• by Sarah Mahoney , Staff Writer, 6 hours ago

 
Gimme Seaweed, the company that has made the Korean-inspired salty snack a fan favorite, is ready to move on into new categories. The company has hired Sara Mendez Bermudez as new CMO. Previously, she had been global CMO at SC Johnson's Lifestyle Brands, including Method, Mrs. Meyer's, and Ecover.

She’s enjoying getting started on expanding Gimme’s appeal and appreciating the energy that comes from a category pioneer. The company launched 14 years ago, bringing a Korean staple to American snackers, who have grown increasingly hungry for organic, better-for-you snacks, as well as the umami flavors Gen Z and millennials love. It helps that  many of them started young, thanks to health-conscious parents who made Gimme a lunchbox snack.

Gimme is sold through Amazon, Target and Walmart, and already has some obsessively happy customers. Mendez Bermudez says the brand has 54% share of the seaweed snack category, with annual sales growth in the double digits. To her, that means Gimme is ready for its next big move: “The brand is ready to be turned into a lifestyle brand, because it already holds a meaningful place in consumers' lives.”

And because 64% of U.S. consumers still don't know that seaweed can be a snack, there’s plenty of room for growth.

That step requires an even deeper understanding of core audience’s values. “We need to show up where they need it, add value to those moments, and do it consistently and authentically,” says Mendez Bermudez.

Method, she points out, “started as a cleaning brand and has now moved into beauty.” People only give brands permission to play above their category, she tells CPG Insider, “because it plays a meaningful role in their lives.”

She’s not saying yet what those adjacent categories might be, but will stay well within the better-for-you lanes where it is already succeeding. “But I will say we are starting to think about our targets in terms of communities with different passion points,” tapping into foodie and culinary networks, modern families, and people looking to try new things.

“It’s also a playful brand, with a friendly turtle logo.”

Marketing relies on influencers, and eventually, she says the company will look for agency partners. For now, her key goals are increasing penetration, brand awareness and engagement.

But the main shift she hopes to mine is the ongoing redefinition of what it means to snack. “It's shifting from just being fuel, something that I need to eat between main meals, or even as a meal replacement, into more of an identity category.”

She says that with 40% of Gen Z and millennials choosing a certain type of diet, whether it’s keto, vegan or gluten-free, there are more opportunities to connect Gimme to specific trends. “And 90% of those consumers are actively choosing or banning ingredients from their diet.”

Like the beauty and fashion brands they’re choosing, “what you eat -- or don’t eat -- is becoming a form of identity.”