Brex doing things that don't scale

In the competitive landscape of financial services, breaking through the noise to reach potential customers is a perpetual challenge. When Brex launched its corporate card for startups in 2018, the company faced a significant hurdle: how to stand out in a market dominated by established players with massive marketing budgets. Their solution was a masterclass in doing things that don’t scale—a champagne bottle outreach campaign that turned a $19,000 investment into 169 high-value customers. This is the story of how Brex popped corks to pop conversion rates, demonstrating that sometimes the most effective growth strategies are the ones that can’t be automated or scaled indefinitely.

The Startup Challenge

Brex was founded in 2017 by Henrique Dubugras and Pedro Franceschi, two Brazilian entrepreneurs who had previously built Pagar.me, a payment processing company they sold in their home country. Their new venture aimed to create a corporate credit card specifically designed for startups—a product that would address the unique financial needs and challenges of early-stage companies.

By early 2018, Brex had developed its product and was ready to launch, but the company faced a classic startup dilemma: they had approximately 30 employees, near-zero revenue, and needed to quickly acquire customers in a space dominated by financial giants. Traditional marketing channels like digital advertising would put them in direct competition with established players who had much deeper pockets. Cold calling and standard email outreach typically yield low conversion rates, especially for financial products that require significant trust.

The Brex team needed an approach that would:

1. Cut through the noise of traditional marketing channels
2. Reach decision-makers directly
3. Position Brex as a company that understands the startup journey
4. Create a memorable first impression that would lead to high conversion rates

They needed something that couldn’t be easily replicated by competitors with larger budgets—something that didn’t scale but would create an outsized impact.

The Champagne Campaign Concept

The idea that emerged was both simple and brilliant: celebrate the success of potential customers by sending them a bottle of champagne to congratulate them on their recent funding rounds. This approach was perfectly aligned with Brex’s target market—startups that had recently raised capital and would need financial services to manage their new funds.

The concept had several strategic elements that made it particularly effective:

1. Trigger-based timing: By focusing on companies that had recently raised funding, Brex was reaching out at a moment when these startups were actively making financial decisions about how to manage their new capital.
2. Celebration as connection: Rather than immediately pitching their product, Brex positioned themselves as fellow entrepreneurs celebrating the success of others in the ecosystem.
3. Physical presence in a digital world: In an era where most marketing is digital, a physical gift creates a tangible connection that’s increasingly rare and therefore more impactful.
4. Perceived value and status: Champagne, particularly a recognizable brand like Veuve Clicquot, carries cultural associations with success and celebration that aligned perfectly with the moment in a startup’s journey.
5. Personal touch: The inclusion of a handwritten note from the CEO added an element of personal connection that’s rare in business-to-business marketing.

The campaign wasn’t designed to scale indefinitely—it required manual research, physical delivery, and personal follow-up—but that was precisely what made it special. In a world of automated marketing, the human touch stood out.

Executing the Unscalable

Turning this creative concept into reality required careful planning and execution. The Brex team approached the campaign with the same attention to detail they brought to their product development:

Step 1: Targeted Research

The first step was identifying the right prospects. The team ran a report in Pitchbook, a financial data platform, to identify seed through Series B startups in the Bay Area that had raised funding in the previous six months. This research yielded a list of approximately 300 companies that fit their ideal customer profile.

This targeted approach was crucial—rather than casting a wide net, Brex focused on companies that:

• Had recently received funding (and therefore had money to spend)
• Were at a stage where financial infrastructure was becoming increasingly important
• Were geographically concentrated in the Bay Area, making physical delivery logistically feasible

Step 2: Premium Gift Selection

Next, the team purchased 300 bottles of Veuve Clicquot champagne at approximately $50 per bottle, for a total investment of around $15,000. The choice of champagne was strategic—it needed to be recognizable as a premium brand without being ostentatiously expensive.

The champagne served as both a congratulatory gift and a physical representation of Brex’s brand values: sophistication, quality, and celebration of entrepreneurial milestones. It was an investment in creating a positive first impression that would be difficult to achieve through digital channels alone.

