Chain Reactions: Oats Overnight’s Brian Tate on building a CPG plant

Oats Overnight, a spoon-free, protein-based drinkable oatmeal, has been made in-house since the company began. Founder and CEO Brian Tate started Oats Overnight in 2016 out of his kitchen, and after about a year of formula development, began selling the bottled oats via the brand’s website. Part of the decision to vertically integrate production was due to difficulties Tate found in securing manufacturers for the product’s unique formula. “At a very, very early stage, we opted to do it [production] ourselves for the flexibility,” Tate said on the Modern Retail podcast. Fast forward five years, Oats Overnight has a growing customer base and new partnerships with Wegmans, Whole Foods and The Fresh Market. The brand tripled its active direct-to-consumer subscribers – from 10,000 to 42,000 – during 2021. This year, the company is up 150% in revenue year-over-year, hitting $25 million in sales in November. As a result, the company’s existing 20,000 square foot Arizona plant wasn’t cutting it. With that came the need to upgrade to a bigger oats-blending plant, said Tate. This year the company has grown to over 100 employees – including 40 on the production line – and is in the process of moving to a 50,000 square foot facility. But running a food plant isn’t as simple as it seems, and requires a lot of financial capital and labor to run smoothly, Tate explained. This conversation is part of Modern Retail’s Chain Reactions series, in which we explore the quick and long-term investments retail brands are making amid the supply chain woes.