Interview with Anna Szymanowska

Interview with Anna Szymanowska
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Adam Kitchen catches up with founder of Fighter Shots, Anna Szymanowska to discuss online marketing tactics for her fast growing brand.

Q: Anna, thanks for joining us. Where did the idea for Fighter Shots come from and how has your journey been to date?

Hi Adam,

The idea for Fighter Shots came from the need to live healthier and have more lasting energy. I've always loved ginger shots and I saw an opportunity to bring it to health and wellbeing oriented people.

The journey has been eventful and I can say with certainty that it is life-changing too. No other experience, previous jobs or my MBA has taught me as much in terms of humility, focus and the importance of human relationships.

I started with just an idea of a healthy functional drink with no previous knowledge of the food and beverage industry or how to run a business. It was people around me who offered their support, knowledge and opened their networks that made it possible to bring the product to life and actually sell it.

Although it is hard to focus 100% of your time and keep the motivation high at all times, I have never regretted what I have started, because I have been able to learn so much about myself and my own limits, but also meet amazing people on the way and certainly. come up with a product that actually works and customers love!

Q: The RTD category is incredibly competitive with innumerable start-ups continuing to come out almost daily. How have you differentiated yourself from the competition in this regard?

Differentiation is a work in progress. Initially what we have been doing better, was creating the best quality product, made locally and sustainably. Fighter Shots have 35% organic cold-pressed ginger, higher than the average shot, and have no apple juice as a filler. Instead, they have honey and lemon, which have antiseptic properties and lots of Vit C. The shots are mildly pasteurized (at 80 deg C) compared to some other products that have a 1-year shelf life (they most probably use flash pasteurization at 140 deg C which doesn't leave much good anymore). They are produced in the UK and they come in glass bottles. Soon we'll be launching very unique products that do not exist on the UK market, yet have indispensable health benefits.

Because we do care about our environmental impact, we are starting a partnership with Yayzy, to completely offset our carbon footprint and become carbon neutral. We'll be offering offset certificates, and the proceedings will support reforestation project in the Amazon. Sign up to our newsletter on fightershots.co.uk to get notified about the launch!

There are many more upcoming partnerships to really prove that we are different from the rest!

Q: A lot of CPG-products/brand owners focus on acquiring premium retail space to gain momentum with sales. Is this your strategy as well, or will you focus more/equally on the B2C side?

I think it is important to first build up the brand and know your customers, and this is only possible when selling directly. Retail does give you volumes indeed but has its challenges too, and we want to be bulletproof ready before we invest in this channel. We are in talks with a big retail chain but want to grow the brand a little more first. A crowdfunding campaign is one of the ideas which will make our brand more recognizable and could make a retail launch more successful.

Q: What marketing strategies have helped you grow the brand online to date?

Online marketing is definitely something we need to put more focus on. We are lucky that ginger is a highly sought product and lots of sales are made inbound. But email marketing, google ads, social media, partnerships and affiliates are areas we're testing too and will roll out very soon.

Q: What's the best way/where can people pick up Fighter Shots today?

If it's not in your office yet, let me speak to your office manager! We'll stock your fridges with super healthy ginger shots.

Otherwise, you can order on Amazon, Yumbles or check our stockist list on fightershots.co.uk

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