From Kitchen to Costco: What SmartSweets Teaches Us About Retail Success

Kai Niu
Apr 14
2 min read

And how Modiv Advisors helps brands follow the same path — without lifting a finger.

SmartSweets. You see it everywhere in Vancouver. From the checkout aisles in Winners, Walmart, to Costco. The bright packaging with the 0 calorie label pasted across. Did you know that it started all with a UBC student in a basement? How did a university student start up a multi-million dollar brand?

When Tara Bosch started experimenting with recipes in her kitchen, she wasn’t thinking about building a $360 million empire. She simply wanted a low-sugar candy that didn’t compromise on taste — and SmartSweets was born.

But a great product alone didn’t turn her into one of Canada’s most inspiring entrepreneurs. What truly accelerated her brand's explosive growth was strategic retail placement.

SmartSweets didn’t go viral because it stayed online — it exploded because it landed in places like Whole Foods, Target, and Costco. Her mission aligned with modern consumer trends, but what mattered most was access: being on the shelves where real people shop every day.

Why Retail Placement Still Matters:

70% of purchase decisions happen in-store (Harvard Business Review)
Over 80% of Canadians prefer to shop in physical stores for new brands (Retail Council of Canada)
Brands like SmartSweets scaled from zero to nine-figure exits with retail as the foundation

Even in a digital-first world, 70% of buying decisions still happen in-store. Consumers love discovering new brands when they shop, especially in categories like wellness, food, skincare, and accessories. The key isn’t just making a good product — it’s making sure that product is seen.

That’s exactly where we come in.

How Modiv Advisors Helps Brands Break Into Retail

At Modiv Advisors, we help early-stage and growth-focused Canadian brands land on retail shelves — so they can achieve the kind of traction SmartSweets did.

We partner with founders and creators who have something special but are struggling to reach the buyers and retailers that matter. With us, there’s no guessing, no complicated pitching, and no cold outreach required from your end. We handle all of it — strategy, documents, buyer targeting, and negotiations — while you stay focused on building your product.

We’re built to be your retail growth team — whether you're launching your first wholesale pitch or scaling your current retail footprint.