Launching a Coffee Category Inside a Retail Business - SKS SERVICES

The Business

SKS Services operated the brand Lid&Jar, an Australian retail business with a product range that included homewares and consumables. The coffee department was a defined category inside the broader business — a distinct product line with its own positioning, channels, and margin profile, sitting alongside other retail categories.

Role & Fit

I was Marketing Specialist with direct responsibility for the coffee department — effectively the coffee category's marketing manager inside a multi-category business. The role required both marketing execution and practical category management: defining the right product mix, positioning it inside the Lid&Jar brand, and running the campaigns that drove it.

Context

This was a return to Sydney after Seoul in 2014. The Australian retail environment was becoming more saturated on the consumer side, and Lid&Jar's coffee department needed sharper marketing work to hold its position against both independent specialty brands and larger retailers.

Challenges

Two constraints shaped the role. First, coffee had to work commercially as a retail SKU line, not as a café offering — different margin math, different repeat purchase logic, different customer expectations. Second, the coffee positioning had to sit credibly within the Lid&Jar house brand, not compete with it.

Approach & Execution

I anchored the coffee category's positioning against a clear customer segment rather than against competitors. Market research fed product selection; pricing and promotion cycles were planned around genuine retail purchase behaviour rather than café-style launch events. Campaign execution stayed coordinated with the broader Lid&Jar marketing calendar so that category activity built brand equity rather than fragmenting it.

Outcomes

By the end of the tenure, the coffee department had a defined positioning, a stable marketing rhythm, and a clearer fit inside the house brand. Just as importantly, the role gave me direct experience running coffee as a retail category rather than as a café product — a distinction most coffee professionals never make.