How to Sell Organic Products There are many ways to draw customers to a product. You can advertise far and wide, make your product a household name, you can deliver a class product that is really useful to buyers, you can even introduce a product that is at a lower price point so people will take notice of it. One of the best ways to sell to people in today day and age, especially when it comes to consumables is to sell organic. Organic products Now, organic does not necessarily have to mean the products are foodstuffs. Materials that are directly dependent on plants and trees or animal by-products can also be organic. Milk, honey, and eggs, for example, are foodstuffs, but also by-products which when organic, makes it instantly more attractive to the buyer. Why organic? Organic products are known to be healthier, more responsibly sourced, and tastier just because they are natural. Free range meats, for example, are taken from animals that have the freedom to run about and roam, unlike meat factories where they are confined to a cubicle all their lives. Apart from eatables, other plant-based products can also be organic. Items like shampoos, door mats, cloth, and other like items. Spices and herbs are also a great addition to the organic lists. Many people are conscious abut the practices of the companies that make their products, so it is important that the damage they do to the environment is as little as possible. Brands that are responsible in this manner are popular not just among the millennial crowd but also the seniors. Who wouldn’t want a product that does little harm to the environment while being marginally better than any big name, factory-made products? Why isn’t everything organic? If it is so great, you might wonder, why isn’t everything organic in the markets? The answer is simple, and it is scale. There are many millions of people to reach in the world and for a product to become profitable, it has to be made a certain way and sold a certain way. That may not…

How to Sell to Grocery Store Chains   It was a trend some time back that grocery store chains normally did not accept products from small manufacturers. It was done for two main reasons. First, they wanted to keep all of their stores stocked with the same, if not similar products, so that there is a continuity between shops, and second, small manufacturers may not be able to supply to meet demand should the products become successful. Branching out immediately and supplying large volumes might just not be possible. The trends, as they do have turned in favor of small businesses now. The main reason is that mainstream products tend to lose their sheen. New products come from fresh minds and can be really appealing.   Here are a few pointers that will help you sell to chain stores   There are many ways to sell to grocery store chains and one of the way that is likely to push big volume for you as a maker is to sell white label. Selling white label to a chain is done by giving your product to the chain store to sell under their own brand. You might have seen grocery store chains that have their own ‘in-house brand’, all of these products are sold to them by smaller manufacturers who might not be able to create their own brand and bear the costs of marketing. According to Forbes, it is a solution for those who are, at the moment unable to market by themselves. By trying to do everything at once, you might be setting yourself up for failure. In the beginning, especially if you are a small firm with limited resources in terms of money as well as human capital, you are better off concentrating on one thing at a time.   If you are able to create a product that is really worth the price it demands in the market, then you are sure to strike it big. By using the help of a chain store to sell, you are maximizing on profits as your marketing will be close…

Getting a Product Into Convenience and Grocery Stores   If you are a creator and inventor, you need to bring your invention to the market and have people use them. Many developers of products often seek larger companies to sell their products to and with it their patents also get taken over. While that may work out for some, for the most part, creators are left to fend for themselves in the market. How then does one sell their wares? Should you just set up a shop dedicated to your product and try to sell them as is? Understanding different types of stores  One way to kick start your sale is through convenience store chains and grocery store chains. Super markets and large departmental stores are places that have a high visibility and the chances of people seeing and picking up your product is higher here than any other place. First, let us see the primary difference between these types of shops. A convenience store, on the other hand is usually targeted at quick buying, people drop in to buy things that are needed in an emergency and get out as quickly as they came in. Think of a store in a gas station. People don’t linger and normally don’t ‘shop’. They are there for a reason and they do not have time. The types of products that are sold in a convenience store are also quick, single serve products. A grocery store is a type of supermarket that sells provisions. The line between a convenience store and grocery store is slowly merging as C stores are widening their product range and grocery stores also sell everything you might find in a C store. Grocery stores are also typically much larger than convenience stores and have a range of products to choose from. A supermarket is a self-service grocery store that sells more than just provisions. When supermarkets get really big and each section is markedly separate, it can be called a Hypermarket or a departmental store. Now that we have that defined to an extent, how to get a…

