Mastering Brand Exits: Inside Octillion’s Acquisition Playbook

Eitan Koter
February 5, 2024

Listen to “eCom Pulse” on your favorite podcast platform.

Kunle Campbell, co-founder of Octillion, shares insights on evaluating and acquiring brands in the CPG industry. He discusses the evaluation criteria, acquisition strategy, and the importance of working capital and financing. Kunle also highlights the significance of the technology stack and operations in the acquisition process.

He provides an overview of the current market conditions and the challenges faced by brands. Finally, Kunle talks about his motivation for writing the e-commerce growth strategy book and the importance of brand building and emotional intelligent marketing.

In this conversation, Kunle Campbell discusses the importance of understanding emotions and building community in branding. He explains that emotions play a crucial role in triggering specific responses and creating a sense of community. By understanding the primary emotions of fear, anger, love, and a sense of community, brands can be more intentional in their communication and community-building efforts.

Additionally, Kunle emphasizes the power of emotional decision-making, with 95% of daily decisions being made instinctively. He also shares a personal note about being a football coach for his son and highlights the importance of football as a language and a way to connect with others.

Takeaways

When evaluating and acquiring brands, consider factors such as revenue, profitability, and growth trajectory.
Working capital and financing are crucial for scaling acquired brands and achieving growth targets.
The technology stack and operations of a brand should be carefully assessed to ensure efficiency and scalability.
The current market conditions present opportunities for acquiring distressed brands, but also require careful evaluation.
Brand building and emotional intelligent marketing are essential for creating a strong connection with customers and driving growth. Understanding emotions is essential in branding and community building.
Primary emotions like fear, anger, love, and a sense of community can be used to trigger specific responses.
Emotional decision-making plays a significant role in daily choices.
Football can be a powerful tool for building connections and fostering a sense of community.

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and Background

06:22 Octillion: Evaluating and Acquiring Brands

10:46 Evaluation Criteria and Acquisition Strategy

14:37 Working Capital and Financing

19:47 Technology Stack and Operations

23:05 Current Market Conditions

29:59 Writing the E-commerce Growth Strategy Book

37:37 Importance of Brand Building and Emotional Intelligent Marketing

39:12 Understanding Emotions and Building Community

42:07 The Role of Emotions in Branding and Community Building

43:41 The Power of Emotional Decision Making