I work in the industry.
The short of it: You need to make connections with people on the inside. People who have relationships with suppliers, co-packers, and retail (chain) stores. Someone who is capable of brokering deals and giving you knowledge about best practices. This is a path filled with gatekeepers. Vendors, producers, distributors, and retailers. Each of them require some astute negotiating and sales skills on your part. It's complex to say the least.
BUT before you do that, you need to validate the product and idea. Start small, use the advantages you have (e-commerce, food shows, farmer's markets, small events, mom-and-pop retailers who might let you conduct a sampling on a weekend), validate your offerings through sales data, then when you start growing and acquire enough capital, you can start to talk to mom-and-pop food contract manufacturers to have your recipes formulated and made on a larger scale once you hit that rate of growth.
The Fancy Food Show in New York is a prime place to get your products noticed, but you better be prepared and knowledgeable about the process and be able to answer some probing questions from potential retailers, as well as have a strong shelf presence, a niche product, and the right price. Retailers hate taking on a new product, only to find out that the next time they place an order you are back-ordered because your producer can't fulfill your demand fast enough.
It will most likely take years and will be a long journey. However, as someone who knows of an entrepreneur who is on the verge of getting his products in large grocery chains across the US, it can turn out to be very lucrative.
There is no book that I know of that will guide you through it. If I had more than 4 years of industry experience, I might write the book myself because it might very well be an unfulfilled need in the marketplace. I searched Amazon and came up with zero.
Resources:
Good luck.
The short of it: You need to make connections with people on the inside. People who have relationships with suppliers, co-packers, and retail (chain) stores. Someone who is capable of brokering deals and giving you knowledge about best practices. This is a path filled with gatekeepers. Vendors, producers, distributors, and retailers. Each of them require some astute negotiating and sales skills on your part. It's complex to say the least.
BUT before you do that, you need to validate the product and idea. Start small, use the advantages you have (e-commerce, food shows, farmer's markets, small events, mom-and-pop retailers who might let you conduct a sampling on a weekend), validate your offerings through sales data, then when you start growing and acquire enough capital, you can start to talk to mom-and-pop food contract manufacturers to have your recipes formulated and made on a larger scale once you hit that rate of growth.
The Fancy Food Show in New York is a prime place to get your products noticed, but you better be prepared and knowledgeable about the process and be able to answer some probing questions from potential retailers, as well as have a strong shelf presence, a niche product, and the right price. Retailers hate taking on a new product, only to find out that the next time they place an order you are back-ordered because your producer can't fulfill your demand fast enough.
It will most likely take years and will be a long journey. However, as someone who knows of an entrepreneur who is on the verge of getting his products in large grocery chains across the US, it can turn out to be very lucrative.
There is no book that I know of that will guide you through it. If I had more than 4 years of industry experience, I might write the book myself because it might very well be an unfulfilled need in the marketplace. I searched Amazon and came up with zero.
Resources:
Build Your Food Brand and Distribution System
You have an awesome food brand and you're sure people are going to want to buy it, now what? What it takes to develop your food distribution system.
us.accion.org
5 Steps To Starting A New Specialty Food Brand
5 steps to start your new specialty food brand. If you're in the process of creating your own food brand or product line, this is a must read!
www.centrafoods.com
Beginner Tips for the Aspiring Foodpreneur
The Foodpreneur's entrepreneur success stories teach you how to sell products to grocery stores.
www.thebalancesmb.com
Good luck.
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