Step 3: Personal Touch

Each bottle was accompanied by a handwritten note from Brex’s CEO. The notes were simple but effective, with a message along the lines of: “Congrats on your recent fundraise! We know how hard it is to build a startup and we’re rooting for you.”

While the campaign description mentions that this step “can be automated,” the fact that Brex chose to use actual handwritten notes in their initial campaign demonstrates their commitment to creating an authentic connection. The personal touch from the CEO—rather than from a sales representative—elevated the gesture and increased the likelihood that it would reach the decision-makers directly.

Step 4: Physical Delivery

The team arranged for TaskRabbit delivery services to hand-deliver the champagne and notes to the offices of the target companies, at a cost of approximately $2,000. This physical delivery ensured that the gifts would be noticed and would create a moment of surprise and delight in the recipients’ day.

The logistics of coordinating 300 deliveries across the Bay Area was no small feat—it required planning delivery routes, ensuring the champagne arrived in good condition, and confirming that each package reached its intended recipient. This level of coordination is inherently unscalable, but it was essential to the campaign’s success.

Step 5: Strategic Follow-Up

Shortly after delivery, Brex’s CEO followed up with a personal email to each company, asking if they would be interested in seeing a demo of the Brex corporate card. The timing of this follow-up was critical—it came after the gift had been received but before the positive impression had faded.

The follow-up email was the bridge between the goodwill generated by the gift and the business opportunity Brex was pursuing. By having the CEO make this connection, Brex maintained the high-touch, personal approach throughout the entire customer journey.

The Remarkable Results

The results of Brex’s champagne campaign were nothing short of extraordinary:

• 75% demo rate: Of the 300 companies that received champagne, 225 agreed to take a demo of the Brex product. This is an astonishingly high conversion rate for outbound marketing, where single-digit response rates are often the norm.
• 75% close rate: Of the 225 companies that took a demo, 169 became Brex customers. This 75% close rate from demo to customer is a testament to both the effectiveness of the initial campaign in qualifying leads and the strength of Brex’s product offering.
• 169 new customers: In total, the campaign yielded 169 new customers—a conversion rate of 56% from initial outreach to closed business.
• $19,000 total investment: The entire campaign cost approximately $19,000 ($15,000 for champagne, $2,000 for handwritten notes, and $2,000 for TaskRabbit delivery).

While the exact revenue generated from these 169 customers isn’t publicly disclosed, it’s safe to assume that the lifetime value of these early adopters far exceeded the $19,000 investment. Corporate credit cards generate revenue through interchange fees on transactions, annual fees, and other financial services, making each customer potentially worth thousands of dollars in recurring revenue.

Beyond the immediate financial return, the campaign helped Brex establish itself as an innovative, thoughtful company that understood the startup ecosystem. This reputation would prove valuable as they continued to grow and expand their product offerings.

Why It Worked: The Psychology Behind the Success

The extraordinary success of Brex’s champagne campaign can be attributed to several psychological and strategic factors:

1. Reciprocity Principle

The campaign leveraged the principle of reciprocity—the social norm that obligates people to return favors. By sending a thoughtful gift with no immediate strings attached, Brex created a subtle sense of obligation that made recipients more likely to agree to a demo when asked.

As noted by one marketing analyst: “When was the last time you received a bottle of decent Champagne and a handwritten note out of the blue?” The unexpectedness of the gift amplified its impact and the feeling of reciprocity it generated.

2. Perfect Timing

The campaign targeted companies at a specific moment when they were most receptive to Brex’s offering. After raising funding, startups are actively making decisions about financial infrastructure and are looking for ways to manage their new capital effectively. By reaching out during this window, Brex positioned their product as a natural next step in the company’s growth journey.

3. Status Signaling

The choice of Veuve Clicquot wasn’t accidental. As a recognizable premium champagne brand, it signaled that Brex understood the status and aspirations of successful startups. The gift aligned with how founders wanted to see themselves and their companies—as successful, sophisticated, and worthy of celebration.

4. Pattern Interruption

In a world where founders are bombarded with digital marketing, sales emails, and LinkedIn messages, the physical delivery of champagne created a pattern interruption that commanded attention. It stood out precisely because it didn’t scale—it required effort and thoughtfulness that mass marketing cannot replicate.

