Newell Brands’ Kris Malkoski on Driving Growth, Innovation, and Consumer-Centric Strategies

Summary

Brave Commerce Podcast Summary: Newell Brands’ Kris Makowski on Driving Growth, Innovation, and Consumer-Centric Strategies

Podcast Title: BRAVE COMMERCE
Host/Author: Adweek
Episode Title: Newell Brands’ Kris Makowski on Driving Growth, Innovation, and Consumer-Centric Strategies
Release Date: January 14, 2025

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Introduction

In the latest episode of Brave Commerce, hosts Rachel Tipograph, Founder & CEO of MikMak, and Sarah Hofstatter, President of Profitero, delve into the dynamic world of eCommerce with a spotlight on leadership, innovation, and consumer-centric strategies. This episode features an insightful conversation with Chris Makowski, CEO of Learning and Development at Newell Brands. Chris shares his journey, operational philosophies, and the transformative strategies he employed to drive growth and innovation within Newell Brands.

Background of Chris Makowski

Chris Makowski brings a wealth of experience from various leadership roles, including a significant tenure at Procter & Gamble (P&G) and entrepreneurial ventures that culminated in successful exits. Her career trajectory is marked by strategic acumen and a relentless drive to overcome challenges.

Quote:
Rachel Tippograf [02:20]: "They just don't hear it."
Chris Makowski [03:00]: "I have four operating philosophies and they work."

Four Operating Philosophies

Chris attributes her success to four core operating philosophies that guide her strategic decisions and leadership approach:

1. Know Your User and Your Chooser Better Than Anyone Else
2. Know the Industry and the Leading Trends Affecting the Industry Better Than Anyone Else
3. Deliver Products and Services with Features and Benefits That Are Better Than Anyone Else
4. Know Where to Show Up and How to Communicate with Your Potential Purchaser So That They're Excited and Delighted and Want to Get Behind the Brands

Quote:
Chris Makowski [10:31]: "I have four operating philosophies and they work... to get behind the brands."

1. Know Your User and Your Chooser Better Than Anyone Else

Understanding the distinct needs and behaviors of both the end-user and the purchaser is critical. For instance, in the baby products segment, first-time expectant mothers have different concerns and purchasing behaviors compared to experienced moms. Recognizing these differences allows for tailored marketing and product development.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [11:51]: "One is trying to learn all the knowledge they can... the experienced mom is like, I got that one."

2. Know the Industry and Leading Trends

Staying abreast of industry trends and shifts in consumer behavior enables brands to anticipate changes and adapt proactively. Chris emphasizes the importance of analyzing business data and identifying unmet consumer needs to stay ahead of the competition.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [06:43]: "How to analyze business data and trends so that you can position your brand to be the best at leading the evolution of consumer purchasing habits."

3. Deliver Superior Products and Services

Innovation is at the heart of delivering exceptional products and services. Chris highlights the necessity of developing offerings that not only meet but exceed consumer expectations, addressing pain points that may not yet be articulated by the consumers themselves.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [07:10]: "Develop new products and innovations to truly eliminate that pain point."

4. Know Where to Show Up and Communicate Effectively

Effective communication and strategic presence in the right channels are essential for brand visibility and consumer engagement. This involves selecting the appropriate platforms and crafting messages that resonate deeply with the target audience.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [10:31]: "Know where to show up and how to communicate with your potential purchaser so that they're excited and delighted."

Application at Newell Brands

Upon joining Newell Brands, Chris Makowski spearheaded a comprehensive transformation aimed at revitalizing the company's Learning and Development segment. Her strategic initiatives focused on restructuring the organization into a brand management model, enhancing consumer insights, and centralizing sales operations.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [18:50]: "We reset the Newell organization into a brand management structure on the 25 global brands that represent over 90% of our sales."

