You know in a movie when the popular girl shows up in a brand new Mercedes convertible they got for their 16th birthday and the protagonist is riding a rusty ten speed? Since our launch almost 7 years ago, I have often felt like Megababe is pumping up our ten speed bike tire while getting splashed in the face by the tires of that cool girl’s Mercedes…at least when it comes to marketing!
Brands with funding (meaning they have taken outside money to run the business in exchange for a percentage of ownership) are able to launch with a lot of dazzle! To be honest, I’ve sulked in front of their billboards, I’ve stared longingly at their elaborate influencer mailers and dreamed of seeing OUR brand pop up while I’m watching YouTube. Why am I telling you this? I’m trying to explain why it’s such a big deal that Megababe has launched our first real brand campaign!!!!
Let’s back up. If you are new here, I foundedMegababein 2017 with my sister and best friend because I needed a solution for my own thigh chafe and it was clear that big beauty was not going to give us a solution we would be proud to carry, but also worked.
I literally cannot believe what we have built with such a small team. For many years it was just the three of us doing everything and now we have 9 full time employees who choose to spend their days working on Megababe! It blows my mind. None of us had experience starting a beauty brand.
We’ve never done any significant advertising- just gifting and some paid social. In a world where beauty brands are taking billboards and celebs are shilling products on the reg, I’ve had to keep my blinders on and focus- though it’s easy to get jealous!
So when my sister looked at me in the beginning of the year and said “it’s time” I was like, let’s gooooooo!!!!!!! I pulled out my vision board and we got to work figuring which one of my dreams we could afford to make come true this summer.
This year is different- we’ve decided to strategically grow our team and invest more in IRL marketing and experiences. We launched in Walmart in February, and want to grow brand awareness so people who need our products can find them!
Spring and summer is also our busiest time- what we fondly callchafe season. Our Thigh Rescue is our hero product, and one actually sells every thirty seconds now. Crazy. I knew this was something I and many people needed- even when I was laughed out of boardrooms when I was telling men in suits that it mattered.
Here is what I am so excited about for this summer.
OUR FIRST BRAND CAMPAIGN!
We worked with an agency and when they presented a super hero theme, I immediately saw a vision of who is the ultimate MEGABABE style Wonder Woman: HUNTER MCGRADY! I saw wind in the hair! I saw a cape! A tiara! And Hunter made it all come to life. I wanted to show America a plus size super hero saving the day. Starring the one and only, my dear friend Hunter McGrady.Megababe vs. The Chafewill be on TV streaming, digital, busses and more, starting now. I’ve dreamed about this from day one. I love that the ad captures our essence- real solutions for real people, and both women are plus size. And the humor is quintessetially Megababe too. You can watch it here.
A mock up of our bus ad, obsessed!
OUR FIRST DEDICATED RETAIL POP UP IN BOSTON!
I have always dreamed of having a space where you can walk in and experience the world of MEGABABE! You can find us on our site, in Ulta, Target, Walmart and Amazon, but we have never done an IRL pop up. But this year we decided to jump on an opportunity at The Current in Boston, which is hosting an amazing range of female-founded brands in the Seaport. This will be great for discoverability and for meeting existing customers IRL. Come see us at 100 Seaport Blvd.
Where and what else would you like to see Megababe? Any product ideas? I am all ears! We have some new launches coming…
xo Katie
Leave a comment