5. Founder-to-Founder Connection

By having the CEO send the note and follow-up email, Brex established a founder-to-founder connection that resonated with their target audience. This peer-level outreach created an immediate rapport that would have been difficult to achieve through a traditional sales approach.

The Evolution Beyond Champagne

While the champagne campaign was remarkably successful, it was inherently limited in scale. Brex couldn’t send champagne to every potential customer forever—nor would the approach maintain its effectiveness if it became commonplace.

As Brex grew, they evolved their marketing and sales strategies to incorporate more scalable approaches while maintaining the core insights from their champagne campaign:

1. Targeted timing: They continued to focus on companies at key inflection points, such as after funding rounds or during periods of growth.
2. Ecosystem integration: Brex built relationships with accelerators, venture capital firms, and other startup ecosystem players to create warm introductions at scale.
3. Exclusive positioning: They maintained an element of exclusivity in their marketing, positioning the Brex card as a status symbol for successful startups.
4. Community building: They created events and experiences that brought their customer base together, fostering a sense of belonging to an elite group of innovative companies.

The champagne campaign wasn’t meant to be a forever strategy—it was a perfectly executed unscalable tactic that gave Brex the initial customer base and market position they needed to then build more sustainable growth engines.

Lessons for Other Startups

Brex’s champagne campaign offers several valuable lessons for other startups looking to break through in competitive markets:

1. Embrace Unscalable Tactics for Initial Traction

The most effective early-stage growth strategies often can’t be scaled indefinitely. By being willing to do things that don’t scale—like personally delivering champagne to 300 companies—startups can create disproportionate impact with limited resources.

As Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, famously advised: “Do things that don’t scale.” Brex’s campaign is a textbook example of this principle in action.

2. Target Moments of Change

Identifying and targeting prospects during moments of change—when they’re actively making decisions relevant to your product—dramatically increases conversion rates. For Brex, this was the period after a funding round. For other startups, it might be different triggers, such as new leadership, office relocations, or product launches.

3. Create Memorable First Impressions

In a world of marketing noise, creating a truly memorable first impression can set the foundation for a successful customer relationship. Physical gifts, unexpected gestures, and personal touches stand out precisely because they’re rare in business-to-business interactions.

4. Align Outreach with Brand Values

Brex’s champagne campaign wasn’t just effective—it was on-brand. The sophistication, quality, and celebration embodied in the gift aligned perfectly with how Brex wanted to position itself in the market. The best outreach campaigns reflect and reinforce the company’s core brand values.

5. Don’t Underestimate the Power of Follow-Up

Even the most creative initial outreach requires thoughtful follow-up to convert interest into business. Brex’s CEO personally followed up with each recipient, creating a seamless journey from gift to demo to customer. The timing and approach of this follow-up were critical to the campaign’s success.

6. Measure and Iterate

While doing things that don’t scale, it’s still important to measure results and learn from them. Brex tracked their conversion rates at each stage of the funnel—from outreach to demo to customer—allowing them to understand the ROI of their campaign and apply those insights to future marketing efforts.

The Legacy of Brex’s Approach

Brex’s champagne campaign has become something of a legend in startup marketing circles, frequently cited as an example of creative outbound marketing that delivers exceptional results. The campaign’s 75% demo rate and 75% close rate are metrics that most sales and marketing teams can only dream of achieving.

Beyond the immediate business impact, the campaign helped establish Brex’s reputation as an innovative company that truly understood the startup ecosystem. This reputation has been a valuable asset as Brex has expanded beyond its initial corporate card offering to become a comprehensive financial platform for businesses.

The campaign also demonstrates an important truth about startup growth: sometimes the most effective strategies are the ones that require human touch, creativity, and a willingness to do the unscalable. In a business landscape increasingly dominated by automation and algorithms, Brex’s champagne campaign reminds us that meaningful human connections can still be the most powerful growth driver.

As Sam Blond, former CRO at Brex, reflected: “When was the last time you received a bottle of decent Champagne and a handwritten note out of the blue? It works. Come up with the equivalent that is on brand for your company and try it out.”

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