Eyes open
We help founders grow with full visibility into what each door, promotion and distributor really costs.
About Us
Retail is glamorous until it is not. We handle the not.
Honey Bee Brands is the outsourced retail growth team for consumer product founders who are tired of being handed another job disguised as help.
A note from the founder
Let’s pursue your passion together.
I got my first consumer products job at 23, launching new products for household brands at a women-owned marketing firm. I loved the strategy, hated the nonsense and never really left. More than 326 brand launches later, I know the glamorous retailer announcement is usually followed by the unglamorous part: distributor fees, deductions, promotions, shrinking margins and more passwords than any emotionally stable person should be expected to remember.
I built Honey Bee Brands because founders need someone who will tell them the truth before the truth gets expensive. I am a mom, a second-generation CPG creative, an Alzheimer’s advocate, a World War II buff, a girls’ girl, a dog grandma and usually the person called when retail becomes a full-time emergency. I will celebrate your wins, but I will also tell you when the numbers do not work. Some people call that blunt. I call it caring about what happens to your business after everyone stops clapping.
Brands can share shelves. They don’t share journeys.
Nicole, Founder
What we do
The retail department you did not know you could outsource.
Honey Bee Brands is what happens when a brokerage finally admits that getting into retail is only a fraction of the job. Traditional brokers are usually hired to make introductions and chase purchase orders. Honey Bee Brands becomes the retail department, managing distributors, pricing, profitability, promotions, reporting, buyer communication and daily follow-through so the founder is not handed another job disguised as help.
The company is unusually honest about a hard truth: more doors do not always mean a healthier business. A large order can drain your cash, a promotion can lose money and a famous retailer can be completely wrong for your brand. Honey Bee Brands combines dedicated account management with senior retail strategy to help founders grow with their eyes open.
It has a particular heart for diversity-owned, charity-backed and purpose-led brands, but the standard is the same for everyone: clearer decisions, healthier margins and growth that survives long after the exciting announcement.
How we work
Principles that show up in every account.
Truth before it gets expensive
We celebrate wins, but we also say when the numbers do not work, because caring about your business means telling you early.
Purpose led
We have a particular heart for diversity-owned, charity-backed and mission-driven brands, and the same high standard for everyone.
Profitability over vanity
More doors do not always mean a healthier business. We build growth that survives long after the exciting announcement.
Want a retail partner who tells you the truth before it gets expensive?
Book a call and let’s see if Honey Bee Brands is the right retail growth team for your brand.