CBD Oil has become the newest fad in the health market today, and Min An sits down with GenBiz's David Grasso and the C-S...
Problem
Anxiety and stress is not just a human problem
You and your furry best friend share more than love. Humans and pets have a very similar endocannabinoid system. Humans aren't the only creatures with anxiety. Severely traumatized rescue dogs need more than hands-on training to help to stabilize their moods. There are few, if any low-risk and effective ways to help animals manage their stress and maintain mental health.
The fast growing CBD trend is exposing itself to serious health concerns due to potential drug interactions and susceptibility to toxins. There is a lack of CBD education for human products and this lack is even more apparent for pet products.
Solution
Buzzn: CBD products to help you and your pets
Buzzn was created with one goal in mind: to help pets and their people live happy and healthy lives.
All of our high quality products come with complete ingredient and testing transparency. Our customers have daily access to our team of medical professionals regarding drug-drug interactions.
Buzzn is founded by subject matter experts in both human and pets products, driving two high growth product categories. Leveraging our founders’ and advisors’ unique backgrounds to develop products that takes care of you and your entire family. From pets to humans.
Product
Pharmacist created, Brooklyn born, Colorado grown
Our team of Pharmacists and healthcare professionals created pet and human CBD products that use organic farming practices to cultivate naturally-developed generic strains of industrial hemp for safe and regulated hemp oil products.
All products use toxin-free, broad-spectrum CBD hemp extract that is third-party lab tested for purity. In 2020, we will be developing a full-spectrum line of products.
All packaging is made from 50% post-consumer waste material and 100% recyclable paper.
For each pet product purchased, we donate a portion to support Korean K9 Rescue in their mission to ban the dog meat trade in Korea.
Top Selling Product - Online:
- Puppy Potion
Top Selling Products - Retail:
- Super Powered Healing Balm
- Puppy Potion
Traction
60+ retail locations across 4 states in 1 year
We’ve seen incredible growth in just one year. Our products are now available in 4 states and over 60 retail locations. Aside from seeing retail and e-commerce growth, we have built a charitable partnership with Korean K9 Rescue to include our products with every adoption package.
We’ve been featured in a variety of publications and have quickly grown a reputation for ourselves as efficient, pure and healthy for humans and pets alike.
Pop-ups, events, and cross-promotional partners
In the press
Customers
Loved by pets and their humans
Buzzn was founded with the intention of reducing stress in pets. From the results that owners were seeing in their pets, we started getting many requests to create products to help the humans. So, we formulated a line specifically for humans. We take feedback seriously. We listen to our customers and strive to create products they want. All of our products have had a demonstrated impact on our customers - humans and pets alike.
Business model
Competitively priced, high quality products
Competitively priced, our products retail online from $29.95 to $99.95. We also offer wholesale prices.
Retail
Since our inception in Feb 2019, we have built strategic retail partnerships. Our retailer profit margin is an average of 65% across all products. We strongly support our retail partners through in-person and social media collaborations & giveaways.
Online (Direct-to-consumer)
Online presence is a must and we wanted a channel in which we can be accessible to everyone. First, with E-Wallet, and currently, with Square’s CBD Beta program, our pet and human products are available online at getbuzzn.com. Our D2C profit margin is an average of 84% across all products.
Market
Targeting multiple markets valued from $3B to $137B
Customers
There is a consumer age group overlap between millennial pet owners and adults that reported the highest level of CBD use.
CBD (Cannabidiol)
CBD products are rising in popularity thanks to greater awareness of its healing properties and pain relief management. In 2018, the global CBD market was valued at $4.6 Billion. This is expected to grow at a rate of 22.2%. According to industry reports, the health benefits of CBD infused products is expected to grow the market for years to come.
Pet Care
75% of millennials own a pet, and see their pets as the first "child". According to reports, "millennials are bringing pets into their household earlier than the previous generations. They delayed marriage, but those pets fill that void." In 2019, $95.7B was spent on pets in the U.S. with $36.9B spent on pet food and treats.
Topical (Skin care)
The CBD skin care market exhibits an incremental revenue opportunity of $2.7B from 2019 to 2026. CBD infused skin care products are gaining popularity among consumers due to its potential to relief common skin issue through its anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant properties. It has also been touted to potentially help various inflammatory skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis, and acne. Our Super Powered Healing Balm has been wildly successful as our only topical at the moment. For 2020, we are working to capture the skin care consumer by launching two new CBD skin care products.
Competition
Formulated with deep understanding of ingredient profiles
CBD (Cannabidiol) is not just a trend, CBD is an active ingredient. It has actual therapeutic effects on our bodies and brain receptors. It can also cause drug interactions with other compounds. Buzzn is unlike its competitors in that our products are all formulated and approved by a team of pharmacists and industry experts who have a deep understanding of the effects of CBD.
Unlike many of our competitors, Buzzn works alongside our community. Giving back to causes close to our hearts have always been the foundation of our brand.
Vision and strategy
Empowering a happier & healthier generation of people and pets
Being a year old, we have spent the last year listening to our customers and understanding what the market wants. We highly value the insights gained from last year to help build our brand.
By reaching our investment goal, Buzzn will continue to expand our online and offline presence in our sophomore year. With a more dynamic PR strategy, our goal is to expand into west coast retailers and introduce a new category of products—skin care.
Use of Funds:
Sales + Marketing:
- Engage a more robust PR program to help drive new pet product launches and our skin care launch
- Implement a stronger influencer program
- Host / co-host more pop-ups and events with influential brands and influencers
- Grow our family and bring a new sales associate onto the team to help maintain our retailer relationships
Community Involvement:
- Continue to conduct and manage non-profit outreach in order to create more Giveback Programs for a variety of charitable causes
Product Development & Operations:
- R&D / product development for skin care and pet products
- Update current packaging and create new packaging for upcoming products
- Solidify our new hemp farm and manufacturing relationships to produce products in higher quantities
Tech:
- Update our current website to a more user friendly platform
- Implement more analytics, social media and business tools to provide more data in order to drive growth
Founders
Dr. Minchul An | Co-Founder & CEO
Lisa Zhan-Monigan | Co-Founder & COO