Wildflower Cases: the small business that’s made a big impact
Megan Collins, Cultural Anthropologist, Generational Expert and contributor to the MTD blog.
As hardcore consumers and full-time creators of social-first content, it takes a lot to impress us. But the family & women-owned business, Wildflower Cases has us taking notes.
Get to know Wildflower Cases
Founded by sisters Devon & Sydney and their mom Michelle, the two youngest Carlsons are the faces of the brand that sells cell phone cases and tech accessories. Not only are they models and influencers, but they’re also well-known cool girls on the LA scene hanging with the likes of Bella Hadid and Kylie Jenner’s bestie Stassie among others.
In all honesty, the cases themselves aren’t groundbreaking, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t special. Wildflower Cases feature a signature black bumbler and a graphic on the back with a subtle “wf” branding in the lower right-hand corner. Designed to be hyper-on-trend and eye-catching the cases are practically begging to be featured in your next mirror selfie.
Wildflower Cases has established itself as one of the most trend-forward and accessible brands in the phone case/tech accessory market that’s projected to grow to 13.33 Billion by 2027. In fact, this year our trend forecaster has flagged that tech accessories with “flair” are a growing trend/market.
Wildflower’s savvy marketing unpacked:
We wanted to look at a few key things this brand is doing that we think have uniquely positioned them to be as beloved as they are:
It’s an Authentic Lifestyle Brand
Let’s start with the stars of the brand Sydney & Devon. You will never see them without a Wildflower phone case and while most brand founders rock their product not many have this many followers. With a combined following of over 2.5 million on Instagram, their content serves as authentic, engaging, consistent lifestyle content for the brand. Devon also posts to 320K followers on YouTube where her content is perfectly aligned with the Wildflower brand with an emphasis on fun, lifestyle, and fashion.
It’s Trend-forward at a relatively accessible price
But Devon isn’t just a fashion girlie, she’s the fashion girlie. While she’s rocking designer brands and styling Bella Hadid, Wildflower Cases are also on trend to meet the current moment, at a more affordable price. For example, this Spring you’ve probably noticed that picnic core is everywhere and Wildflower was ready with their own fruity cases. While some of Devon’s life may be too aspirational for the rest of us (jetting off to Milan for Gucci, attending ny fashion week, etc.) her fans can have a piece of her lifestyle: an adorable phone case.
It’s rolled out like Fashion
One of the biggest hurdles in the phone case business is contending with the plethora of ever-changing models and makes of phones. Not only that, planned obsolescence means that the inventory has an expiration date and they must sell through their inventory before then. Seemingly to combat this Wildflower has adopted a “Drop” model & “Limited edition” framing. They trained their customers to purchase early, showcasing a drop a few days before it’s available to purchase, and before everyone else. Because they’re “limited edition” there’s no guarantee it will be available later.
Collabs
Speaking of fashion, as we know, fashion collabs are all the rage these days. Wildflower is no exception. One of their most effective methods of marketing is to partner with influential internet celebs on collab cases. Our current favorite features TikToker Caroline Ricke who boasts 3.2 million followers. Not only is being asked to collab with Wildflower seen as validating for creators, but it also helps the brand consistently reach new audiences.
Customer experience:
Stickers that match your case and an insert card with each woman’s signature.
Finally, in parallel with all of this online glamour and celebrity, to actual customers, Wildflower feels like a family business that treats them like VIP customers. They add some strategic and effective touches to create that feeling. For example, in addition to official order confirmations and standard marketing, they also send sincere-sounding, lo-fi emails that really seem like something your friend's mom would send. Upon receiving their phone cases customers will also find extras, freebies, and a thank-you note reminiscent of a sleepover goody bag. In addition to being cute, these extra touches are also strategic calls to action that encourage the customer to match the seeming excitement of the founders by posting their case to social media (and tagging the brand of course.)
While we’ve broken down the elements that make the Wildflower marketing strategic, the thread we’re seeing throughout is the authenticity behind it. Lately, we’ve seen a growing emphasis on community, its importance, how it’s lacking, and how brands can help deliver on this growing need for customers. Wildflower Cases have strategically and authentically created a community that loves its brand by consistently delivering them a fun, aesthetic experience, and product.