Transformation Initiatives

1. Resetting Strategy and Organizational Structure

   Chris led a major reorganization, shifting Newell Brands to a brand management structure that allowed for more focused and agile operations. This move included centralizing sales teams and consolidating legal entities to streamline interactions with retailers.

   Quote:
   Chris Makowski [18:50]: "We've reset the Newell organization into a brand management structure on the 25 global brands that represent over 90% of our sales."

2. Enhancing Consumer Insights

   Recognizing the importance of understanding consumer needs, Chris overhauled the insights department to better capture and analyze unarticulated consumer demands. This allowed for more informed decision-making and product development.

   Quote:
   Chris Makowski [18:50]: "We overhauled our insights because how can you understand unmet unarticulated needs if you don't have a good insights group?"

3. Innovative Product Launches

   Under Chris’s leadership, Newell Brands launched several innovative products that addressed specific consumer pain points, leading to significant market share growth.

   • SmartSense Bassinet: Priced at $399, this bassinet offers enhanced features compared to its higher-priced competitor, Snoo, making it accessible to a broader consumer base. The product sold out quickly, demonstrating strong market demand.

     Quote:
     Chris Makowski [25:25]: "Within one week we sold out our first 16 weeks of inventory and sales have just taken off since then."

   • Sharpie Creative Marker: Designed to meet the needs of creative enthusiasts, this marker addressed common issues like bleeding and imprecision, resulting in a 28% growth in the marker category and a 32% market share.

     Quote:
     Chris Makowski [25:25]: "The response has been incredible. This has been the largest launch in the last 10 years of any writing innovation in the United States."

4. Pipeline of Leading-Edge Innovations

   Looking ahead, Chris is excited about a robust pipeline of products slated for launch from 2025 onward, aimed at disrupting the marketplace by fulfilling unmet consumer needs.

   Quote:
   Chris Makowski [22:19]: "We have a pipeline of leading-edge innovation based on this understanding of unarticulate, unmet consumer needs that will be launching from 2025 and beyond."

Navigating Industry Headwinds

Despite facing challenges such as tightening consumer wallets, inflation, and shifting purchasing behaviors, Chris views these headwinds as opportunities for growth and innovation. By adapting strategies to align with emerging trends, such as the influence of Gen Z in purchasing decisions, Newell Brands remains resilient and forward-thinking.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [24:17]: "I see those headwinds as opportunities."

Talent Strategy

Building a high-performing team is integral to executing the operating philosophies. Chris emphasizes the need for employees who deeply understand consumer motivations, are adaptable to industry changes, and maintain authenticity in their interactions.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [16:40]: "We really need to do the best job at understanding that shopper and what motivates them."

Chris’s Inspirational Journey

Chris’s path to leadership is a testament to perseverance and self-belief. From overcoming biases at P&G to successfully founding and selling her own company, Chris exemplifies resilience and determination. Her achievements, including being only the fourth woman to reach General Manager at P&G, highlight her capacity to break barriers and drive success in male-dominated industries.

Quote:
Chris Makowski [29:34]: "The bravest thing I've ever done is to be true to myself and to believe in myself and what I could accomplish."

Conclusion

Chris Makowski's insights offer a blueprint for driving growth and innovation through a consumer-centric approach. Her strategic philosophies—deep understanding of users and choosers, industry and trend awareness, superior product delivery, and effective communication—are pivotal in navigating the complexities of the modern eCommerce landscape. By transforming organizational structures, fostering innovation, and embracing challenges as opportunities, Chris has positioned Newell Brands as a formidable player in the market.

Final Quote:
Chris Makowski [31:23]: "Know yourself, be true to yourself, do what you think you can do best, and you'll be very, very successful."

