How do I get a retailer's attention?
Matt Nelson, Inventive Imports, Provo
Our new company has just gained sole distributorship in the U.S. for a product already successful overseas. With several marketing schemes in mind, we are without experience in an important area – retail. What's the best way to pitch retail stores?
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From Celia White, Poughkeepsie, NY When entering a new industry in a new market in which you are not sure of what to do, sometimes your best bet is to bite the bullet and hire a consultant or someone that is knowledgable in the retail sector. Some goals can not be properly achieved with research; you need experience as well. However, it is also recommended that you research as much as you can before hiring a consultant so you will not go in with a "blind eye".
1) Research as much as you can on the retail industry. A great place to look is Standard & Poors (standardandpoors.com). To get their industry profiles is not free so you may want to find someone currently enrolled in college and use their library login to get this service free of charge. This industry profile will give you information from current conditions to strategy to forecasts.
2)Find a strategic marketing consultant that is familiar in retail consulting. A strategic marketing strategy is needed to fulfill this mission successfully and your consultant will aid you in this. This strategy will include your target market, demographics, socia-cultural trends, all which are needed to be successful in your geodemographical area.
-Celia White
(Hollis | white Consulting Group)
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Hello Matt,
This is a question I was asking when I was helping my friend with his new product 5 years ago. The first thing you need to do is determine if you are ready for retail and which retail account your product belongs to. If you have an automotive product you want to target automotive retailers such as Auto zone or a big box retailer such as target or walmart. You need to make sure you can handle the volume demands of a big box retailer. Once you have determined which accounts you want to target you need to know what customer needs your product, i.e. is it for women,men and what age group. There are a couple of ways to get a buyers attention, you can locate the number of the retailer and call them asking how you can become a vendor and which category your product belongs to. You will need to let them know so they can give you the right buyers contact info. Now a days this can be very hard since buyers receive a lot of inquiries and gatekeepers will not give out their information and instead give you an address to either mail your sample in or fill out a vendor form. The fastest and best way to get a buyers attention is to contact a broker or distributor that is already doing business with the retailer you want to approach. Most brokers are ex-buyers of these accounts and have great relationships with the buyers. I have spent years of learning the ends and outs of dealing with all types of retailers and have contacts with some of the best brokers and distributors. For more valuable information about selling your product to any retailer Click here.