Building the Brands of Tomorrow

Ruth Fittock
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Entrepreneurship

How do you build the brands of tomorrow? That's the question at the heart of every conversation on this podcast. Hosted by the team at Tomorrow Brands, the people behind UK launches including popchips, smartwater and vitaminwater, they know what it actually takes. Each episode, host Ruth Fittock sits down with the founders and operators building the UK and US's next generation of challenger food and drink brands. No highlight reels, just the real decisions, the pivots, the near-misses, and the hard-won lessons from the people actually doing it. If you're building a brand, working in FMCG, or just fascinated by what it really takes - this is the podcast for you.

  1. Ocado Roots: Genevieve Fitch on why Ocado's backing challenger brands

    May 6

    Ocado Roots: Genevieve Fitch on why Ocado's backing challenger brands

    "In my opinion, what makes a brand of tomorrow? Founders, all the way." In this week’s episode we go inside Ocado's accelerator for early-stage food & drink- Ocado Roots with Genevieve Fitch. This is a practical, honest conversation about what it actually takes to grow on one of the UK's most data-rich platforms. What we cover: What Ocado Roots is, who it's for, and why Ocado built itWhy their most loyal, highest-spending customers are the ones putting challenger brands in their basketsWhat buyers are actually looking for - and the pitch mistake that kills most conversations before they startThe Ocado growth toolkit: what new brands should be doing in their first six months on shelfThe Buy Women Built and Gen M partnerships - and what Ocado is doing to drive visibility for underrepresented foundersWhat long-term brand potential actually looks like from a retailer's perspectiveIf you're building a food or drink brand and thinking about UK retail, or you work with brands who are, this one's for you.

    27 min
  2. All Things Dairy: Toby Hoppy on building a challenger brand in the most unforgiving category

    Apr 29

    All Things Dairy: Toby Hoppy on building a challenger brand in the most unforgiving category

    "You don't know you've got resilience until you go through it." Toby Hoppy co-founded All Things Dairy with chef and content creator Tom Straker, building a brand that started with a viral butter video and has since grown into one of the most talked-about challenger brands in UK grocery. This is a conversation about what growth actually looks like when it's faster than you planned for... We cover: Why Toby knew nothing about dairy when he started - and why that turned out to be a superpowerHow a chef with 500 followers and a lockdown experiment became the foundation for a multi-SKU grocery brandThe cottage cheese launch and what happens when you're 4x your own forecastBuilding a creator-led marketing engine with zero paid socialWhy 60% of their customers in Sainsbury's are under 45, and what that means for category growthThe equity creator model: how they turned creators into genuine brand partnersThe US plan: butter first, New York restaurant next, and why cottage cheese isn't crossing the Atlantic yetWhere All Things Dairy goes next and why naivety is still a superpower If you're building in food and drink, obsessing over growth strategy, or just want to understand what a genuinely modern FMCG brand looks like from the inside - this one's for you.

    32 min
  3. Citizens of Soil: Sarah Fulton Vachon on turning a commodity into a community

    Apr 22

    Citizens of Soil: Sarah Fulton Vachon on turning a commodity into a community

    "When we were bootstrapping and I was comparing myself to founders who'd raised a million before they'd put a product on shelf - there's no comparison. It's not like for like. Make your own path and enjoy it." Sarah Vachon, founder of Citizens of Soil, joins us for a conversation that covers a lot of ground - from commodity supply chains and regenerative agriculture to physical brand activations, D2C challenges, and building a business without compromising on values. What we cover: How a Greek family, a love of Spain, and a background in sustainability led Sarah to found Citizens of SoilWhy most olive oil on supermarket shelves is a shadow of what it should be - and what the commodity system has to do with itThe Olive Oil Club: how a simple subscription evolved into a discovery-led community modelThe Olive Oil Clubhouse pop-up - what worked, what didn't, and why she'd do it againWhy harvest date matters more than best before dateThe realities of D2C in 2026 How climate events are directly hitting her producers, and the importance of resilienceTaking impact investment seriouslyIf you've ever picked up a bottle of olive oil in a supermarket without thinking twice, this episode will change that.

    48 min
  4. Future Chateau: Tom Benn on Emotional Centres, Earned Attention and Building Momentum

    Apr 15

    Future Chateau: Tom Benn on Emotional Centres, Earned Attention and Building Momentum

    “A good idea is worth more than a big budget.” What happens when you stop trying to drink less… and instead build something you can drink more of? In this episode, Ruth speaks to Tom Benn, founder of Future Chateau - a 5% wine designed for midweek rituals, not just Friday nights. After six years as “Deputy Squirrel” at Pip & Nut and early experience at Vita Coco, Tom spent five years developing a lower-alcohol wine that isn’t a compromise, it’s grown to be less alcoholic from the start. They explore: Why early-stage brands need emotional clarity, not big budgetsThe myth that low/no should cost lessHow poor innovation damages entire categoriesThe emotional stakes of founding your own brandWhy Slack might be killing productivityThe overlooked audience driving the mid-strength wine categoryRebranding in response to real customer insightModern luxury as “freedom without consequence”Why earned attention is the only sustainable growth strategy About Future Chateau Future Chateau is a 5% wine brand built around permission — giving people the ability to say yes to wine on nights they’d usually say no. Designed for midweek dinners, work drinks, and reopening cultural rituals without the nuclear hangover.

