The Grocer took a deep dive this week over the other side of the Atlantic to explore the UK challenger brands making a big splash in their attempts to crack America.

We’ve outlined the scale of the prize on offer across the pond, the main differences to the UK, the best strategies for success, what costs to keep an eye out for and how DTC and social media have levelled the playing field for disruptors.

Despite the super-sized feature, there wasn’t room to cover every aspect of the complex US market. So, here are a few bonus areas food and drink brands should consider when weighing up a stateside launch.

1. Relocating to the US

There is a big decision to make for founders with US ambitions – should they move to the country or split their time flying back and forth from the UK?

Reformed founders Neil Saada and Neil Marrakchi are plotting to go all-in when their functional coffee and matcha startup launches direct to consumer in the US this autumn.

“We want to fully commit to it,” Marrakchi says. “There needs to be cultural relevance in what you’re doing. We are not trying to build a strong American business from the UK. That’s a mistake many brands have made in the past, and this is why we are moving ourselves. We need to start absorbing the American cultural mindset and the ecosystem.”

Although California seems like the most natural fit for Reformed, the pair realised a west coast move would be a non-starter. “It’s too far and time zones don’t work with a UK business to grow at the same time. So, it’s either going to be Miami or New York,” Marrakchi adds.

Misfits co-founder Henry Sether agrees there is no substitute for having boots on the ground.

“In the past two years, I’ve really stepped up my time in the US, and it does make a difference. There’s the networking side of things, and it is also just assimilating, shopping at the local grocery store, understanding the people more and how they shop. One visit doesn’t do that, it compounds over time, and then all of a sudden it seeps into your decision-making as the leader of the business, and it’s quite powerful. Time in market is a very key lever.”

Trip has built a regional and national sales team in the US, with founders Olivia Ferdi, Daniel Khoury and James Edmunds splitting their time between the UK and US. Ferdi reckons there is no need for a set US base at the moment as its retail partners are spread out across the country, meaning there is always lots of travelling involved when visiting. “You’re required to be there in person regularly, but you’re very rarely required to be in the same place consistently.”

For Amanda Brill of London-based law firm Brill Immigration, which specialises in securing visas for “aliens of extraordinary ability” across the arts, film and business sectors, the decision on whether or not to move to the US often comes down to whether the company is launching under its own backing or using significant funding from investors.

“For the latter, the decision for a founder to move stateside is often driven by the terms of investment and plans for expansion,” Brill says. “For the former, the founder can’t necessarily make the move – particularly if the heart of the business is still in the UK – so they rely on their top salesperson to start operations. In both scenarios, someone from the UK business needs to be firmly on US soil to achieve success and maintain the integrity and culture of the brand.”

Brill highlights that whether a founder moves to the US or just spends a lot of time visiting the market, both options can require the same immigration process. “This can often confuses founders,” she adds.

“Many we work with are ESTA-eligible so they sometimes – wrongly – assume that as long as they aren’t living in the US, they don’t require a work-authorised visa category. We hear frequently they’re just going to the US for ‘meetings’, but when meetings extend to several continuous weeks, if not months, this raises a presumption of working without authorisation. Long ESTA stays have become a particularly large issue under this current administration, so we are advising founders that, whether they plan to be in the US full time or only sporadically, it is best to have a very clear work-authorised visa in place.”

2. Data is king

Fact-based selling is the norm and not just a nice-to-have, points out David Wilson of Green Seed, a consultancy advising overseas fmcg brands on launching in the US.

US category management leans heavily on syndicated point-of-sale data, with NIQ and Circana covering mainstream retailers and SPINS looking after the natural and speciality channel.

“Buyers routinely expect a supplier to walk in with rate of sale, share and distribution data to justify a listing,” Wilson says. “It is a codified ‘prove it with the numbers’ culture that’s more data-driven and upfront than the relationship-led range reviews common in UK buying.”

Milliways founder Tom Raviv agrees the data-driven approach is a cornerstone of US success. “And once you’ve got that data to go to the Krogers, Targets and Albertsons of the world, it opens more doors,” he adds.

3. Onshoring manufacturing

Tariffs are an ever-moving picture for UK brands, depending on the whims of President Donald Trump. Last month, US trade tsar Jamieson Greer ramped up the rhetoric and warned Trump’s threat to increase UK tariffs from 10% to 100% was not a bluff. One way to remove uncertainty is to start making the product on the ground in the US and no longer being classed as an exporter. It’s a big move, but it also gets rid of pricey freight costs and gives brands more flexibility to react to local consumer demands.

“Setting up so you are not exporting into the US is a huge advantage because you’re a domestic brand at that point and not paying if the tariff rules change,” says Katie Birrell, MD of the Food & Drink Exporters Association.

The likes of Trip, Moth and Misfits all work with co-packing partners as part of their strategies to help respond to demand spikes more quickly.

“We actually only onshored production in February after more than three years in the market, which is a big reason why we didn’t expand our distribution until now,” Sether says. Misfits is now in about 6,000 stores across the Target, Wegmans, Whole Foods, Sprouts, HEB and Costco estates.

4. The Costco factor

UK founders will be aware of the Costco model of taking just one SKU but buying it in bulk. But where there are fewer than 30 stores in the UK, there are more than 650 across the US, presenting an opportunity to build a sizable business from just one account.

“Costco actively want differentiation,” Will Hayllar of OC&C says. “It tends to mean, because of the limited range, if you’ve got something interesting that stands out on the shelf, then you can build some reasonable awareness in the US.”

And Costco, unlike other US retailers, works closely with brands on the logistics side to get product into them efficiently. “You can remove some of those multiple stages of importers and brokers by dealing with Costco,” Hayllar adds. “It can be quite efficient and practically feasible to do it. And, because there might only be five options in a given category, you’re less likely to get totally lost among large SKU counts typical of traditional retailers.”

He says Costco shoppers are also trained to be more exploratory, giving new brands effective ways of getting early traction.

Ferdi also says Costco is very quick to see what’s working and double down on it. “Costco is an amazing partner and one of the key multistate national accounts that have invested significantly in Trip at launch, with big secondary space activations and rapid distribution growth. To achieve our mission, we need to show up where the US customer shops and, with millions of shoppers visiting Costco daily, we’re excited to partner with them on Trip’s growth.”

None of this guarantees success, of course. But for UK brands willing to invest the time, money and effort, the opportunities in the US remain every bit as big as the rewards.

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