KOBO Candles is an eco-friendly candle brand with a focus on sustainable products. Before engaging Lab 916, the brand had gone through an acquisition and a full rebrand, leaving it in the position of rebuilding its Amazon presence heading into its most critical selling season.
The Challenge
After the acquisition and rebrand, KOBO Candles needed to reestablish momentum on Amazon during Q4 2022, the most competitive period in the candle category, while operating under tight budget constraints. The brand set two firm profitability targets: keep advertising cost of sales (ACOS) below 20% and total advertising cost of sales (TACOS) below 10%. The goal was not to buy growth at any cost, but to grow profitably within strict limits while preserving KOBO's sustainable brand identity.
What Lab 916 Did
Lab 916 took over the account in July 2022 and built a profit-first advertising strategy centered on audience engagement and continuous optimization. The team started with extensive keyword research to identify the highest-performing, most cost-efficient terms across the candle category, then used those keywords to maximize pay-per-click performance through Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands campaigns.
Deep keyword research to prioritize cost-efficient, high-converting search terms
Sponsored Products and Sponsored Brands campaigns structured for Q4 performance
Real-time bid management and placement testing to improve return on ad spend
Campaign structure aligned with inventory availability and seasonal promotions
Amazon Marketing Cloud (AMC) reports combined with third-party data to monitor performance and refine targeting
Analysis of shopping signals, complementary brands, and competitive positioning to drive ongoing improvement
Throughout the campaign, the team monitored performance consistently, adjusted bids, tested placements, and used remarketing to drive traffic back to KOBO's listings.
The Results
The campaign exceeded both profitability targets by a wide margin. KOBO Candles finished the campaign period with an ACOS of 11.9%, well below the 20% ceiling, and a TACOS of 4.5%, less than half the 10% target. Total sales showed a significant increase compared to the prior year. The campaign also generated a noticeable spike in traffic, with conversion rates exceeding the benchmark, demonstrating that the ongoing optimization and remarketing strategy drove real buyer action, not just impressions.
This campaign contributed to Lab 916 winning the 2023 Amazon Ads Partner Challenger Award, which recognizes agencies that deliver standout results under tight resource constraints. Lab 916 was named the 2023 Challenger Award winner specifically for this work with KOBO Candles.
For KOBO, Q4 2022 proved that a disciplined, data-driven approach to Amazon advertising can produce profitable growth even after a major rebrand and within a limited budget. The results set the foundation for continued optimization work and expanded use of Amazon Ads analytics going forward.
