SugarCap Recap: The Buyer Is Already In the Room. Grüns Now In Costco, Starface Launches Pore Strips, Snif's Newest Collab & More Portfolio News
Brian discusses the greatest exit window in a decade and who is going to win. Grüns now in Costco, Starface expands their product line, Snif collabs with influencer Mikayla Nogueira, & more updates.
“I don’t throw darts at a board. I bet on sure things.” — Gordon Gekko, Wall Street (1987)
The report that L Catterton is exploring a sale of Thorne at up to $4 billion is the latest proof of something I’ve been watching build for two years. The largest consumer companies in the world are sitting on piles of cash, watching younger consumers walk away from their brands, and staring at innovation pipelines that cannot move fast enough. They have one move left. And they’ve already started.
The proof is in the tape. PepsiCo and Poppi for nearly $2 billion. e.l.f. Beauty and Rhode for $1.3 billion. Unilever and Dr. Squatch at $1.5 billion. Hershey and LesserEvil. Mammoth Brands and Coterie for north of $650 million. Church & Dwight and Hero for $630 million. Six deals in eighteen months. Nearly $9 billion deployed into brands most legacy boardrooms couldn’t have named a year earlier.
This isn’t a spike. It’s the start of a cycle that’s already underway.
None of these buyers think they’re early. That’s exactly why the pace is accelerating.
The narrative repeated at every panel from 2022 onward was that the DTC exit market was broken.
The lesson was real.
The conclusion was wrong.
Read more on AirSugar, Brian’s blog.
Sugar Capital News
⭐️ Starface is proving brand is the moat. New pore strips expand the product line, but the real story is scale - backed by fresh capital and a playbook that turns treatment into self-expression. Most skincare brands sell solutions. Starface sells identity. HypeBae + BeautyMatter
⚡️ Grüns is moving from hype to habit. Costco isn’t a channel - it’s a test. If you win there, you’re not a trend, you’re a routine. The gummy format got attention. Now distribution does the work. LinkedIn
🕯️ Snif understands that product is now media. A collaboration with Mikayla Nogueira isn’t marketing - it’s distribution baked into the product itself. When creator and brand merge, discovery becomes native. New Beauty + Instagram
💆♀️ Jupiter turned chaos into strategy. A stolen truck becomes a campaign, paired with a quiet packaging reset. Most brands react to problems. The best ones turn them into momentum. Modern Retail + Instagram + Instagram
☕️ Esspo is going after the most overlooked moment of the day. The afternoon slump has always been there - no one has owned it. Espresso soda is just the entry point. The real play is the ritual. Bustle + CPG Wire + Food Business + BevNet
🍳 Caraway isn’t building cookware. It’s building a worldview. New mixing sets and their first OOH push signal a brand that wants to own how the modern kitchen looks and feels. The best brands don’t just show up in a room - they define it. Parade + Homes&Gardens + Modern Retail
🍀 Lucky Energy is reframing who the category is for. An energy drink for people who think they hate energy drinks is exactly right. The next winners won’t look like incumbents - they’ll feel easier, cleaner, and more human. WIRED
🍫 Feastables is building distribution without asking for it. Campaigns, collaborations, cultural moments - this isn’t marketing layered on top. It is the strategy. Attention is the new shelf. AdAge + GoNintendo
🤝 Orita is focused on what actually makes partnerships work. In a market where budgets are tighter and expectations are higher, “good vibes” don’t move revenue. The best partnerships are structured, intentional, and built to perform. Spotify
🚀 Motion is turning creative into math. A benchmarks calculator might sound simple, but it points to something bigger: the end of guesswork. Creative is becoming measurable - and that changes who wins. LinkedIn