How to Identify your Best Customers and Retain them   Understanding which of your customers are profitable and keeping them satisfied will help you to improve business and maintain bottom lines. It takes effort and money to earn a new customer and also retain them for a long time. Experts in business development state that it is better of you lose some customers and instead concentrate on the ones which give better business and word of mouth publicity. If convenience store chains go by the age old philosophy which states that eighty percent of business comes from twenty percent of customers they have to identify the 20 percent which give them good business. Present advances made in database technology has made it easy now for both grocery store chains and C store chains to identify which customer is shopping regularly and how much business they are contributing to on an annual basis.   Customer analysis based on various parameters – To identify the best customers in your business and to increase their lifetime and also attract similar customers in future you need to have a foolproof analysis program in place.   Identify your customers and their requirements – By regular analysis of customer buying behavior you can identify different customer groups and also understand the objects they buy on regular basis. If you are one among several convenience stores in the area then try to talk to customers and understand what they seek to retain them. This will help you to separate floating customers from regular ones and you can concentrate on their needs.   Profiling customers by demographics – This may be a tough task but it is important to profile your customers by age, sex and income groups on a regular basis. This will help you to arrange your products accordingly and maintain the right ambiance which can encourage them to bring in friends and family.   Understanding market forces which bring customer to you – When you have less regular customers and more of casual drive-ins, try to gauge forces which drive them to your place. Is…

Why Wholesale Grocery Distributors Should Offer More Private Label Merchandise According to Northwest Arkansas news site The City Wire, sales of private label goods have increased dramatically over the past few years. Private label products now account for more than half the sales when it comes to trash bags, paper plates and disposable cups. In addition, a high percentage of bottled water, toilet tissue and fresh bread sales are private label as well. Consumers are embracing private label products like never before, which is why wholesale grocery distributors should consider adding them to their inventory. In 2013, private label sales made up nearly 15% of the total Consumer Gross Product spending. There has been slow but steady growth in private label sales since 2010; however, some economists predict they will explode over the next few years. The trend toward consumers moving away from highly recognized name brands and buying private label goods has even resulted in giants such as ConAgra purchasing competing manufacturers. Private label sales increased to 17.6% for drug stores in 2013, but that figure was only 2.4% for convenience stores. As such, experts agree that convenience stores pose the next hurdle to cross in order to capitalize on this trend. Many feel that wholesale distributors have only begun to scratch the surface when it comes to offering new products that are in keeping with what customers currently demand. Peter Tedeschi, President and CEO of Tedeschi Food Shops, a New England convenience store chain, commented on the importance of private label options at a conference back in 2012. At that time, he claimed that private label goods were becoming increasingly important in the areas of salty snacks and foodservice. He also remarked that “to the extent wholesalers can help with that gives us an advantage.” As a distributor, one of the best ways you can increase sales is by offering more private label goods, as this is something consumers are demanding more and more of. To find out how you can use private label goods to enhance sales, contact us.

How to Reduce Wastage while Shopping for Essentials at Wholesale Retailers   Several times people tend to go overboard when buying at large wholesalers like Costco or Sam’s Club as they get drawn by great deals and offers on bulk purchases. Wholesaler stores are competitive as they have lower labor cost as they are spread across a larger area and offer a variety of options allowing buyers to make their choice and they rarely change places of their standard product lines.   Besides offering food and beverage items at wholesale rates due to the advantage of bulk purchase these stores also give large discounts on other convenience items making it attractive for buyers. While making your purchase in these stores it is advisable to be cautious so you can take advantage of the offers and also avoid buying products which may get wasted.   Avoid regular pitfalls while going for bulk purchases   The easiest way to avoid wasting money is to refrain from buying goods that you rarely use. Even the most sensible shoppers get carried away by sales of DVD boxes, music CD’s, books, t-shirts, knife sets and other durables that they may not even look at after purchase. So avoid buying goods on bargain until you are actually planning to use them. The same goes for perishables like vegetables, dairy and meat products that have limited shelf life and it does not make sense to buy loads if there are only two or three people who eat regular meals at home.   Throwing away spoiled food which you bought in bulk just because it was cheap does not result in savings. If you are buying frozen food remember the size of your refrigerator as lack of storage space can also lead to wastage of good food which could have lasted if there was more space. Buying products because they are a good deal becomes useless if it is not used.   Splitting your purchases   If you are going to a warehouse wholesaler and are expecting to get bargains on bulk purchases then check with your close…

