Gimme Seaweed, the brand credited with popularising Korean-style seaweed snacks in the US, has appointed Sara Mendez Bermudez as its new chief marketing officer as it prepares to broaden its remit beyond snacks.
From category leader to lifestyle player
Mendez Bermudez joins Gimme Seaweed from SC Johnson’s lifestyle portfolio, where she led global marketing for brands including Method, Mrs. Meyer’s and Ecover. Her task is to translate the brand’s existing momentum into a wider lifestyle proposition while staying within the company’s better-for-you positioning.
The firm, founded 14 years ago, brought a Korean staple to mainstream shoppers and has benefited from shifting tastes among younger consumers — notably Gen Z and millennials — who favour umami flavours and healthier snack options. Gimme already sells through major retailers including Amazon, Target and Walmart, and it claims a dominant share of its category alongside sustained annual sales growth.
"The brand is ready to be turned into a lifestyle brand, because it already holds a meaningful place in consumers' lives,"
Mendez Bermudez told industry press that many consumers first encountered the product in childhood, when health-conscious parents packed it in lunchboxes. She argued that the brand now has permission from customers to play beyond its original category — provided any moves feel authentic and consistently valuable to their lives.
Room to grow — and how they might do it
Gimme points to a large awareness gap: roughly 64% of US consumers reportedly do not know seaweed can be eaten as a snack. With that headroom and a claimed 54% market share in the seaweed-snack segment, the business sees an opportunity to expand into adjacent markets that remain aligned with health-focused shoppers.
- Core strengths: recognised snack product, distinctive umami flavour profile, strong retail distribution.
- Growth opportunities: adjacent better-for-you categories where the brand’s values resonate.
- Marketing approach: deeper community targeting, influencer partnerships and eventual agency support.
While Mendez Bermudez declined to specify which new product categories Gimme might pursue, she indicated the company will concentrate on audiences defined by community and passion points — for example, food lovers, modern families and adventurous eaters — rather than simply on demographic segments. The brand’s playful identity, symbolised by a turtle logo, will remain central to that positioning.
| Metric | Reported figure |
|---|---|
| Seaweed snack category share | 54% |
| US consumers unaware seaweed can be a snack | 64% |
The strategic hire signals Gimme’s intent to evolve beyond a single product into a broader lifestyle footprint, following a playbook seen with other household brands that have successfully moved into new categories. For shoppers and observers of the better-for-you market, the coming months will reveal whether the seaweed pioneer can convert category leadership into a recognisable multi-category lifestyle name.
