Pop into raye!
Nicole stocks the best emerging and better for you products that you need to keep on your raye-dar
Have you ever wandered into a boutique store and wanted to buy everything in sight? That’s exactly what happened to me when I first discovered raye, a series of pop-up shops featuring the best emerging food, drink, and wellness brands from Britain and beyond, while championing exceptional British products.
raye is the brainchild of founder Nicole Compen, a branding expert who used to work in marketing for companies like WatchHouse . After noticing the rise of innovative and better for you goods in the UK, Nicole set out to create a physical retail space where people could easily discover and sample these products.
The result? A beautifully curated storefront that makes you want to fill up a basket with goodies like non-alcoholic craft cocktails, plant-based snacks and skincare made from foraged botanicals.
Nicole’s background in marketing gives her an eye for great design. She handpicks each brand included in raye based on its ingredients, as well as its aesthetic appeal. As Nicole told me, “Packaging becomes such an important and vital part of your product if it is going to sit on retail shelves.”
Over the past two and half years, raye has hosted over 500 brands at over 9 different pop-up locations in London. What began as a 10-day trial has evolved into a series of successful retail experiments.
In this interview, Nicole dishes on her journey from full-time marketing pro to startup founder. She shares advice for testing and validating new business ideas, building long-term relationships with brand partners, and managing the rollercoaster of emotions that comes with entrepreneurship.
TDLR:
3 key learnings and challenges:
1. Finding the right product-market fit takes time and iteration. Nicole went through several pop-up shops, getting feedback from brands and consumers, before settling on her current model that supports food, drinks, wellness & beauty brands in their retail growth.
2. Be open to partnerships that arise organically - Nicole partnered with the brand Patch which raised raye's profile.
3. Hiring a first employee is a big step - it allows you to work on the business more but involves learning new processes and business practice.
5 key takeaways:
• Validate your idea by speaking with people and getting feedback before and after launching. Don't keep ideas and thoughts only in your own head.
• Find ways to trial ideas on a small scale first to learn and get feedback. Nicole did short pop-ups before longer ones.
• Build relationships with brands, connect with their founders, and keep them engaged long-term.
• Pay close attention to product packaging - it must appeal visually on the retail shelf and clearly communicate the product and its key highlights.
• Partnering with established brands can help raise awareness. It’s great if these happen organically but also don’t be afraid to reach out to brands you admire and see fit.
The Interview:
Tell me about your journey from marketing at WatchHouse to starting raye:
I never intended to join WatchHouse . I met up with the founder to talk about raye and understand his journey in growing WatchHouse . He then asked if I'd be open to taking a full-time job there while building raye on the side. As I had already started to make plans to launch raye it took a few conversations to decide that there was still a lot I could offer while learning.
About 20 months into my role at WatchHouse, I took 3 weeks off to have time to set up and run the first raye store, which was a 10-day pop-up in Spitalfields, London. After running that first pop-up, I resigned from my full-time job. Then I had my notice period, which I used all outside working hours to prep for the next store. My first 4-week pop-up was in September 2021.
I had been planning for about 4 years to eventually take the jump into entrepreneurship, but I considered easing into it by keeping my full-time job at first. Ultimately I felt it was now or never, especially with the momentum and industry interest I was seeing.
When did you notice the gap in the market for a local shopping experience?
It came from my personal experience as a consumer, wanting to try new brands and products without big commitments or shipping fees. Especially with so many new brands emerging during lockdown, like hospitality brands pivoting to create consumer packaged products to sell online.
I really admire brands that are based in the UK, even though I'm not originally from here. After living in the UK for nearly 8 years now, I was looking to support local market innovation. Finding the right product-market fit took several iterations through several pop-up shops and getting feedback from both brands and consumers before settling on the current raye model focused on food, drinks, wellness & beauty brands, supporting them in their retail growth journey.
What advice do you have on identifying a strong USP and gap in the market?
Don't keep ideas to yourself out of fear that someone will steal them. At some point I was told that even if someone does something similar, they won't do it exactly the way you will with your specific passion and vision. Speak to people, take feedback to shape the concept.
Launch on a small scale, refine based on insights from real customers. Letting the idea out there helps you learn so much more through feedback versus just keeping it in your own head. Validate your idea by getting constructive feedback before fully launching. Trial ideas on a small scale to learn and adapt.
How do you exercise discipline and manage fluctuating workloads day-to-day?
My daily routine has changed a lot over time as raye has grown. When prepping for a pop-up store and running it, it's a very intense workload with long days. I'm often still working away in the back room when I’m not directly with customers. I still see a lot of value in understanding how customers engage with our spaces and product range. We also host evening events during pop-ups too, so I may not leave until 10pm some nights.
The time in between stores is more relaxed as I focus on reaching out to potential new brands, designing the next pop-up space, etc. I try to maintain a decent morning routine for myself of not looking at my phone right away and taking time to have breakfast. We all know you can't be 100% productive all day long. One of the things that gives me inspiration and energy is having conversations with brand founders. That is what I love doing most.
Managing the fluctuating workloads and stress levels between intense pop-up crunch times and more flexible periods in between has been an ongoing learning experience and challenge. But the fact that no two days ever look the same keeps me energized and engaged.
Congratulations by the way on hiring your first full-time employee! What has that process been like?
Thank you! It was a big decision to start hiring. Up until January 2023 it had just been me doing everything myself while engaging skilled freelancers to support on all things design, PR and ad hoc store support.
Hiring the first full-time employee involved learning a lot about payroll, taxes, HR policies, etc. We likely need more team members but I don't want to rush into scaling up too fast. I always said I wanted to do a series of pop-up stores first to learn and reflect before giving direction on where to go next. But having this support has allowed me to start working more on the business versus just in the day-to-day.
What are some surprises or unexpected moments you've experienced along your journey so far with raye ?
We've definitely had some celebrities visit the stores that I didn't personally recognize, but apparently others did! People told me afterward or posted on social media about spotting a well-known comedian or movie actor checking out our products.
I've also had some of my own favorite brands that I admire reach out, like Strong Roots getting in touch organically about being part of a pop-up shop. That was a pleasant surprise. Our partnership with Patch happened very organically too after I got chatting with their chief of staff while meeting friends in Regent's Park.
Building long-term relationships with our brand partners and keeping them engaged for future pop-ups has been really rewarding. And it's fun when we can connect our brand founders directly with shoppers coming through the store.
How did your first beauty focused pop-up go in Notting Hill in early 2023? What key learnings came out of that?
The beauty store was definitely a different experience compared to our food and wellness-focused pop-ups. The price points are higher, so customers needed more assistance and time to consider purchases.
A £100 face serum is a very different purchase than a £5 chocolate bar impulse buy! So it required adjusting our staffing and customer engagement. But it was a valuable learning experience that gave me ideas for future pop-ups.
One of the reoccurring observations is customer behavior and the importance of product packaging - not just from an aesthetic point of view, but also the product description and functionality to help shoppers understand what they are buying and why it’s good for them. We've worked with some great brands that we have shared constructive feedback with to help goods stand out more on the retail shelf. I've learned a lot about curation and merchandising from seeing first-hand how customers scan shelves and products, and what draws shoppers' eyes.
