From big fish to successful challenger: how b.box is going global
One of e-Comas’s star clients, b.box for kids is a baby and kids brand that’s taking the world by storm.
Here’s how they’re using Amazon to grow their business globally, even in regions where there’s major competition.
b.box problem, solved
b.box is an Australian manufacturer of high-quality feeding and hydration products for babies and kids. First conceived in 2007, it’s now the dominant player in the Australian market, renowned for innovative and beautiful design.
The company slogan is “b.box problem, solved”, and that goes deep into the company ethos: products are developed by identifying parenting, and meeting those needs.
The constant evolution of Amazon fits well with that ethos, says Jason Mullen, eCommerce Leader for b.box in the USA. “There’s always a way to take the customer data and test it in a different way, and find a new solution.”
With the help of e-Comas, b.box is now expanding its business globally via Amazon. This big fish in Australia is now competing with big fish in other ponds: in the USA, for example, where it’s up against fierce competition.
Jason adds: “It goes back to our tagline, ‘b.box problem, solved’: How can we take that ethos and bring it into the platform – in our content, in our advertising – to be unique, to stand out. The underdogs can play with the big guys and find their own space.”
Here’s how b.box is using content, brand power and advertising to be a successful challenger brand globally.
The importance of content
b.box has a rich trove of assets: a fantastic range of products, and thousands of photos, videos, graphics, and text to show them off. This is where localising for another market starts, says Jason.
“Your imagery is the most important decider for the customer, to engage them quickly,” he says. “Most of us are visual shoppers these days. If you’re online, that’s what’s going to get you.”
The way your content is presented and managed online, including not just on Amazon but all other endpoints, influences how your potential customer feels about buying from you. (see our white paper on content management for more on this!)
If your content is consistent, and your brand story comes through strongly, you’re more likely to convert.
“On Amazon you can find just about anything,” says Jason, “but how comfortable are you as a customer, not knowing anything about the brand, to make that click, to add it to your cart?
“Beautiful storytelling, and the understanding of the brand that the customer has, lowers that barrier of entry and makes it easier for us to connect with them.”
Tying it all together
Jason Mullen (l) and Jérôme de Guigné at Amazon Accelerate 2025
As well as strong imagery and content, keywords are vital, says Jason – across your titles, bullet points and descriptions, but also in your advertising.
To “complete the storytelling,” Jason recommends A+ enhanced content, having a Brand Store and using Amazon’s marketing tools. “All of this stuff just helps complete the brand experience on the platform,” he says. “It all ties together.
“Key to our storytelling is: How can we solve a problem for that parent?” This comes back to the company slogan, ‘b.box problem, solved’: it’s what b.box does, and it’s an important part of their marketing strategy and global growth.
“And then how do we get it in front of the consumer we want to talk to?
“That’s where the ad platform on Amazon gives so much opportunity. There’s so much potential there to dive into understanding the consumer and how they’re going to experience the product, and then get them converted.”
How to underdog your competitors
b.box’s products – bento boxes, lunchboxes, snack containers and water bottles – face serious competition in the USA, from large, established companies. b.box is a major player in Australia, but in the US, it’s a challenger brand.
“It means we have to be more nimble,” says Jason. “We have to be more adaptive than the competition, and make our ad spend go further, because we’re not able to trade punches with those big brands: they’re able to outspend us day in, day out.”
One example is the Sponsored Brand top-of-page placement: a premium advertising spot that the big companies are able to make very expensive. Thanks to Amazon’s advertising options and use of data, b.box has been able to adjust and adapt, spending a little less on it – “so that it’s still successful, but we’ve been able to lower our CPCs and focus on some other page placements that have also given us good conversion and made our ad spend go a bit further.”
This is where it actually pays to be a challenger brand on Amazon. Rather than continuously protecting your position as number one, as a challenger you can find the ‘loopholes’: the combinations of placements that will put you in front of your customers for less money. With constant testing and powerful insights, those refinements are relatively easy to make.
The power of advertising
e-Comas makes extensive use of Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) to find the ‘loopholes’ mentioned – the combinations of ad placements that work most cost-effectively for maximum conversion.
For example, the New to Brand Gateway ASIN report shows which ASIN is most likely to lead to a brand’s discovery by new customers. Using only this, e-Comas increased conversion rate by 21% in July and August.
Another example is the Path to Conversion report, which shows how many advertising touchpoints are needed before the customer buys. It showed that two or three different advertising types are needed to get the optimal conversion rate, typically leading to a 20% increase in conversions.
Jérôme de Guigné, CEO of e-Comas, says: “So AMC gives you that insight to really double down – and maybe you can hope that your competitors are spending less time on that, or are less nimble. And it’s all about being smart with the dollars you have, because when you’re a smaller brand, it’s always about problem solving.”
Jason adds: “I think Amazon is amazing because of those opportunities in advertising. We have Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brand ads, where you can target specific competition and really go after market share in that way – all of it together is a holistic approach, and it really offers up that opportunity to make an impact and make a difference.”
b.box is in a very fortunate position: a great brand, with great products, and the ability to expand globally with Amazon.
Jérôme says: “You’ve got the tools on Amazon, but it’s the quality of the products, the story around the products, and the values of the brand that amaze me. That’s why we believe b.box has great potential.”