Written by Holly Moore, CEO of Make Events:
“I have just listened to the amazing Alan Barratt, CEO and Founder of Grenade talk about being explosive during lockdown. I am a massive fan of Grenade in particular the bars and biscuits! I also love the story of the brand. So, I thought I would summarise my learnings –
Grenade have gone back to acting like a start up during lockdown, which is exciting. I can totally relate to this as I keep thinking, when I started Make Events what do I wish I had done differently? And that is how I am shaping our business now and possibly why I am moving at my own pace to get it right.
They weren’t over reliant on one channel, country or product. I think I have realised in lockdown that Make Events were. We only operated in the live event space which is now highly under threat. Again as we are developing new products and services, they will be here to stay to de risk us and widen our portfolio.
Grenade are looking at operational excellence. This is something we didn’t pay attention to when we grew really fast so at the moment we are looking at the internal operations to strengthen before business gets back to normal.
When asked what the best marketing channels are. Alan said a bit of everything but talked about what channels work best for Grenade. It was great to hear him talk about the importance of experiential and pr stunts as part of the marketing mix.
He was asked what the “secret sauce” of Grenade is. He said in truth he could list about 30 things which include the quality of the product, the memorable branding, the team, social media, the stunts, sampling and it is all these items that add up and make Grenade memorable. It is obvious that the team enjoy the brand so that is then infectious. Alan said he made products that he wants to use and they do it their way or not at all.
As a big Grenade fan I was delighted to hear that the new Strawberries and Cream Bar was available on Amazon so I ordered a box whilst listening to the webinar and whilst eating a Grenade Re Load bar.
I love this brand. I love the fact Alan worked in a gym and knew what the customers wanted based on real experience. I was a client before I started Make Events so I think I knew what clients wanted from an agency. I think because of that Grenade is so authentic and is one of my favourite addictions. I look forward to following this brand on more of it’s success journey and hopefully doing an event for them one day!
If youโd like to know more about Make Events please get in touch with Holly at holly@makevents.co.uk. As a creative agency weโre still taking enquiries for future events. Weโre able to offer virtual events and we have a full design studio for all your graphic, content and branded products.
