Hardware Podcasts

#273: Retail Pricing 101 with Matt Merson

The Startup CPG Podcast · 3 Nov 2026 · 53m · Episode 396

What this episode covers

Matt Merson, President of Once Upon A Coconut, and host Daniel Scharff discuss retail pricing strategies for CPG brands, emphasizing the importance of 'price sloping' across channels and maintaining a path to 50% margins. They detail how to conduct day-one store checks, model costs at scale (10k to 1M units), and navigate the 'pocket price waterfall' including retailer margins, distributor markups, and trade spend. The conversation covers specific tactics for working with distributors like KeHE and UNFI, choosing between off-invoice and scan-back promotions, and handling price increases with buyers like Kroger.

Most relevant to

early-stage companies and companies scaling up

Topics

Mentioned

Companies
Once Upon A Coconut, Dannon, Sara Lee, Coca-Cola, Glaceau Vitaminwater, Mars Chocolate, Whole Foods, Costco, KeHE, UNFI, Nielsen, Circana, Kroger
Products
Red Bull
Tools
Startup CPG Retail Tracker, NIQ Byzzer

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