Notable Quotes with Timestamps:

• Chris Makowski [03:00]: "I have four operating philosophies and they work."
• Chris Makowski [11:51]: "One is trying to learn all the knowledge they can... the experienced mom is like, I got that one."
• Chris Makowski [16:40]: "We really need to do the best job at understanding that shopper and what motivates them."
• Chris Makowski [22:19]: "We have a pipeline of leading-edge innovation based on this understanding of unarticulate, unmet consumer needs that will be launching from 2025 and beyond."
• Chris Makowski [25:25]: "Within one week we sold out our first 16 weeks of inventory and sales have just taken off since then."
• Chris Makowski [29:34]: "The bravest thing I've ever done is to be true to myself and to believe in myself and what I could accomplish."
• Chris Makowski [31:23]: "Know yourself, be true to yourself, do what you think you can do best, and you'll be very, very successful."

Key Takeaways

1. Consumer-Centric Strategies are Paramount: Understanding both the end-user and the purchaser enables brands to tailor their offerings effectively.

2. Adaptability Drives Innovation: Staying ahead of industry trends and being responsive to shifts in consumer behavior fosters continuous growth.

3. Organizational Transformation Facilitates Success: Restructuring into a brand management model and centralizing operations can significantly enhance efficiency and market responsiveness.

4. Overcoming Challenges as Opportunities: Viewing industry headwinds as chances to innovate and pivot strategies leads to sustainable success.

5. Authenticity and Transparency Build Trust: Genuine interactions and delivering on consumer promises are crucial for maintaining a positive brand reputation.

Final Thoughts

Chris Makowski's journey and strategic insights offer invaluable lessons for marketers and business leaders aiming to excel in the competitive eCommerce landscape. Her emphasis on deep consumer understanding, industry foresight, superior product offerings, and strategic communication serves as a roadmap for driving growth and fostering innovation. As Newell Brands continues to evolve under her leadership, the principles discussed in this episode stand as a testament to the power of courageous commerce.

Transcript

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[Chris Makowski]

I have four operating philosophies and they work. The first is know your user and your chooser better than anyone else. And the second is know the industry and the leading trends affecting that industry better than anyone else. The next is deliver products and services with features and benefits that are better than anyone else. And then finally, know where to show up and how to communicate with your potential purchaser so that they're excited and delighted and they want to get behind the brands.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Welcome to today's episode of Brave Commerce.

[Rachel Tippograf]

I'm Rachel Tippograf, the founder and CEO of mcmac.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

I'm Sarah Hofstadter, president of Profitero, and.

[Rachel Tippograf]

This is a show that talks about what's relevant in E commerce for the world's biggest brands. Sarah, you know, we both run enterprise businesses and something that I've realized, at least on the the revenue side, is that a lot of my top performing revenue leaders and contributors, they don't understand the word.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Now, I hope that you mean that in a good way. I do.

[Rachel Tippograf]

They just don't hear it.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Okay.

[Rachel Tippograf]

They make the impossible possible.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Oh, there's something to be said about perseverance and resilience and there's been so much written about that. But I don't know how much people really think about the importance of how you react to being told no, there could be being ignored. But then there's the saying, you can't do that. There's a difference like, getting ghosted is different than having the door slammed in your face. If you don't necessarily have that square peg, square hole situation. You got to get a little bit crafty, a little bit creative when it comes to what you do. When you get told no.

[Rachel Tippograf]

No has always been a motivator for me. I can think back to my childhood. People listen to this podcast, and you might be surprised to hear that I am five feet one and a half inches tall. And so I was always one of the smallest people or the smallest person in my class. And I love to play sports. And when you're short, growing up, typically people overlook you as an athlete.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

That literally and figuratively.

[Chris Makowski]

Exactly.

[Rachel Tippograf]

And so just at a very young age, I started to realize in some ways that I was being positioned as an underdog. And I loved proving people wrong around their assumptions, around me.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

So, fast forward, here we are, Rachel's all grown up, still 5ft 1 and a half inches tall, but you get told no. Whether it's about athleticism or something else. How do you react?

