Spiceology CEO explains why CPG brands need an online presence, even though social commerce squeezes margins as much as grocery does. The brand switched its target market to home cooks from chefs and is eager to capture shoppers’ interest before they reach the store.

TikTok Shop’s margins are rough, said Spiceology CEO Darby McLean.

The seasoning brand’s profit is squeezed after it subtracts fees from the platform, affiliates and small-parcel shipping. To be fair, traditional grocery store margins are also rough, McLean said, with both retailer and distributor fees totaling about 50%.

“It’s pretty close to even,” McLean said, comparing the profit margins of the two channels. “They couldn’t be more different in terms of the material movement, but a really similar pricing profile.”

But that just means Spiceology has to have efficient operations and marketing to ensure it can play ball in both channels. Consumer packaged goods brands need both distribution channels in 2026 — grocery and direct-to-consumer — to make it convenient for shoppers, McLean said.

“You don’t want to be the one that misses out,” McLean said. “If large parts of your audience would prefer to click and enjoy products coming straight to their door for them to try, then we want to be there to help them discover. And if they prefer to walk into the grocery store and discover products there, then we also want to be there.”

Spiceology Switches Target Market, Marketing Tactics

Spiceology has discovered these CPG growing pains since it switched its target market and marketing tactics after the pandemic. The spice brand has its roots in supplying restaurants and food service companies with seasonings, so it previously focused its marketing on acquiring restaurant chains and chefs as customers.

When many dining establishments closed, Spiceology shifted its marketing and sales to consumers. Today, 39% of its revenue comes from restaurant and food service sales, followed by retail sales at 35% and ecommerce sales at 27%, McLean said. (Figures are rounded.)

Instead of focusing on professional chefs, Spiceology is now going after everyday home cooks, and it is looking for more places to reach these consumers. Food discovery used to happen at the grocery store, but that’s shifted, McLean said.

“The discovery is happening outside of the grocery stores and then the surprise and delight moment happens when the consumer now walks into the grocery store and sees that thing that they’d already been familiar with because of a place like TikTok Shop or Instagram or Facebook,” McLean said.

That means Spiceology has to beef up its presence on social media. The brand has amplified organic content on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, where consumers showcase what they made for dinner using one of Spiceology’s products. Online, Spiceology can also give more details about how its seasonings taste and show them in recipes, which is more information than it can fit on a package at the store, McLean said. The wealth of information it can share online makes its message more impactful than anything it can convey in a few seconds when a shopper is in a rush, she said.

“Especially younger consumers, they’re really comfortable buying products this way,” she said. “We can communicate so much more deeply and with so much better, richer, durable messages if they’re discovering us on somewhere like TikTok versus when they’re just seeing our label in the grocery store aisle.”

Once it acquires these customers, it largely keeps them: 76% of purchasers buy another Spiceology product within a year, according to the brand.

Spiceology Goes to TikTok Shop

Now that the brand has a better understanding of its consumer audience, it is selling its products on TikTok Shop because it knows that is where consumers spend time and discover products. It uses ads and works with influencers to create content.

“We’re giving it steam,” McLean said about TikTok Shop. “We’re not taking away from any other channels, but it’s getting its own budget and we’re trying to really lean in, in order to remove friction for our consumers. It’s about getting out to them so that they’re able to make these discoveries.”

The number of creators fluctuates depending on whether Spiceology has a campaign running. Currently, it is working with about 35 microinfluencers. The content is working to drive consumers to stores to buy its products, McLean said. She said she can see that data by region but did not share more details.