Creator-founded Chamberlain Coffee drops pumpkin spice blend

Feel those temperatures dip? It means pumpkin spice season is here.

The flavor trend has taken fall by storm in recent years, moving from fad to fixture of post-Labor Day menus. It’s proving to have considerable staying power, branching out from the famed lattes that launched a thousand memes to Cup of Noodles and Oreos.

Another sign of its durability is that the fall flavoring trend is crossing generational lines. A Friday product launch offers evidence.

Gen Z favorite Chamberlain Coffee is debuting Sneaky Bat, a pumpkin flavored blend. Available only through the brand’s direct-to-consumer website, the organic coffee blend combines pumpkin spice with “creamy notes of cinnamon and cocoa,” according to a description from the brand. Available in single serve, whole bean and ground bags, it retails for $16.

Along with the launch, Chamberlain Coffee is planning to further develop the character of Sneaky Bat, which will serve as a nod to fall and Halloween.

This is just the latest splash from Chamberlain Coffee, which was founded in 2019 by YouTube star Emma Chamberlain.

Chamberlain built up a massive following on YouTube, with a channel that currently boasts 11.8 million subscribers. Coffee is a frequent topic of her vlogs, whether it’s sharing recipes, trying coffee shops or singing the praises of LA favorite Philz Coffee.

About a year into her YouTube foray, the then-17-year-old Chamberlain took an early step into commerce by launching merch that was tied to her persona in 2018. Launched the next year, the coffee brand was a leap ahead. She took a type of product that was featured in content, and spun up her own brand around it. The product was not about Chamberlain herself, but one of the everyday topics that was the focus of her videos. Drawing a direct line between virality and brand, it launched with a video that was an update to a previous post about a favorite coffee recipe.

MY COFFEE RECIPEwww.youtube.com

Plenty of influencers build a business by promoting products from other brands. By contrast, Chamberlain extended her own brand to the product. The opportunity presented by this convergence of content and commerce is a big reason why creators are shaping the next wave of the digital economy.

Chamberlain Coffee isn’t built on YouTube tie-ins alone, though. In recent years, the brand has been growing by using the same strategies and tactics that are being embraced by a generation of CPG brands that has grown by taking a digital-first approach to commerce.

With Gen Z paying just as much attention to how a product is made as how it tastes, the brand has centered messaging that the coffee is roasted in California and sustainably sourced, telling consumers that “you can feel good about the coffee you’re sipping on.”

As Chamberlain’s knack for building a following extended to coffee, new SKUs were added. The brand has expanded its coffee line not only by adding blends, but also introducing single-serve bags and instant sticks. It has also added lifestyle products like branded merchandise to custom coffee accessories.

Collabs have been a key avenue for broadening reach. There was a coffee and sweats popup with Levi’s, a coffee-flavored breakfast mashup with OffLimits Cereal, and a creamer collection with Nutpods. It most recently teamed with zero-sugar sweet tea brand Swoon to create a Matcha Lemonade.

The brand has also added to the retail channels where it is available, growing from a DTC store to Amazon and a recent expansion into LA grocery store Erewhon, national grocer Sprouts and instant delivery service Gopuff.

Chamberlain Coffee recently took another big step for growth by raising a $7 million Series A round, led by Blazar Capital, Ole & Steen / Lagkagehuset cofounders Ole Kristoffersen and Steen Skallebaek, GRIN founder Brandon Brown, DTC luminary Nik Sharma and beverage industry expert Ken Sadowsky.

Social-driven growth has helped it grow a cult following, and now it is looking to reach the masses.

“In deeply understanding their audience, the brand has been able to lean heavily on social engagement to create a unique connection with new customers and fans with each story and post, a strategy that has been a key driver for the brand's heightened success,” a press release announcing this deal stated. “This funding round will help the brand expand into new channels, and develop new and innovative products to further its mission of being an innovator in the beverage space.”

Friday’s drop is the latest sign of how this expansion will play out. The pumpkin spice flavor’s launch shows that it is using limited edition releases to drive demand, and is leaning into seasonal trends embraced by brands and retailers everywhere. It follows quickly on the heels of additional new flavors, Witty Fox Hazelnut and Fluffy Lamb Vanilla. Meanwhile, plans for the Sneaky Bat character shows that steps are being taken so the brand is taking on a further identity of its own.

Come to think of it, that could be a bridge to content of its own.