[Rachel Tippograf]

It's still a driving motivator. There's no way for me to prove this in any way, but, you know, I think we can all agree that subconscious bias exists in the world. What Mic Mac has accomplished over the last 10 years in, in many ways puts us in the top 1% of companies. But you don't see headlines coming out that we're the unicorn company that everyone's talking about. I am very motivated by essentially proving the ecosystem wrong.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

And you keep being right, which is phenomenal, whether it's your 40, 40 capability achievements or just the tremendous growth or the fact that you bought out your competitors, the fact that you're basically just dominating. The space gets crowded. You grow bigger, you innovate, you pivot. But I think a lot of it is when you meet with somebody and then they give you either a feedback or a no or a you don't look the part. And then you just constantly surprise people for the better. I wonder what. It gets to the point where it's just like, okay, she's a freaking rockstar and her company is phenomenal. Why do you have to be it? But then maybe if that happens, you might rest on your laurels. Maybe you need to hear more, know more.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Who knows? Who knows how the story goes? But I've recognized that this isn't a unique characteristic. A lot of people who've achieved great things in their career, I think, also are motivated in a similar way.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Look, I have frequently said no is an APHRODISIAC for some. That just kind of depends on it. I'm not talking about, you know, the dating scene. It's more of the idea of, you know what? We're not for everyone. I used to say that in the agency world, like, we would go in for a pitch, be like, you know what? We're not going to respond to that rfp. And like, no, no, we really want you to, like, no. And then all of a sudden, you're the front runner. Oops, I gave away my strategy.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Well, I'm excited to introduce to our listeners a new CEO that has come into my life and Sarah's life. And this person is Chris, who you will learn if you listen all the way to the end of the show, that she is also motivated by. No.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

And highly successful.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Just like Rachel, I think she's way more successful. So let's bring Chris onto the show today. We are very excited to have Chris Makowski, the CEO of Learning and Development at Newell Brands, onto the show. Hello, Chris.

[Chris Makowski]

Hi there. It's nice to see both of you.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Absolutely. Well, you're hailing from Atlanta today, is that right?

[Chris Makowski]

Correct.

[Rachel Tippograf]

I have to imagine that when you started your career, maybe you were not based in Atlanta because it looks like you started your career at P and G, Cincinnati, Ohio. Okay. Represent the CPG mecca at Sometimes it feels like. And you know, we've actually had a lot of P and G alum on this show and many of them are members of the C suite. And so we just gotta ask, what is it about P and G that produces so many C suite leaders?

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah. So the thing I love about Procter and Gamble is they provide significant training for early career professionals to ensure that they really develop the best leaders in the industry. And a key part of this is the brand management model. So within brand management, marketers are taught skills that are critical to the CPG industry. And I'll give you a few examples. How to analyze business data and trends so that you can position your brand to be the best at leading the evolution of consumer purchasing habits. Another example would be how to identify unarticulated unmet consumer needs so you really understand true pain points that maybe even the consumer can't articulate. But then you know what to do to develop new products and innovations to truly eliminate that pain point. Another example is how to develop and implement a winning strategy. You identify the where to play and the how to win with the right business capabilities so that you set yourself up for success. And everybody knows the direction to row the boat in and probably the last example of brand management is really learning how to train and develop people. Because P and G knows that your most important asset is the people that you surround yourself around.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Beautiful. And my gosh, you are so precise. I love it. And so I kind of want to follow that route of precision, if you will. So you have done a lot of things and if you wouldn't mind, I know you don't want to probably give the whole rundown on your bio, but a quickie would be really good. Beyond P and G thing, because you've been a founder, you've led and sold P bath companies, you're now a CEO within a public company. And while each is its own way, how did that frame what is now your operating philosophy?

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, so when I left P and G, I was there 15 years. I started a company that offered contract product management to businesses that didn't have a brand management model. And it was wildly successful. And within three years, Publicis bought my company. So from there I went to get.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

To talk offline because Puvisi's bought my company.

