Selling Simplicity: Selling Good Products vs Brands

Sparked by reading Seth Godin’s April 13th The Elegance of Nothing blog post, I asked myself “what exactly are we buying” these days from the increasingly popular “no-logo” brands such as Brandless, Muji, Everlane and Uniqlo.

Such brands emphasize the product itself vs the brand behind the product. Most have an emphasis on social responsibility and sustainability as well. In so doing, they motivate us, the consumers, to think beyond ourselves and the superficiality of buying a product because of the brand. We are invited to think more intentionally about what we are buying and why we are buying vs that we can buy.

These anti-brands are training today’s consumers and the next generation of consumers to look beyond the brand’s symbol (exterior) and its implication (often false) of what you can afford/your worth, to a brand’s ability to satisfy something deeper (interior). These brands are inviting us all to buy into principles such as sustainability, wellness and values.

Brandless, which is a brand born in 2016 offers household, beauty and consumer packaged goods via ecommerce site, with no alternative distribution. Their prices are relatively inexpensive due to a lean supply chain and distribution system, and their focus is on providing the best organic and sustainable products directly to the end user. Other brands passionate about selling simplicity include Muji (love their notebooks, pens and aroma diffusers), Trader Joe’s and Everlane.

We like where these brands are taking us, very much. The emphasis on the products invites us to see how brands can truly benefit our lives vs our egos. We hope this leads to more brands doing more good globally.

Btw, loving the minimalist approach of Brandless’ packaging below and how small Trader Joe’s logo is on their packaging.

And what’s best for all is that the companies, in focusing on the products first, win after all, and we “the consumers” do too.

Long live the anti-brands!!

Olivia F. Scott, Marketing Strategist/Founder, Omerge Alliances