Brand Repositioning & Strategy

Cypress / Cypress Minerals

USA

2024


From Mineral Commodity to a Purpose-Driven Leader in Resilient Minerals


“Working with HMT was just what our brand needed! They provided a strong and meaningful strategy that worked well in bringing our team’s thoughts and ideas together in a cohesive and efficient way.”

– Traci Kantowski,  VP, Global Communications & Business Development
Cypress, US

Background: Cypress leads the way in wellness with high-quality, food-form minerals that are highly bioavailable and easily absorbed. Their portfolio of yeast-fermented and chelated minerals plays a crucial role in men’s prostate health, fertility, and supports healthier pregnancies and babies. As a purpose-driven business, Cypress donates 1% of all sales to their nonprofit, A Thousand Plus, which supports a rescue home for abandoned, pregnant teenage girls in Africa.

The Challenge

Cypress focused too much on what they offered, placing them in the commodity space where competition is based on price. In reality, they are a belief-driven, purpose-led brand that needed to shift their focus from what to why. HMT helped reposition Cypress in the lifestyle sector, creating a differentiated brand that brings its true purpose to the forefront of the brand and supports connection with customers on a more meaningful level.

#Challenge 1:
Playing in Commodity

#Challenge 2:
No brand differentiation, name without meaning and lack of purpose

#Challenge 3:
No Ingredient differentiation

#Challenge 4:
Form matters: Little meaning in todays context

#Challenge 5:
No connection between Brand Cypress and ‘A Thousand Plus’

The Solution

Back to the roots – literally –> Time for Cypress to take ownership of “resilience

To reposition Cypress as a lifestyle brand, we had to go back to its original founding purpose. Through interviews with key team members and the founder, we uncovered Cypress’s core founding idea: emphasizing the critical role of Selenium as a primary defense against illness. Selenium is crucial for pregnancy health, disease resistance, and building a strong foundation for life.

The name “Cypress” symbolizes the Lone Cypress Tree in California, a symbol of resilience. For Cypress, resilience means facing and overcoming challenges together, and staying strong as a united team with strong roots. 

This was the starting point of the repositioning process.

The Result

Cypress took ownership of Resilience in the category of minerals!

Heritage: Cypress has been pioneering Minerals for Resilience since 1995, setting industry standards for effective, bioavailable supplements.

Big Idea: Take ownership of “Resilient Minerals” – the building blocks for a strong and healthy foundation, essential for life.

Positioning: We’ve repositioned Cypress as a leader in Resilient Minerals, transforming the brand from a commodity player to a purpose-driven lifestyle brand.

Purpose: Cypress Minerals is dedicated to building resilience by offering essential minerals that build the roots of life.

Brand Essence: “The resilience I build in me, is the resilience I pass on to you.”

Core Values: “Do to others what you want others to do to you” — guiding all relationships and business practices.

Strategic Goals:

  1. Brand Identity: Embrace the Cypress Tree symbol as a representation of resilience and care.
  2. Ingredient Leadership: Position Selenium as the flagship agent of resilience.
  3. Market Leadership: Own the Resilient Minerals category and educate the market on their vital role.
  4. Customer Connection: Appeal to lifestyle consumers who value quality and purpose, and early mass customers seeking business growth through innovative products.

Brand Architecture: Cypress Minerals creates a new category of Resilient Minerals, with a portfolio designed to build resilience

Product Portfolio: Focused on Resilient Minerals, with hero mineral Selenium, to support health from fertility to pregnancy through all stages of life.

Name Change
Recommendation:


From Cypress Systems to Cypress Minerals.

Our Methodology

The Brand Torch: “Defining the Position and Expression of a Purpose-Driven Brand” is HMT’s proprietary brand definition model, symbolizing the two parts of the Brand Positioning Blueprint: the solid handle as the stable position and the flame as the inspiring expression. Both are entrusted to the CEO by the board. The source of the brand, where its values and ethics reside, is what fuels the torch, making it crucial to anchor this in the corporation.

Brand Torch for purpose-driven brands

How can we help?

Are you a change-maker in your area with similar challenge? Contact us here and let’s create change together.