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, you guys share that.

[Rachel Tippograf]

That's amazing.

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah. And from there I went to a relatively small private equity snack food company, but we were successful. We sold it. So from there I went to Sears Holding Company, just as they were carving out Craftsman, Kenmore and Die Hard to be their own standalone brand businesses. And I took Craftsman into Ace Hardware and Costco and several other retailers. From there I went back to private equity to help a company called World Kitchen Think Pyrex, Corningware, Corel to clean up its act. It had been declining for seven years. And to get it ready for sale, which we did. And then I went to a privately owned business in glass heavy manufacturing and made products for retail, private label for like Walmart and Target, for the food service industry, and for the B2B industry. I actually manufactured all of the glass vases for Yankee Candle. And then out of the blue, the then CEO of Newell called me up and said, I want you to come and run one of my businesses for me. And it was an opportunity I couldn't pass up. And that's what landed me in Atlanta.

[Rachel Tippograf]

It's interesting. Like, I listened to that and I'm like, I can't describe you as a turnaround CEO because you have also done growth. So when you think of yourself, what kind of business warrior are you?

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, so I am a very flexible and agile business warrior, but I can honestly say I have not been on a business or a brand that I haven't Grown. And I think that's because I have four operating philosophies and they work. The first is know your user and your chooser better than anyone else. And the second is know the industry and the leading trends affecting that industry better than anyone else. The next is deliver products and services with features and benefits that are better than anyone else. And then finally know where to show up and how to communicate with your potential purchaser so that they're excited and delighted and they want to get behind the brands.

[Rachel Tippograf]

So we got to break each one of those down.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

You do all four of those simultaneously.

[Chris Makowski]

You have to. This is a fast moving business and if you don't keep up with all of them, you're going to fall behind.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Okay, you got to know the user and chooser industry and trends, features and benefits, where to show up with delight better than anyone. Better than anyone else. Damn, I might have to quit or stick my head in oven, I don't know. But that's a tall order of operating principles. Let's break them down. As Rachel said, let's talk about user and chooser.

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, so I say user and chooser. In many brands it's the end user that's doing the purchasing. But one of the brands I run right now is a baby business and newborn babies are not choosing what they are going to buy. As I look at where first time expectants are versus experienced moms, they have very different points of view and perspectives that they're coming from. One is trying to learn all the knowledge they can because they don't even know what this thing is going to be that they are going to be responsible for. And then the other, the experienced mom is like, I got that one. You know, I can take all of these shortcuts and stuff. So you really have to know the user and the chooser better than the way your competition is showing up. And it could be showing up differently depending on if you're at a site where a first time expectant is getting a lot of her research versus being in store where an experienced mom might be making her purchase decision.

[Rachel Tippograf]

And then I have a question, like when you were saying user and chooser, given so many of your businesses are distributed at large retailers, where does that lens like your, your distributor? Do you need to know your distributor better than anyone else?

[Chris Makowski]

Yes, every retail customer is very different. And there's actually been a lot of fascinating research in the market recently about how higher income households are the ones who are continuing to grow by purchases. There really are some very low income households that are quite, quite cash strapped. One of the things that we decided Here at Newell 18 months ago was we were going to focus on mid price point and high price point, higher end feature benefits for the shopper because we really felt that's what would allow Newell to grow and we're seeing it in the marketplace.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

I like this user and chooser. Not that I have a problem with the other three because they're all pretty damn good too. But I always think about pet food when it comes to that kind of stuff. But Baby is probably just as good. I used to work in the toy business and when we worked on when I worked on Little People for Mattel, it was like there becomes a point where the user and the chooser become the same as you age out. No different or diapers or something like that. But with pet food it's like you really don't know because the pet isn't even telling you if they like it or not. So you've got all of those different kind of components. I love the way Rachel, you wove in the whole idea of the B2B2C component of it.

