What’s next for Grüns this holiday season after a breakout year in retail
Grüns hopes to introduce itself to more new customers this holiday season by positioning its gummy supplements as stocking stuffers.
Historically, January has been the biggest sales season for many wellness brands, catering to those looking to start off the new year on a healthier note. But Grüns, which launched in August 2023, isn’t a typical wellness brand. The company’s hero product is a superfood supplement in the shape of a green gummy bear. It serves as just one example of how Grüns has sought to position itself as a more fun and approachable player in a space that’s historically catered to hardcore wellness enthusiasts obsessed with tweaking their supplement stack to gain an edge in performance.
So far, Grüns’s approach has resulted in breakneck growth. Within the past year, the company has launched in Sprouts, Target, Walmart and, most recently, Sam’s Club. Grüns founder and CEO Chad Janis recently told Inc. that the company crossed a $300 million annualized revenue rate in its 24th month of business.
Now, the challenge for Grüns is in figuring out how to introduce itself to all the new potential customers in mass retail, while also keeping its direct-to-consumer customers engaged. The company’s approach to this holiday season offers some insight into how it intends to do just that. On Monday, the company is launching “Grinch punch” flavored gummies for kids and adults, as part of a licensing deal with Dr. Seuss Enterprises. Customers will also find Grüns on holiday end caps at Target this holiday season, as part of a stocking stuffers display.
Janis, in an interview with Modern Retail, said his focus right now is on “delivering for each retailer we work with.” In many cases, that means positioning Grüns as a willing and able guinea pig, eager to participate in “interesting activations [like a seasonal end cap] at really good price points to surprise and delight their consumer.” It also means proving out different metrics like velocities, repeat rates and basket sizes among Grüns customers.
Janis said Grüns has also found a lot of success with seasonal flavors on its DTC website. The company released a raspberry lemonade gummy over the summer, and a green apple one in the fall.
The seasonal flavors serve a few different purposes, according to Janis. Through customer surveys, the company has found that some first-time customers explicitly decided to take the chance on the product because they wanted to try one of the limited-time flavors. And, he said, the seasonal flavors have been helpful in winning back lapsed customers.
“We’ve had the same flavor for two years, and people have been on that product, enjoying it for two years. But, inevitably, things can phase out, and this allows for people to reignite that excitement they have for Grüns,” he said.
What’s next for Grüns in retail
A year ago, Grüns wasn’t in any physical retail stores — now, it is in approximately 6,300 brick-and-mortar locations.
Grüns, like many startup brands, has made changes to its brand positioning based on what it has learned in retail so far. For example, it’s in the process of changing the packaging on its kids’ line of supplements. The first iteration of the packaging said “Grüns Cubs,” a nod to the brand’s bear mascot. But Grüns learned that, on a retail shelf, that didn’t make it clear enough to shoppers who may never have heard of the brand that the product was intended for kids.
So, when the brand rolled out in Sam’s Club in October, it started using packaging that simply called the product “Grüns Kids.” The company will soon start rolling out its new packaging to other retail partners. The company is also changing the packaging for its Nütrops line, consisting of functional mushroom supplements, from a light yellow to a brighter purple to stand out more on retail shelves.
Going into 2026, Janis said introducing itself to customers outside of the U.S. will be a big focus, and the company intends to launch in international retail before the end of the year. The company will also be looking to go deeper into grocery and convenience retailers next year.
“You’re going to continue seeing a really fun cadence of limited-time offers from us, as well as new products every three to four months,” Janis said. That includes a new product launching in December.
Janis said that, when it comes to Grüns, “this product is meant to be accessible for everyone.” In turn, finding ways to improve pricing will be a big focus next year. “We do know consumers are prioritizing wellness [right now], but at the same time, it can take a backseat when they’re stretched economically or financially,” Sherry Frey, vp of total wellness at Nielsen IQ told Modern Retail in May.
Right now, Janis said Grüns’s customer makeup roughly mirrors the population distribution of the U.S.; roughly 14% of its customers are in California, for example, which makes up about 13% of the U.S. population.
“We want to be where all the consumers shop, and so we intend to continue finding distribution and partnerships with other retailers,” he said.