Follow the Rabbit Niche is the New Scale: Understanding Modern Challenger Brands with Jan Thede
The sale of a hand sanitizer company for $880 million, despite only capturing 5% of the market, exemplifies how modern challengers achieve success by redefining the rules instead of adhering to them.
In this episode of Follow the Rabbit, we're joined by Jan Thede, Senior Director of Strategy at Berlin-based design agency A Color Bright, to explore their newly released challenger brand framework. Moving beyond the tired question of how to compete with market leaders, Jan reveals how successful challengers don't just fight for position—they redefine what the fight is about.
Through A Color Bright's work with brands from cycling to running to fragrances, Jan has identified a pattern: challenger brands succeed by being unique, relevant, and true. But the breakthrough insight comes from their compass framework, which maps four distinct approaches challengers use to stand out in crowded markets.
The conversation weaves through fascinating case studies that reveal these strategies in action:
- How On running shoes didn't just improve performance technology—they made it visually obvious you were wearing something different.
- Why Liquid Death succeeded by doing the opposite of what every water brand considered “good.”
- How Apple in the 1990s changed personal computer competition from specs to style with ads like “Sorry, No Beige”
- What TouchLand's $880 million exit teaches us about capturing intense loyalty in tiny market segments
But the real revelation comes through what Jan calls “the tote bag test”—a simple way to identify whether a brand has become an identity marker. Would you pay money for a logo tote bag from this brand? The question cuts through marketing speak to reveal which companies have transcended mere products to become part of how people express who they are.
From Angela Merkel spotted wearing On shoes to the cultural phenomenon of the “MUBI person,” the episode explores how challenger brands navigate the tension between niche authenticity and mainstream appeal. The discussion reveals why being everything to someone beats being something to everyone—and how the most successful challengers create new categories rather than just competing in existing ones.
Whether you're building a brand, making strategic decisions, or simply curious about how outsiders reshape markets, this conversation offers practical frameworks for understanding how challengers turn disadvantages into advantages.
Chapters:
00:00 - Introduction: Niches Becoming Mainstream
01:48 - Welcome Jan Thede: A Color Bright's Challenger Brand Work
03:14 - What Makes a Challenger Brand?
05:36 - The Framework: Unique, Relevant, and True
08:11 - The Compass: Four Directions for Standing Out
13:49 - On Running: Innovation vs. Market Disruption
15:54 - The Angela Merkel Moment: When Challengers Go Mainstream
20:28 - TouchLand: $880M Exit from 5% Market Share
27:41 - The Tote Bag Test: Measuring Identity Markers
31:30 - Print Publications and Physical Brand Artifacts
34:08 - From Tech Companies to Tesla: The Evolution of Merch
37:22 - Mubi vs. Netflix: Different Games, Different Categories
44:39 - Sustainability vs. Differentiation: The Trade-offs
47:27 - Closing Thoughts: Understanding Your Own Brand Choices
48:13 - Outro
Links:
- A Color Bright
- A Color Bright's Challenger Brand Compass framework
- TouchLand acquisition coverage
- The “Mubi person” Reel
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Follow the Rabbit is hosted by Igor Schwarzmann & Johannes Kleske
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