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[Sarah Hofstadter]

So, Chris, when you think about your talent strategy, knowing the user and the chooser, and specifically going into the industry and trends, which helps you understand your points of distribution, what are you looking for? What are you looking for in your team to get you there?

[Chris Makowski]

We really need to do the best job at understanding that shopper and what motivates them, where they're going for information. And we also need to be very transparent and authentic with the shopper. The great thing about the creation of the Internet is we have a lot of data available at our fingertips. The other great thing, but not all brands always show up, is that the ownership of the message has changed from the manufacturer of the product to the recipient of the product. And if the consumer doesn't see you as authentic, transparent, or if you don't deliver against the benefits that they're looking for, they'll give you one star out of five or they will put a bad review online. And so you really need to have superior understanding of what they're looking for, what makes them tick. And you have to be authentic about it. You can't be pretend.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

What if you don't? What if you're a brand manager and you know, you use your chooser, you know the industry and trends, you know where to show up and delight the user, features and benefits.

[Chris Makowski]

Me? Yeah. If you don't show up, right, you're not going to grow share and you're not going to grow revenue and you run the risk of turning off your core customer. I don't know if you've seen in the marketplace just recently, there's been a lot of backlash to the changes that the Jaguar and carmaker team has done with their new powered vehicle.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

So, yeah, that's definitely been quite controversial, the new Jaguar branding. And so they might know their user and chooser. They definitely understand the industry and trends.

[Chris Makowski]

Correct?

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Whether or not that applies to them. Yes. Dealer's choice, if you will. No pun intended. Where to show up and how to. And delight the user. Maybe, yeah. Features and benefits. I don't know. I can't get beyond the branding just yet.

[Rachel Tippograf]

So, Chris, when you joined Newell and you had these four operating leathers, which ones were they excelling at and which ones did you need to Zone in.

[Chris Makowski]

On Newell had been in a tough way for several years. So when I came in, I was brought in as part of really trying to transform the organization. After I joined, Chris Peterson became the CEO and with Chris's leadership and the collaboration of the entire leadership team which I'm a part of, we said we need to really change the way we operate here at Newell. So the first thing we did is we reset the strategy at Newell and we actually did a major reorganization of our people and how we show up at customers. We had not been in a brand management structure and you heard me talk earlier about how important brand management is. By the way, Chris. Chris started his career at P and G too. And so we reset the Newell organization into a brand management structure on the 25 global brands that represent over 90% of our sales. We put global brand teams into place, we overhauled our insights because how can you understand unmet unarticulated needs if you don't have a good insights group? We overhauled our innovation approach of going to market and we centralized our selling structure for customers around the globe. Because before that we had seven different sales teams showing up at one retailer selling our goods and services. And we've done even more. We've gone down to one legal entity. It used to be that you had to buy through different legal entities. So we were a pain in the butt for retailers, excuse my French. We've been under a massive transformation across almost every area of the business. And today we're organized in three segments. There's learning and development, which I run, there's home and commercial, and then there's outdoor and recreation. And I would say we all had a different starting point in this journey. Learning and development. My brands think baby writing, Graco, Sharpie, Papermate Expo. We're probably a little bit further along because I kind of been implementing those brand management processes without us formally being in brand management. This year we've had a really strong year. We've had three quarters of back to back growth year over year. We grew share more than any other manufacturer in Back to school, which is a very important time frame for the writing business because so many people buy their pens, pencils, markers. During that time frame, we jumped on some emerging trends in writing and launched a brand called Sharpie Creative Marker which is really a game changer in the industry. In baby, we had an insight about what first time expectants were looking for to soothe their babies. And so we launched the Smartsense Bassinet and have been growing share in car seats too. Probably What I'm most excited about is the future. We have a pipeline of leading edge innovation based on this understanding of unarticulate, unmet consumer needs that will be launching from 2025 and beyond. That, I really think is going to massively change the marketplace because we're delivering against these unmet needs.

