Your Secret is Safe, And Goodles is Capitalizing on It!

Regardless of the recent headlines surrounding the Kraft-Heinz breakup, another more impactful story has emerged in this product segment dominated by one of the largest consumer packaged goods companies. Macaroni and cheese incumbent Kraft is being challenged by Goodles, an emergent competitor making, as they say, “Noodles, Gooder.”  

Goodles, created by co-founders Jen Zeszut and Paul Earle, seeks to freshen up a category that has been seen as stale and mature, with no new offerings. In other words, it’s ripe for a refresh. But how would they do this? First, target the adults who still consume mac and cheese. Second, target this population with a series of social media campaigns. Add some new flavors with spicy names to drive the messaging home, and you have a new mac and cheese brand that makes the category fun and exciting again. 

In 2024, incumbent brands like Kraft and Velveeta slipped in market share, but Goodles captured 4% of the US market in 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal. While Kraft-Heinz worked out their split, Goodles has raised an additional $28 million, including from celebrity investors Gal Gadot and Christina Aguilera. 

In short, Goodles is bringing renewed energy with the creation of fun, thematic and alternative protein options, allowing for more consumer participation, i.e. bringing those non-participating consumers, into the brand franchise, further supported with fun impactful campaigns and brand messaging, especially at the point of purchase. They are driving consumption and impulse purchases to a very complacent category by focusing on a previously ignored market. From Goodles’ perspective, there is room in the category for a new participant, one aiming to serve consumers who are seeking alternatives and fondness for simpler times. Keep in mind, though, its growth so far is primarily the result of robust social media campaigns and alignment with colleges, brands like Airbnb, and influencers who specialize in gifting, think sampling in the grocery store or other retail outlets.  

While these takeaways may seem obvious, the fact remains: more and more brands are emerging and taking share from mature, overlooked, and brand-dominated segments. In short, anything can be remarketed. The lessons I see are as follows: 

1. The notion that categories that have been historically dominated by one brand are impenetrable is false.  
2. No one is immune to competition. As your consumers change, so must you! If you’ve been following my past articles, you’ll know we have provided a multitude of examples of successful brands doing just this: coffee creamers, milk, Dutch Brothers Coffee, and many others. 
3. If you control the market share, complacency is your worst enemy. There are volumes of case studies supporting the often catastrophic results of complacency. On the other hand, if you are an emerging brand, bigger is not better. The mistake is often assuming both boundaries exist, and the most successful brands eliminate these boundaries entirely.   

Undoubtedly, many more case studies will be written with new success stories and other brands deemed “too big to fail.” So, what will your story be, and more importantly, what will your journey, look like? 

Whether your brand is an incumbent player or an emerging disruptor, BSM Partners can help. From concept to the consumer, we are the only partner you need, with practices covering Nutrition & Innovation, Veterinary Services, FSQAR, Consumer Strategy, Business Transformation & Leader Development, Engineering, Media, and more. 

Our integrated team of experts brings unmatched depth and more than 400 years of experience across pet nutrition, product development, veterinary science, manufacturing operations, quality assurance, business strategy, consumer insights, and market analytics. Our broad purview enables us to connect dots others don’t even see—transforming expertise, data, trends, and custom research into the clearest picture of what’s happening and what’s next. 

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About the Author

Eric Rittenhouse works at BSM Partners as Business Development Manager. His areas of expertise include business development, sales and trade marketing while helping brand companies uncover and execute on opportunities to strategically dominate their niche in the consumer product space. He has completed the Blue Ocean Practical Introduction certificate by the Blue Ocean Academy and is Action Selling Master Certified by Action Selling and The Sales Board.