How To Get Into Pete’s Fresh Market
Founded in the early 1970s as a small, full-service produce stand on the south side of Chicago, Pete’s Fresh Market is a family owned grocery chain that operates in 12 stores. The grocery chain has chosen to remain true to its offerings; and by this, it has produce as the heart and soul of its business. The fresh fruits and vegetables on display continue to be hand-picked and delivered daily. Going beyond fresh produce, each of the stores has a full service kitchen, bakery, and deli with dedicated and artistic staff. In-house butchers are at customers’ service to answer their questions, assist in their selection, and prepare its fine meats to their exact specifications.
The grocer boasts of thousands of top quality groceries and imports, including a wide array of international, gluten-free, and organic products. As an overview, Pete’s Fresh Market has stayed true to its core values: delivering the highest quality and freshest products at an honest price.
The supermarket business in the United States is one that tries to connect with the individual customer. This means, the supermarkets try to address the needs and interests of individual customers. This is by offering local, international, and metropolitan products. The company’s stores offer natural and organic grocery products, such as organic produce products; bulk food and private label products; dry, frozen, and canned groceries; meat and seafood products; dairy products and dairy substitutes; prepared foods; bread and baked products; seafood; and beverages.
The uniqueness and the innovativeness of Pete Fresh Market set it apart. It isn’t like the normal food chain where things are dull and not interesting, customers have enjoyed this food chain and they have written about it online. A customer noted on yelp.com that: “This store is amazing! It looks beautiful every single time I go. The produce department is amazing! They have so many different options of food. A huge organic variety. A great vegan section. So many international foods. If you need toiletries, that section is very limited but if you’re looking for food, they’ll have it. I haven’t been in the liquor department but they do have one. They have a salad bar too. This place is perfect.”
The grocery chain has a gift card provision for its customers. Customers who have enjoyed the products and services of this retailer can gift their loved ones and acquaintances this card with some money on it to make purchases at this store.
On the local sourcing of food products, Pete’s Fresh Market has been on the forefront of selling locally sourced food products and imported food items. Their wine, spice, and produce selection make them a leader in the retail and grocery business niche. This store has been in the business for years and has its established sourcing angles. Its constant support of local products has helped it cement its brand in the community as people can easily resonate with it.
How to get your product into Pete’s Fresh Market
- Understand you client: Before you spend a lot of time and money creating a product, you should know if anyone will want to buy it. Learn more about Market Research
- Learn if it’s protectable: Know if you can defend your product against cheap copies if it gets knocked off. Learn more about Copyright and Patent your product
- Test your product: Make sure that there’s a demand for your product and the customer understands what you are selling when it’s on the shelf and nobody is there to explain it. Learn more about Product Testing
- Perfect your pitch: Before you speak to decision makers, know your numbers, know your retailer and know your logistics in and out. Learn more about Pitching Your Product
- Don’t do it alone: If you haven’t been successful in retail before, a secret of success is that you can’t do it alone. Having great sales staff, customer support and marketing partners can take you from zero to success faster than if you tried on your own. Learn more about Retail Partnerships
Contact Pete’s Fresh Market Buyer
Do not trust any “list” of buyers.
Typically retail buyers change either companies or positions every few years. This strategy helps retailers know that their buyers are not taking “kick-backs” and are selecting the very best product for the very best position each time.
Buyers are typically held to a very rigorous standard of sell-through volume that they must hit and because of this they are risk averse. Your job as a supplier or vendor is to convince them that the buyers going into the stores not only know about what you’re selling but are actively seeking the product in the store currently.
How to Submit a Product to Pete’s Fresh Market
There are several ways to get a product placed in Pete’s Fresh Market. However, most entrepreneurs only dream about getting their product distributed to major retailers, few actually do it. We have experienced a significant rise in interest since the show Shark Tank started airing on NBC. Mr. Checkout has had the pleasure of working with a few Shark Tank success stories such as KISStixx and 180 Party Cups which are now currently being distributed around the country to stores like Walmart, Target, Kroger, 7-Eleven and more.