[Rachel Tippograf]

We've had folks on the show who said it's really hard for big public companies to innovate and often that's why they're doing a lot of M and A. So it doesn't seem like that's the case. What you just said at Newell, what's the difference between how you guys are approaching innovation and why you think other companies fall short?

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, I really think think it's coming back to this brand management business model. And by the way, the Newell company was created on M and A and they grew via M and A for years and years and years. But if you can't do organic growth by really delighting a consumer by solving a pain point, you're not going to set yourself up for transformative growth in the future. And so we actually did the opposite. We went from being M and A focused to really being focused on organic growth. And I think it's this being able to see what others don't see and solve a pain point. So think back to 20 years ago. There is no one who said, well, what I really want is this device that is about 3 inches by 5 inches that I carry with me everywhere. That is my camera, my alarm clock, my telephone, my fitness monitor, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. But somebody was smart enough, Steve Jobs, to say, wouldn't it be cool if we could put that all together and really excite consumers? And people are willing to pay over $1,000 to have that benefit in their hand.

[Rachel Tippograf]

I don't leave that store without spending $1,000. So the business units that you run are the growth engine. You just look at the earnings of Newell, you can see I also look at those categories and I have to think there's a lot of headwinds in baby. There's so many challenger brands in writing. Obviously we're living in the world of things being digitized. So how are you guys navigating the headwinds that exist within those sectors?

[Chris Makowski]

Yeah, a lot of categories are facing basic headwinds like tightening wallets, inflation, changing purchasing behaviors, et cetera. But I see those headwinds as opportunities. And I'll give you an example. Gen Z is emerging as the new first time expectant in the marketplace. And she is very different than every other generation that preceded her. She doesn't go to mom or listen to the doctor about what she should be buying for her baby that's coming. She goes to TikTok or she talks to her best friends and makes her purchase decisions that way. So we have to be nimble and quick and we have pivoted to doing a lot more social media over historically maybe investing in influencing pediatricians and things like that. Can I give you two examples though, from a product standpoint of things that we have done, which shows the nimbleness and the ability to evolve?

[Rachel Tippograf]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Chris Makowski]

Okay. So in baby again, coming to these first time expectants, we know that they worry a lot about is their baby going to sleep well, sleep right. And they also don't can't imagine how they're going to soothe a crying baby or anything. And so as we looked across the playground of all of the baby gear, the only soothing bassinet that we saw was one named Snoop. And it sold for about $1,700, which made it nearly unattainable for 90% of first time expectants. And so what we did is we launched the SmartSense Bassinet. It costs $399. The SmartSense Swing costs $299, and it offers more sounds, vibrations and motion than even the SNHU at a quarter of the cost. We launched it this fall and within one week we sold out our first 16 weeks of inventory and sales have just taken off since then. And then a writing example, and this one is near and dear to my heart because it actually talks to me. But in Covid, what we found is there still were people who bought pens, markers for functional reasons, and there still were people who bought them to be artists or very artistic. But in the middle was this emerging very large segment, about 25% of all the population, but representing about 75% of all the writing spend, who saw themselves as creative enthusiasts. So they wanted to doodle in their journals or they wanted to personalize their clothes. But the problem was there wasn't really a good tool available because permanent markers bled through to the other side of things, making marks on your countertop or whatever. And acrylic markers had a lot of pain points. You had to shake and prime them. You couldn't write precise lines. They didn't necessarily write on black paper effectively or on other surface materials. And so we created the Sharpie Creative marker, which solved all of the pain points I just mentioned. There's no shaking, priming it doesn't bleed through. It writes with a very fine point if you want that. Or there's a brush tip that acts more like a paintbrush. We launched this product in a way that we thought would most inspire these creative enthusiasts. So we started with the Sharpie home at south by Southwest, where people could come in and personalize clothing and sunglasses, or draw a cocktail and hand it in and the bartender would interpret what that cocktail was that they wanted. And we worked with Mindy Kaling and some key creative enthusiast influencers. And then we launched the Sharpie Creative Bus, which has been driving around the United States all year, stopping at events like There'll Be an Art Basil. In December, they were at the Art Prize in Grand Rapids. All of the largest art places you could go to to let people try and experience the Sharpie Creative Marker. We've sampled over 500,000 Sharpie creative markers. Now, what's amazing is the response has been incredible. This has been the largest launch in the last 10 years of any writing innovation in the United states. In just six months, we grew the marker category by 28%, and we have a 32 share of market, and we've only just begun. There's more colors coming, more tips, and we're on fire. So that's just a couple ways that you can take headwinds and turn the lemons into lemonades.

