Coworking with Ben Lewis

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Ben Lewis is CEO of baby and kids food brand Little Spoon, sold at retailers like Target and Wegmans.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in retail? I started Little Spoon in 2017 after spending time in the food industry and seeing that, despite this massive shift toward fresh food, baby food had barely changed in decades. Today, we’re building the go-to food platform for modern parents, from infant formula through the big kid years. My job is to keep us obsessed with that parent—what’s stressing them out, what they don’t trust, what would make their lives easier—and make sure everything we build stays anchored to solving those problems. At the simplest level, my job is to keep us moving toward one goal: making parents’ lives easier and kids healthier.

One thing we can’t guess about your job from your LinkedIn profile? How much of the job is controlled chaos. There’s an incredible amount of context switching and range, sometimes literally hour to hour. One minute we’re working through a regulatory or legal issue, the next I’m pitching a retailer, then reviewing brand campaign creative, talking with a manufacturing partner, or taste testing a new product our team just developed in the test kitchen. I think that range is one of the most energizing parts of the job. You have to be able to zoom all the way in, zoom all the way out, and constantly reset your brain for a completely different problem.

What’s your favorite project you’ve worked on? Little Spoon’s retail launch last fall, in which we debuted at Target nationally. We spent nearly a decade building the brand online, so walking into a store and seeing our products across six different aisles was pretty surreal. It was also a huge move for the brand—one of those one-way-door moments where the stakes were high and we knew we had to win. Target gave us an incredible vote of confidence, not just in the products, but in the brand and the opportunity ahead of us. Their team was an amazing partner throughout the process, and the level of collaboration made what could have been an incredibly complex launch feel seamless and much more impactful.

Which emerging retail trend are you most excited about right now, and why? I’m most excited about the collapse of the old boundaries between DTC and retail, and the debate over which one is “better.” Consumers don’t think in channels. They just expect the brands they love to show up wherever they are. For years, brands were built for one channel and then tried to bolt on the others. I think the next generation of great consumer companies will be built around the customer first, with retail, e-commerce, mobile, and social all playing different roles in the same relationship. What makes that especially exciting is how complementary the channels are. DTC gives you incredible proximity to the customer and a constant feedback loop; retail gives you reach, discovery, and convenience. The opportunity is figuring out how to combine both in a way that makes the brand and business stronger.

What’s your go-to coffee order? Double shot of espresso, made with extra long pull with a bit more water than normal. Or if I’m feeling indulgent, some kind of latte. (Can you really argue with a PSL?)

Worst piece of advice you’ve received? “Pick one category and own it” or “Stay in your lane.” Early on, a lot of very smart people told us to just be a baby food company. But parents don’t stop needing help when their kid turns one, so neither did we. Today we make 150+ products spanning infant formula, baby food, toddler finger foods, kids meals, snacks, smoothies, multivitamins, and more. Who else sells chicken nuggets and gummy vitamins under the same brand? Only Little Spoon. It sounds a little unhinged on paper, but it’s exactly how parents shop, and in my view, what makes our business so special. They’re not thinking in grocery aisles; they’re thinking about getting through the week. Building around the parent instead of the category turned out to be our biggest advantage.

What was your favorite retail product when you were 15, and what’s your favorite retail product now? Motorola Razr for sure, just because it was so damn sleek. My favorite retail product right now is probably Eight Sleep. I’ve always been a bad sleeper, and I’ve come to really value anything that helps me sleep better. Eight Sleep is one of those rare products that genuinely changed my day-to-day—I like it so much I have one at my places in Miami and NYC!