An effective food broker should be an investment that can help your brand expand and grow to new levels. When choosing the best broker for your business, ensure you measure the RISK:
Real Contacts: The most important characteristic of a good broker is that he or she needs to be able to show an extensive list of contacts that they will utilize to push your brand and/or product. Depending on your marketing strategy, you might want to prioritize food brokers who have verifiable connections with smaller local markets in the desired region. If you are looking to launch your brand on a national level, brokers with connections to large chain stores should be your priority.
Inquisitive and Question Oriented: A food and beverage broker will best be able to help meet your growth and expansion targets if both of you are on the same page regarding the goals and aspirations for your brand. When interviewing potential candidates, those who ask numerous questions regarding your goals for positioning your brand, your growth expectations, and other relevant information will most likely be best for helping your brand develop new markets.
Specialty in Your Industry: While it is possible to find brokers who work with all different types of food and beverage brands, today it is increasingly impossible to find specialized food and beverage brokers.
Key Additional Services: Lastly, a good food and beverage broker should also offer more than the negotiation of contracts. The company you work with should offer relevant insight regarding market trends, the performance analytics of your products in different stores and markets, and other relevant information. Furthermore, the best food and beverage brokers might also offer to help marketing the product through coordinating demos during promotional sales at the stores they work with.
In essence, they are “talent scouts” for the grocery industry. As part of a carefully designed marketing strategy, they can help your food or beverage brand make important connections to grow and diversify your list of buyers.
