Frosting Company Adds A Layer To Its Retail Distribution With A Launch Into Bon-Ton

Frosting Company is sweetening the selection at Bon-Ton Stores with its natural bath and body products.

The Nazareth, Penn.-based brand developed by sisters Gabrielle and Brittney Flank is rolling out to 14 of the department store retailer’s doors in close-to-home sections spotlighting local brands during the first quarter of next year. Bon-Ton will represent the department store debut of Frosting Company, a three-year-old brand that’s largely been available at natural grocers, pharmacies, gift shops and clothing boutiques.

“We’re so excited to have our products sold in a leading department store like Bon-Ton. It gives us a huge opportunity to grow our business,” says Gabrielle. “Every small step has been a building block to get us prepared for this launch. When we first started at boutiques, that helped us prepare to get into Whole Foods, and Whole Foods has helped us ramp up for the stores to come.”

Frosting Company

In 2016, Frosting Company entered Whole Foods and is now found at around five of the grocery market chain’s stores in the Mid-Atlantic region. In total, the brand has rolled out to roughly 40 locations at retailers including Kimberton Whole Foods, Aqua B Boutique and New Frontiers Natural Marketplace.

“We are expanding our business every single day. We want to expand as much as possible and, with distribution, we are really looking for every opportunity we feel is a fit for our brand and seizing it,” says Brittney, stressing, “When we make a business decision, we don’t make it just for profit, we make it based on our morals. We won’t go into a business deal just because it looks good. There have been opportunities in the past we have turned down because it didn’t fit who we are.”

Frosting Company’s sales have skyrocketed 200% over last year. The brand has nine stockkeeping units priced from $6.99 to $11.99. Its bestseller is the Celebration Cake Bath Fizzie. In addition to bath fizzies, Frosting Company sells lip care products and on-the-go lotion sticks it calls Body Pops.

Frosting Company

“Since we started, the bath industry and especially fizzies have taken off. More and more people are becoming aware of them and want to try them,” says Brittney. “Bath bombs started out being just round spheres and, now, they’ve evolved into different shapes with more colors and fragrances.”

Gabrielle and Brittney founded Frosting Company at 16-years-old and 22-years-old, respectively. The brand’s origins date back to Gabrielle’s cancer diagnosis at the age of 10. After the diagnosis, the Flank siblings learned about potentially carcinogenic chemicals in beauty products and began to whip up bath products without them. A portion of the proceeds from sales of Frosting Company products are committed to funding research to find cures for childhood cancer.

“We took Gabrielle’s cancer diagnosis and built something positive from it to educate and inspire people,” says Brittney. “We use fair-trade and organic ingredients. We wanted to create a product that people felt safe using and that was good for your skin, and make it at an affordable price point.” Gabrielle chimes in, “We want our brand to be more than just a brand. We want it to be a lifestyle and give back to the community. The mission behind the Frosting Company means a lot to us.”

Frosting Company
Brittney and Gabrielle Flank

Gabrielle is the creative force behind Frosting Company’s merchandise, and Brittney has the business expertise to power that merchandise into the marketplace. “Brittney can come up with a new business plan at the drop of a hat,” says Gabrielle. “I’m a big talker, and I’m really good at formulation. I can create new products and give them to Brittney because she knows how to launch them properly.”

The biggest challenge the Flanks have faced as they try to enlarge their business and spread its mission has been being taken seriously. “We were called babies. We were told we weren’t going to succeed. We were told we were young and naïve, but we were very fortunate to have a family that supported us and encouraged us,” says Gabrielle. “Now that we’ve established our brand, people have come around.”