The high-growth brand is becoming more commonplace every year. With access to VC funding on the increase, and scalability improving thanks to digital technologies, we often see brands embarking on ambitious international expansion projects, opening new offices and launching new services.
In and of itself, then, a high-growth brand might not be so remarkable; 2019’s FT 1000 list, which reveals the fastest-growing companies in Europe, isn’t exactly short of finance and software firms. On the contrary, the idea of expansion is not limited to young fintechs, but is a cross-sector one. The crucial factors here include how a brand’s growth trajectory looks, how it performs in comparison to the sector at large, and how it responds to expansion through its communications and marketing strategy.
Growth affects brands in different ways. A fast-growing software company might face a client engagement challenge as it expands its product offering, a heritage FMCG brand could see non-core categories perform unexpectedly well, a digital media platform may be looking to retain market share as others in its sector try to catch up. This presents myriad opportunities for agency approaches.
Finally, with the idea of growth also comes that of weathering the storm. Some brands, previously buoyed by monster funding rounds, have been forced to scale back unsustainable expansion pipelines, such as SoftBank-backed WeWork and OYO. However, with the coronavirus outbreak comes a whole new set of considerations.
Some sectors will be well-positioned to withstand the upheaval of the pandemic, such as digital media, ride-hailing and professional services. Others will take a significant hit, with travel, retail, and leisure the obvious victims here. Whatever the case, most brands will be scrambling to reassess their marketing strategies, and a well-considered approach to media spend is therefore absolutely essential for any brand at this time.
Which leads us to our High-Growth Brands briefing, a cross-sector overview of the unique challenges facing rapidly expanding companies in 2020.
With expansion rates ranging from 7% to over 37,000%, we explore why a 182-year-old law firm is outpacing its rivals, what a Dutch chocolate brand has to offer the UK market, and the pressures of the increasingly disparate video game streaming market.