[Rachel Tippograf]

I love it.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

I love it.

[Rachel Tippograf]

I'm like, what's my alternative to Sharpie? I don't even know. That's the mind chair that you have, which is so amazing. Well, we have to ask you our famous last question, which is, what's the bravest thing you've ever done?

[Chris Makowski]

Well, I can't tell you. I jumped out of an airplane or I've done something really exciting like that. But I think actually the bravest thing I've ever done is to be true to myself and to believe in myself and what I could accomplish. When I started at P and G, I was an undergrad from the University of Nebraska. And while I love Nebraska, P and G, didn't they like to hire MBAs from the top 10 business schools? And so a lot of people told me I wouldn't make it. And in fact, the lady in HR who was overseeing my business segment I joined told me I should think about getting a job someplace else because I didn't fit the profile of who was being hired at P and G. And you. Fast forward, and 15 years later, as I was leaving P and G, I was only the fourth woman ever to make it to General manager. It's an upper rock culture. Wow. I did it with a successful career, husband and three kids. Others had either let their husband be stay at home or they had forgone kids. And then I started this company I told you about that I sold to publishes, and people were like, you can't do that. You're never going to be successful. And it was wildly successful so fast that I was surprised at how quickly I got acquired. And then like, when I went into Craftsman, people said, what are you doing in a man's business? You know, you're not going to be successful. And we grew craftsmen by 22% during the year, several years that I was on the business. So I guess my advice to anybody who's listening to this podcast, know yourself, be true to yourself, do what you think you can do best, and you'll be very, very successful. I'm confident of that.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Incredibly inspiring. And I can tell that you are motivated by when people say no, I am.

[Chris Makowski]

That's the stubborn side in me. Tell me I can't do it. I'm going to prove you wrong.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Are you a Sagittarius?

[Chris Makowski]

No, I'm a Cancer.

[Rachel Tippograf]

Oh, yeah. Yeah, that makes sense. Well, Chris, we're so appreciative for your time, especially as we get into the holiday busy season. And thank you for sharing all your insights in your operating framework.

[Chris Makowski]

I'm happy to spend the time with you and I love the fact that you guys are doing these podcasts.

[Sarah Hofstadter]

Thank you.

[Rachel Tippograf]

If you like what you heard and you want to hear from another great Newell executive who's part of the transformation, please go check out our friend Mike Geller episode. And if you want to hear from another incredible operator who we had on the very early days of the show, go check out Mindy Grossman's episode when she was the CEO of ww. If you like what you heard, tell a friend. Write a review. Thanks for listening.

[Jackie Cooper]

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[Unknown]

Hi, I'm Jackie Cooper, Global Chief Brand Officer at Edelman and the host of Touch of Tru, a new podcast launching on the Adweek Podcast Podcast Network. My dad gave me this incredibly smart piece of advice. Meet everyone once. As a result, I've met some of the most fascinating and inspiring people on the planet. Now, on Touch of Truth, we're coming centre stage and sharing the mic to experience stories of truth, insights and visions for the future that will challenge your way of thinking. Touch of Truth is available wherever you listen to podcasts. New episodes come out every Tuesday. I do hope to see you there.