do not necessarily view that as a negative thing because it is all about the Costco treasure hunt,” Chew said. “People get hooked on your product and then you disappear. And then consumers [say,] ‘Well, where do I find you?’ And so, we always see a spike in Amazon and ecommerce sales after our Costco rotation.”

Brands seeking Costco distribution will need to provide the retailer with a unique SKU and follow specific packaging specifications, so "there is some risk because [brands] do not want to get stuck with Costco-specific packaging," which might not be sellable at other retailers, Chew noted.