Solo Stove, who used the rapper’s love of smoking as a marketing tool last year, has announced a new CEO after the campaign failed to raise revenue
Resident weed icon Snoop Dogg made headlines last year when he announced that he would be “giving up smoke,” devastating stoners everywhere. A week later, the rapper eased their fear when he revealed that it was all part of an elaborate brand deal with Solo Brands, which sells a smokeless fire pit. “I’m going smokeless — Solo Stove fixed fire,” he said at the time. “They take out the smoke. Clever.”
It was clever, but apparently not enough to make a difference in anyone’s pockets other than Snoop’s. Effective Jan. 15, Solo Brands will be helmed by the newly-announced CEO Christopher Metz, who steps in for their previous CEO, president, and director John Merris. Merris decided to “mutually separate” from the company after the viral marketing campaign failed to bring in any substantial revenue for the brand.
“While our unique marketing campaigns raised brand awareness of Solo Stove to an expanded and new audience of consumers, it did not lead to the sales lift that we had planned, which, combined with the increased marketing investments, negatively impacted our EBITDA [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization],” Andrea Tarbox, interim CFO, said in a statement. “We believe there is a significant opportunity for us to build awareness and that these new campaigns will expand our reach and benefit our brands over the long term.”
Merris had previously stated that the brand saw a boost in social media followers after their team up with Snoop, with around 60,000 users gaining awareness of the brand. However, 60,000 users didn’t buy smokeless fire pits, unfortunately. Meanwhile, the rapper’s social posts about giving up smoke racked up millions of views.
Daniel D`Amico for SANREMO.FM