If you envision your product would be a good fit for Pete’s Fresh Market, we have a few steps to help you get your product on their shelves.
Here are the 6 steps you need to take to have your product placed in Pete’s Fresh Market.
1. Start with the right questions.) Before you try distributing your product to Pete’s Fresh Market, you need to ask yourself a few basic questions. Do you need to build demand for your product, or is there already a demand for it? Do you know that Pete’s Fresh Market would be interested in selling your product? If you can strike a deal with Pete’s Fresh Market, can you handle the production volume? Do you want to sell directly to Pete’s Fresh Market, or do you want to license your product to a manufacturer that will handle distribution?
2. Be prepared to profit.) Does your product offer enough of a profit margin for Pete’s Fresh Market? Can you sell your product at a reasonable enough profit to cover the packaging, shipping, commissions, marketing and wholesale distribution? Check Pete’s Fresh Market guidelines for other fees that you will have to build into the cost of your product in order for you to be able to turn enough of a profit to make the effort worth your while. If you work with a discount retailer, they will try to strip your profits down to zero in order to keep their prices as low as possible.
The typical breakdown of margins are: If a products costs $1 to produce, that product will retail for $4. That product that retails for $4 will wholesale for $2 to distributors and stores that purchase direct. Big box retailers like Pete’s Fresh Market may offer to pay $1.25 to the manufacturer if the product costs $1 to produce. That is the typical profit margin.
3. Determine if Pete’s Fresh Market is the right store for your product.) The relationship between you and Pete’s Fresh Market starts with you browsing their store for competing products. If Pete’s Fresh Market already has a similar product, it is going to be very difficult to get your product picked up. Spend some time at your local Pete’s Fresh Market to see what kind of products they are selling, speak to the manager and see if he thinks your product will sell well in their store. Picture in which zone your product would best fit on the shelf and keep in mind that the most precious asset that these big box stores value are their shelf space. Keep this information in mind when you are preparing your presentation to Pete’s Fresh Market.
If your company is minority or women owned, check Pete’s Fresh Market website and see if they offer specific opportunities for those designations.
4. Pitch your product to Pete’s Fresh Market.) Decide whether it will be you or a representative to present your product to Pete’s Fresh Market. Your presentation depends heavily on your strengths as a businessperson as they will most likely ask financial questions and logistics questions.
It’s common for companies to hire a broker to pitch their product to Pete’s Fresh Market, as it will be more likely that your product will make it to the next stage if the individual pitching your product has industry knowledge or a personal relationship with Pete’s Fresh Market. The percentage of commission verses, however generally a broker will take around 5% to represent your product to Pete’s Fresh Market.
We at Mr. Checkout have experience dealing with brokers and know that there are several retail brokers that have poor business practices that can potentially damage your brand. If you are seeking a legitimate Pete’s Fresh Market broker, please give us a call for a recommendation. It could save you a huge headache and a lot of money.
5. Complete the required Pete’s Fresh Market paperwork.) Often Pete’s Fresh Market will have you go through an application process. However, before submitting the paperwork required by Pete’s Fresh Market, you should contact a buyer at Pete’s Fresh Market and let them know your intentions. Having a contact inside of the company will potentially move your application more smoothly through the process.
6. Anticipate the need for increased volume.) Having Pete’s Fresh Market agree to stock your product will most likely mean a significant increase in volume. You should be prepared to ramp up your production and informing your manufacturer of this opportunity.
Having production, logistics and distribution to sync is not only difficult, it requires a significant amount of time invested in customer relations. Also, Pete’s Fresh Market may have stipulations in the contract that may penalize you for delays in shipping and production. Have an attorney explain all contracts to you if you don’t understand the terms.
If you’re looking to sell your product to Pete’s Fresh Market, be sure to thoroughly assess the marketplace, carefully prepare for production growth, and take full advantage of resources available to help you grow your business.
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