Chewing Gum Success: How Neuro Gum Uses Online Tools & Retail Strategies to Thrive
Ten years ago, Kent Yoshimura and Ryan Chen — elite athletes and best friends — had a bold idea: They wanted to make a product that improved people’s energy, focus, and productivity, but was more portable and effective than an energy drink. The result was Neuro Gum, an all-natural chewing gum containing energizing ingredients, including B vitamins and caffeine.
Fast forward to 2025, and Neuro-brand gum and mint products are available in over 20,000 brick-and-mortar retail locations, including CVS, Whole Foods, Albertsons, and Target. Online, the products can be purchased from the brand’s Shopify-powered website, as well as on Amazon and TikTok Shop, where enthusiastic followers have helped make Neuro products bestsellers.
Neuro’s success took strategic marketing savvy, flexibility, and determination. From the start, Kent wanted Neuro Gum to have a strong presence in brick-and-mortar retailers and online outlets. “I thought a retail presence would provide credibility because it’s hard to get products into retailers,” he says. The strategy paid off handsomely when legendary DJ Steve Aoki and influential podcaster Joe Rogan both discovered Neuro Gum, then offered vital financial backing and invaluable free publicity, respectively.
Kent and Ryan learned from early missteps: After a major retailer charged Neuro Gum thousands of dollars for pallets with minor labeling mistakes, the two chose to manage their own warehouses and foster direct relationships with retailers. At the same time, they decided to make the most of Amazon’s sophisticated integrated logistics services. Amazon’s logistical efficiency gave Kent and Ryan time to refine and expand their product line and create custom packaging and formulations for different retailers. Kent says, “That partnership let us focus on marketing, building revenue sources, research and development, and the consumer experience.”
In today’s marketplace, strategic flexibility and creativity are key, Kent says. “You have to adapt and leverage all the tools available.”
