Lesson: People choose meaning first. Products prove it after.

Almost every person who has a business idea hits the same wall right at the start. The market already feels full of similar products. It feels late. It feels like there’s no space for something new to stand out. When I ran into that wall myself, I leaned on two well-known business ideas to understand where my brand could live.

The first concept is called Red Ocean, competing inside a crowded market. Same customers, same behaviors, same rules. You win by outspending, outshipping, or outlasting. Think about the bottled water aisle, fast fashion, or food delivery apps all fighting over the same person with the same offers. The second concept is Blue Ocean, popularized in business schools and strategy circles, where you try to create a brand-new category. You change the rules entirely. No direct competition, new demand, new language. A classic example is how Uber reframed transportation before ride-sharing was even a category. Most entrepreneurs have come across these two ideas at some point in their journey. They’re part of the standard strategic vocabulary many people use when thinking about markets, and if you want a simple, credible understanding of Red vs. Blue Ocean thinking, the official Blue Ocean Strategy site has a clean overview.

But there’s a third concept that rarely gets talked about. I recently came across a breakdown by Khushi Jain that finally gave language to something many great brands are already doing. It’s called the Purple Ocean, and once you see it, you start seeing it everywhere. Here’s the simple version: You stay in a crowded category. But you change what the category means in the customer’s mind. You don’t invent a new market. And you don’t fight louder in the old one. You reinterpret it emotionally. That difference is everything.

Think about brands most people already recognize, all operating in highly crowded markets:

• Nike doesn’t just sell shoes. It sells belief in effort, identity in motion, and personal victory, whether you’re an athlete or not.

• Apple doesn’t sell devices. It sells taste, creativity, and the feeling of being a step ahead.

• Harley-Davidson doesn’t sell motorcycles. It sells rebellion, freedom, and brotherhood.

Different industries. Different products. The same underlying move: each brand reshaped what its category meant to people. None of these brands won by being incrementally better at the product alone. They won by changing the emotional story people attached to buying it. That’s Purple Ocean. And this matters more now than ever, because we’re entering an era where:

• Features converge fast: most products now look and function the same within a year.

• AI compresses differentiation: anyone can design, write, or launch quickly.

• Supply chains look similar: the same factories build for everyone.

• Performance marketing is saturated: attention is expensive, and trust is thin.

Which leaves brands with their only real differentiator: Meaning. Here’s what surprised me about Jivati. I already knew I had a Blue Ocean, a clear white space. What I didn’t realize at first was that I also had a Purple Ocean, and it was actually stronger. On paper, beverages are one of the most crowded markets on earth. Through a Red Ocean lens, all I could see was competition. Through a Blue Ocean lens, it felt unrealistic to pretend I was inventing an entirely new drink category. The real clarity came when I stopped asking, “How do we win the category?” and started asking, “How do we connect more deeply with the people this brand is meant for?” Drinks weren’t the product. Moments were. Culture was. Identity was. And once that clicked, the strategy naturally shifted, without needing a new SKU, a new technology, or a new market definition. That’s the quiet power of Purple Ocean thinking. You don’t out-feature. You out-feel.

Closing Thought

Most markets don’t need louder answers. They need more honest ones. For me, this shift has been less about standing out and more about staying true to what actually matters to the people on the other side of the brand. When that part is clear, everything else gets simpler.

Stick around. I’m just warming up.

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_{DISCLAIMER - All content by Devraj Patel, including The Weekly D-Brief, is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute business, legal, or personalized advice. No client relationship is created unless agreed upon in writing. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. You are solely responsible for your decisions—always consult appropriate professionals before acting on this content.}