Specialty Food Magazine is the leading publication for retailers, manufacturers and foodservice professionals in the specialty food trade. It provides news, trends and business-building insights that help readers keep their businesses competitive.
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/375622
startup spotlight These are usually significantly discounted from standard rates but also typically have a cap on claims for damage. You may need to add cargo insurance to your policy but, overall, the savings are usually significant enough to justify the added expense. At the beginning stages of a company, how important is it to spend money on public relations or social media marketing? H.T.J.: A first step is to take an inventory of your assets to deter- mine how to allocate. In this case, do you have more financial capital for hiring a marketing firm or network capital in the form of talent on board and connections with various forms of media? Does the owner have the talent of connecting with various media outlets? Are you gifted with friends or family who might create buzz for your products? Our nature is do-it-yourself; taking personal approaches to food writers/editors and willing friends helped us work from a shoestring budget. How aggressive can we be with pursuing payment from customers? What is normal? M.N.: It is best to develop goodwill by being as flexible as your busi- ness can manage. If your terms are net 30 days, don't call on day 31 asking for payment. Many customers base the terms on when prod- uct is received, not shipped. Right or wrong, that allows them a few extra days to make payment. By 35 days or so, it is perfectly accept- able to contact the customer to ask when payment will be received. I recommend not demanding payment with the initial call but asking when payment will be made, making notes on what is promised, and following up again if it is not followed through. The longer the customer takes and/or does not follow through with their promises, the more aggressive you can get. But enlisting a collection agency should be the last resort, as it could do damage to the cus- tomer's reputation. Consider accepting credit cards for payments. Customers will often pay with a card at the time of order placement or will give us permission to charge the card at a certain time frame after shipment. What five things should we do to increase the visibility of our product to consumers? C.M.: Regular demos in stores where your product is sold, or at pub- lic events to raise awareness; social media—every avenue, every day; start a blog and a newsletter and keep up with it at least two times per month; hire a small PR firm that focuses on artisanal specialty foods to spread the word and share your story; exhibit at one Fancy Food Show per year, gain as many leads as you can, and follow up. them the recipes were distinctly old-fashioned and Southern, and there wasn't much like them on the market. With that stamp of approval, Pickled Pink moved ahead rapidly, working with an area co-packer on the product and a local art school on the packaging. Today Pickled Pink 's products are in about 250 stores across 30 states. Coming soon is a new Jalapeño Pickle, a jalapeño-infused cucumber pickle. The company also gives a portion of its proceeds to Hunter's Hotline, a support help line for teenagers, which was founded by Stephenson and his family in memory of his teenage son, Hunter, who died of an accidental prescription drug overdose. With the tagline "Pickled for a Purpose" the company promotes the hotline on its website, point-of-sale materials, and every product jar. Here, Lawlor and Stephenson ask questions of veteran specialty food producers. We offer old-fashioned Southern products. Are we segmenting ourselves from potential sales avenues, or should we stick to our identity? C.M.: If you are a relatively new company, I would say do what you know and perfect it! Create your name, build your brand around your most fabulous products, and once it's a well-oiled machine you can add other related products. You can't be all things to all people, so hone in on your market and focus on them. Once you have a loyal following you can test other products and groups of followers. What is the optimum number of products a com- pany should be producing in its first five years? H.T.J.: There is not a simple rule of thumb; it's a balancing act. Your customers in large part determine your product offering by achieve- ment on the shelves. At least annually, assess the movement of each item and determine if each product is successful with your custom- ers. You must be willing to delete items that are not performing. What are some tips for managing shipping costs when you have a heavy, glass product? M.N.: The key is to minimize your case pack. The Specialty Food Association completed a study a few years ago that determined the most economical pack size was cases of no more than six units. Shipping companies, whether small package handlers, such as UPS or FedEx, or LTL trucking companies, will negotiate their rates and offer discounts based on volume. Don't just go with their standard, listed rates. Bring in the local sales representative and show them how your business has grown over the last year and what you're projecting for the next three to five years. Negotiate with multiple shippers and make it known that you are doing so for the best results. If you have consistent LTL shipments to one customer or area of the U.S., request pallet rates from the carriers. Denise Purcell is editor and Susan Segrest is a contributing editor to Specialty Food Magazine. 130 ❘ SPECIALTY FOOD MAGAZINE specialtyfood.com