In 2019, Stanley sold around $73 million[1] worth of thermoses to outdoorsy guys. By 2023, the brand was doing more than $750 million[2], mostly to teenage girls and moms on TikTok. Same product. Different customer. That's the whole game.

What counts as a business

A business is any organization that makes and sells something. Could be a single person selling stickers on Etsy. Could be Apple. Size and location don't matter.

That "something" splits into 2 buckets. Goods are physical products you can hold (a Stanley cup, a sandwich). Services are work someone does for you (a haircut, a Spotify subscription). Most modern businesses sell some mix of both. When you buy a Tesla, you're buying a good (the car) plus services (the over-the-air software updates and the Supercharger network).

Customer vs. consumer, and why it matters

The customer is whoever pays. The consumer is whoever uses it. Sometimes one person plays both roles. Sometimes the parent pays and the kid uses.

Take Roblox. The customer is the parent whose card is on file. The consumer is the 12-year-old buying skins and Robux. If Roblox only marketed to consumers, parents would never approve the spend. If they only marketed to parents, kids would lose interest. So they market to both, differently.

Stanley figured this out too. The customer was often a mom buying a $45 cup[3] for herself. The consumer was sometimes her teenage daughter who borrowed it and never gave it back. Both got addressed in the marketing.

Problems, needs, and wants are different things

3 words that look alike. They mean different things.

A problem is something broken or annoying ("my old water bottle leaks in my backpack"). A need is the underlying must-have ("I need to stay hydrated at school"). A want is the upgrade layer ("I want a cup that matches my outfit and looks good on TikTok").

Most water bottle brands solved the need. Hydroflask solved durability. Nalgene solved cheap-and-tough. Stanley solved the want everyone else had skipped: status, and color drops that sold out in hours. That's why a 40-ounce cup costs $45.

When a product hits all 3 layers (the problem, the need, and the want), you've reached problem-solution fit. The customer feels like the product was built for them specifically.

You can't serve everybody

This part trips up a lot of new business ideas. Founders try to make a product "for everyone" and end up with a product that excites no one.

Stanley made a different call. They re-aimed the brand at Gen Z women on TikTok. They lost some old fans. Revenue grew about 10 times over.

Picking your customer is picking what you'll say no to. A skincare brand for teen acne won't also work as anti-aging cream for 60-year-olds. The marketing and pricing have to commit to one audience.

Quick recap

  • A business sells goods, services, or both, and can be any size or location.
  • Customer = who pays. Consumer = who uses it. Sometimes the same person, often a parent-and-kid split.
  • Problems are broken things. Needs are must-haves. Wants are upgrades. Hitting all 3 = problem-solution fit.
  • Choosing a customer means choosing who you won't serve. Stanley's growth came from re-aiming the brand.

Try this week

Pick a product you bought in the last month. Write down (1) the problem it solved, (2) the need under that problem, and (3) the want layer the brand convinced you of. If you can't find a clear "want," you probably bought a commodity. If the want is huge, you probably overpaid. Both are useful to notice.

References

  1. Stanley brand revenue 2019 ~$73M. Data as of December 2023 CNBC reporting. Source: CNBC "How a 40-ounce cup turned Stanley into a $750 million-a-year business." cnbc.com/2023/12/23/how-a-40-ounce-cup-turned-stanley-into-a-750-million-a-year-business.html
  2. Stanley brand revenue 2023 ~$750M. Data as of December 2023 CNBC reporting. Source: CNBC. cnbc.com/2023/12/23/how-a-40-ounce-cup-turned-stanley-into-a-750-million-a-year-business.html
  3. Stanley Quencher H2.0 FlowState 40 oz, $45 retail. Data as of 2024 Stanley product page. Source: Stanley product page. stanley1913.com/products/adventure-quencher-travel-tumbler-40-oz

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