    32 min
  5. Islands Chocolate on Family Business, Long-Term Thinking and Timing

    Apr 8

    Islands Chocolate on Family Business, Long-Term Thinking and Timing

    “You’ve got to be comfortable being uncomfortable.” What does it take to build chocolate differently? In this episode, Ruth speaks to Wilf Marriott, Founder & CEO of Islands Chocolate - a vertically integrated cocoa and chocolate brand working directly at source in St. Vincent and beyond. From aspiring professional cricketer to cocoa farmer and founder, Will shares the mindset shift that took him from chasing leather balls to challenging the global chocolate supply chain. They explore: Why discipline from sport translates into business resilienceWhy owning your supply chain changes everythingThe tension between ethics and price on the retail shelfTrade vs retail as growth leversWhy margin equals risk in FMCGThe power, and complexity, of building a family businessSlow, sustainable growth vs chasing rapid scaleWhether ethical supply chains can ever become the defaultIslands Chocolate’s mission is simple but ambitious: bold taste, bold character - rooted in sustainable agriculture. This is a conversation about doing things properly, even when it’s harder.

    43 min
  6. Brand Success Stories: Holly Rix on building Method

    Apr 1

    Brand Success Stories: Holly Rix on building Method

    "PR at the heart. Think earned first. That's still how I think about campaigns." How Method Disrupted the Most Boring Aisle in the Supermarket Holly Rix is a fractional CMO who spent six years at Method/People Against Dirty, helping build one of FMCG's most iconic challenger brands from a standing start in Europe. In this episode we get into what made Method genuinely different - and what founders can steal from it today. We cover: Why naivety and cultural fit beat experience on paper when building a challenger brandHow Method made cleaning products something people actually wanted on their worktopThe Method ‘Drag Cleans’ campaign - and why PR-first thinking still winsWild Rhubarb: how one fragrance became a best seller and why it still isWhat founders get wrong about category creationWhy great design alone is no longer enough

    36 min
  7. Brand Growth Heroes- Lessons on building brands that last with Fiona Fitz

    Mar 25

    Brand Growth Heroes- Lessons on building brands that last with Fiona Fitz

    "The most successful founders i’ve worked with automatically get that they have to transform all day every day rather than just be, rather than just read, rather than just think’ Fiona Fitz is the powerhouse behind Brand Growth Heroes - a platform and program that’s quietly transforming how founders build CPG brands that scale. In this episode, Fiona shares her journey from Nestlé’s corporate corridors to launching Gu in France, and the pivotal experiences that shaped her obsession with brand strategy, executional precision, and founder development. We talk about: What made her leap from corporate to startup lifeWhy brand strategy without execution is a dead endHow her mini-MBA program helps founders avoid repeating the same mistakesThe three traits that set top founders apartThe underestimated power of great questionsIt’s a rich, honest conversation about founder mindset, brand-building, and what it really takes to scale without losing your soul - or your sanity.

    32 min
  8. The Salad Project: Discipline, Design & Salads with Soul- Florian De Chezelles

    Mar 18

    The Salad Project: Discipline, Design & Salads with Soul- Florian De Chezelles

    “We always said we’re building more than a salad bar. It’s food, yes, but also design, lifestyle, and technology. All four pillars matter." In this episode Ruth sits down with Florian, co-founder of Salad Project, the fast-growing, design-led, lifestyle-driven salad bar chain that's redefining healthy fast food. From launching post-COVID in London to opening 11 stores (and counting), including an upcoming expansion into Paris, Florian shares how discipline, culture, creativity, and consistency are driving growth. Plus: brand partnerships, hiring the right people, product obsession, and why personalization might just be the future of food. What we cover: How launching post-COVID gave them a competitive edgeThe early mistakes that became vital lessonsWhy consistency (not genius ideas) drives food retail successTurning a salad bar into a lifestyle brandInternal processes for creative collabs Scaling painsLeading 350+ people while protecting cultureTheir approach to funding and disciplined profitabilityWhat's next: Paris expansion, product innovation, and more

    33 min
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About

How do you build the brands of tomorrow? That's the question at the heart of every conversation on this podcast. Hosted by the team at Tomorrow Brands, the people behind UK launches including popchips, smartwater and vitaminwater, they know what it actually takes. Each episode, host Ruth Fittock sits down with the founders and operators building the UK and US's next generation of challenger food and drink brands. No highlight reels, just the real decisions, the pivots, the near-misses, and the hard-won lessons from the people actually doing it. If you're building a brand, working in FMCG, or just fascinated by what it really takes - this is the podcast for you.

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