Mark Anthony Edmonson, chief marketing officer of Materne North America, the company that makes the pouch snack GoGo squeeZ, is on a mission to turn the brand from a toddler snack brand to one that provides sustenance for the whole family.
Launched in 2008, the company widely became known as the brand with the fruit and vegetable pouches –an easy snack for toddlers to consume with transportable packaging that parents could appreciate. Since then Materne North’s audience has hit adolescence and Edmonson, who joined the brand from Henkel in 2021, wants to expand the brand perception.
“We have the consumer engagement that will allow us to be much more than a toddler snack brand. We will be a brand that will meet the needs of the whole family,” explains Edmonson. “And that is a pretty big effort from figuring out how to modernize the brand to being able to speak to a vast variety of audiences to ensuring that we’re delivering innovation that can meet the needs of core audiences to help our brand propel to being one of the top better-for-you snack brands in the U.S.”
The brand recently launched a line of snacks designed for an active lifestyle called GoGo squeeZ Active. To promote the new line, GoGo squeeZ teamed up with influencer Ben Azelart, for the Status Quo Has Got To GoGo campaign. Built on the idea that kids are often pressured to play and succeed at traditional sports, the new effort celebrates the joy of physical activities in any way that kids might choose suggesting, there’s no one way to move. Azelart is the poster boy for moving in many ways.
“We at GoGo squeeZ are on a mission to ensure that we’re providing wholesome snacks to kids as they are off on their everyday adventures,” says Edmonson. “With the new campaign, our goal is to ensure that kids understand that there’s no right or wrong type of activities they want to be involved in, just like there’s no right or wrong on how you snack. And with the many varieties of GoGo squeeZ, kids have the option to choose from fruit and veg to yogurts and more within our portfolio. These products allow them to snack while they’re on the go.”
Edmonson spent more than a decade at Procter & Gamble, and has held senior roles at Henkel and The Campbell Soup Company. Brand Innovators caught up with Edmonson from his home office in New York to talk expanding into new categories, the Status Quo campaign and Gen Z. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
What is your brand’s mission and how does the new campaign support this mission?
Since our existence, our brand has been on a mission to provide wholesome food solutions to families while being responsible for our planet. We want to make the world healthier and happier and give kids the snacks that they need to give every adventure their all. This campaign is all about encouraging kids to be 100% themselves. As a snack brand with snacks made from 100% fruit, there is no better way to connect our campaign with our brand values.
Can you talk about how you’re thinking about innovation as a brand leader?
As we start looking ahead on innovation, we want to be known as more than just a kid’s snack brand. We want to be a brand that’s known to celebrate every single stage of a consumer’s life. With our extensive R&D team of nutritionists and dieticians, we’re here to identify foods that will meet the needs of our consumers. We just launched GoGo squeeZ Active with electrolytes. It’s the latest product within our portfolio that will provide consumers with a sports nutrition snack. This is revolutionary for our brand as we’ve been extending our brand to being more than just a kid’s snack, to becoming a snack for the whole family.
What is behind this new line? Are you trying to grow your audience?
Absolutely. Right now this product is intended for young adults and teens. It’s our first product that is centered around that audience. We identified a need where consumers are looking for a sports nutrition snack that’s made from 100% fruit. The benefit is that fruits typically have natural electrolytes. This snack definitely provides that benefit to the consumer.
It’s the demographic who’s grown up with the products, correct?
Correct. This group of consumers grew up on GoGo squeeZ. They love the brand, but they may have just forgotten about us. And we’re here to tell them we’re still around. Everyone needs fruits and vegetables, so we want to make sure that people understand that we have a product that will meet their needs.
What is your approach to storytelling?
I grew up at Procter & Gamble. That was where I first started my career. They are known for telling amazing stories. It all starts with the consumer. My stories have always begun with what consumers are looking for, what needs they have, and what needs are not being met. As I tell stories to them, I really try to ensure that I am thinking about that consumer. Then I tie this to the purpose of our brand and what we’re trying to deliver. We’re on this mission to become a beacon of nurture, where we’re not only just nurturing the brand itself, but also nurturing our consumers through healthy nutrition. We are also nurturing our planet by developing products that are responsible for keeping the planet healthy.
Can you talk about how your background has helped shape your perspective in your current role?
Procter & Gamble taught me a lot about ensuring that the consumer was first so I have ensured that I go out to do research with the consumer often. As a CMO, I want to be able to tap into understanding this consumer, really diving deep into understanding the psyche, what motivates them, and how to embed ourselves into culture. The most important thing that Procter & Gamble taught me is that it’s not just about selling a brand, it’s really about selling consumers on an idea that the brand is more than just a product or service, that it can be embedded into their lives and something that will touch their lives forever. My team and I really try to do our best to ensure that we’re touching consumers’ lives and that we are more than just a snack brand. We’re on a mission to be embedded in their lives forever.
You mentioned culture. Can you talk about how this particular campaign supports you showing up and being a part of culture?
Through research, we have learned that many kids out there are expected to participate in and to excel in traditional sports. But what’s really important is letting kids move in the way that they choose. This is basically the same way in snacking. And GoGo squeeZ offers so many different varieties for consumers to snack. We looked at a way to connect the brand with Gen Alpha kids who are growing up and finding the passions that move them.Through this campaign and our partnership with Ben. He is such a brand fan and our consumer loves the brand and our consumers love him.
You mentioned Gen Alpha but I imagine also you’re targeting the parents who are buying the snacks. Can you talk about how you create a campaign that’s for both parents and kids?
You have to find something that’s entertaining enough for the kids, but something that’s interesting enough for the parents to say, wow, that’s something completely different. So we identified Ben within this GoGo squeeZ campaign to really speak to that Gen Alpha. He has the appeal to them. He’s 100% authentic himself. The parents are curious about him because they’ve captured the attention of their kids, which is really hard so it’s very curious to the parents and they engage in the campaign as well.
How are you thinking about Gen Z?
Gen Z is one of the most complicated consumer groups out there because their world is constantly evolving. We’re attempting to truly get to know them. They also have grown up on GoGo squeeZ. We really want to be able to identify what speaks to them. What are some of their needs? What are some of their activities that they’re participating in so that we can support their lives?