Capitalize on the Hybrid Trend with a List of Grocery Store Chains in the U.S.   In the fall of 2014, Supermarket News reported on an emerging trend that is affecting grocery stores as well as convenience stores. In case you missed it, they noted a large number of stores are increasing their product offerings and thereby turning into hybrids. So it’s no longer uncommon to find convenience stores carrying traditional grocery store items and vice versa. What’s that mean for suppliers that are accustom to only selling their wares to convenience stores? Well, it’s clearly time to invest in a list of grocery stores in U.S. A list of grocery stores in the United States can help domestic and international suppliers alike capitalize on the growing hybrid trend by providing contact information for the industry’s key players. Of course that’s providing it contains current contact information in a universal, easy to customize and use, digital format. In our experience, that translates to an Excel format. It’s one that’s used by billions of businesses across the planet and supports a range of file formats. Plus, security wise, it’s quite secure. That’s why at Grocery Store Chains Directory, we use the format to compile our comprehensive list of grocery stores in America. It costs less than $400 and includes complimentary, bi-annual updates for a full year. We can deliver it to any e-mail address in the world and it will give suppliers access to more than 16,000 grocery store buyers that will undoubtedly be interested in carrying products that can help them capitalize on the hybrid trend. What kind of pitch should suppliers make to the key players on our list of U.S. grocery stores? Well, that’s going to vary quite a bit of course. However, we can refer interested suppliers to other agencies that may be able to help them perfect their pitches. To learn more and pick up a valuable key to unlocking the emerging hybrid market’s financial potential, please contact us today.

Tips to Keep Track of Sales at your Convenience Store   Though tracking sales in a convenience store does not require sophisticated software, one requires experience and skill to run the store profitably. Instead of using sales monitoring software you can use a cost efficient point of sale software which will prevent your cash clerk from making mathematical errors and can work as an efficient way to check inventory. To keep track of daily sales at your store take an hour or two after closure of sales to check accounts of goods sold that day.   Running a convenience store is different from running a grocery store as it has lot more items of convenience which can be stored for a long time as people may not buy them on a monthly basis. For boosting sales in your convenience store you have to review inventory on a regular basis to understand which items have better turnover and which ones have higher profit margins. Tracking of sales can be easily managed by recording sales receipts at the end of each day on a spreadsheet which will show you if the store is making profits at the end of every month and the actual percentage of profits too.   Steps to manage inventory and track sales at convenience store   Recording cash register receipts   To track sales of each inventory on a monthly basis you have to maintain cash receipts and record them on a daily basis which will give you a fair idea about fast and slow moving items in your inventory. When cashiers make bills for customers, sales are registered on a continuous basis which can be reconciled at the end of each day to make an item-wise analysis of products sold. In your daily spreadsheet make date-wise columns and enter the amount of each sale receipt item-wise. Set up customized formulas to add the sum of total sales each day which will help you gauge how much food and non food items are being sold on a regular basis.   Maintaining sales reports   The details gathered from…

How you can Boost the Sales of your C-store Convenience store business today is extremely challenging and competitive as consumer tastes are changing rapidly in almost every category. As a business owner of a convenience store you have to identify key categories which make up a majority of your store’s sales. You also have to keep yourself abreast of their sales on a weekly, monthly and annual basis so changes can be made. Use this information to monitor sales in every square foot of your store and its contribution to overall profits.   Every store owner whether he owns one or several has to keep track of profits from every category and space allocation within his stores which will help to gauge performance of every section and make changes in the slow moving areas.   Understanding the psychology that drives customers towards specific shelves and increase their impulses towards purchases have long been the bane of convenience store owners. According to estimates nearly 50 percent of sales in these stores are through products bought on impulse and profitable ones know how to tap into that to make more profits. The swelling numbers of convenience stores shows that smart sales techniques are in place that are guiding shoppers to them in increasing numbers.   These stores are working with wholesale grocery distributors and other convenience products to divert the mind of customers from their shopping lists and indulge in spontaneous decisions to make sensible bargains.   As a store owner you have to keep the following things in mind to maintain profitability. 1) Lowest and highest growth categories every year. 2) As beverage distribution has highest profits in most c-stores, check its contribution to your profits. 3) Does your store meet all demands of local customers who drive by or walk in from the neighborhood? 4) Check profit percentage of each category in your store towards the total profit. Try to increase quantity of that to see if the change brings more profits.   The convenience stores today rely on three specific strategies to maintain profits and expand business which are…