We've just opened a new store in Ferdinand Indiana called "Southern Indiana Butcher & BBQ Supply". We wish to expand our entire line of products, especially seasonings and sauces but also butcher or BBQ related tools, equipment, gear, educational, and general all around cool paraphernalia. If you have products of this nature or know someone that does contact me at sales@butchersupply.net
Other things we're looking for are old posters, meat ads, or other vintage items that might be used for store decorations.
Thanks for your help and if you're in the area, stop in and visit!
Our store is located about an hour and a half west of Louisville on I64. Exit 63 (I think) it's the Holiday World exit. I'm about 1.3 miles north of the exit.
If i were opening a new seasoning and supply shop, here's a few things I'd do;
1. If i want to push my seasonings in a new area, I'd not only give samples, but I'd want to be able to "personalize" the labels, put the name of the store/meat market on the label along with ingredients if you cant do that, make sure you have "ingredient labels" to stick on the packages-
2. if you had salesmen, that were meatcutters, this helps tremendously- they feel comfotable going right into a meat dept, and showing a store the application of the seasonings
3. get to know what sells in the area, for marinades,,,do your homework and research, what are the best selling marinades in the area?? and what can you introduce?? go to independents and see what their signature marinated items are
4. take pictures/videos , carve yourself out as not only salesman of seasonings, but of an authority/expert in the area, of how to marinate. and whats being successful now.- what are best "rubs" also, be sure you are selling vacuum seal machines, and can set up a store on a marinade "program" give a presentation on the advantages of a marinade program,,,,to offer branded, store unique items, to cut down on shrink (3 week shelf life) and of course, increase margins.
5. go to wholesaler tradeshows,,,get to know the meat supervisors- they can push your products too-set up area seminars with them.... they often will let you do this-
6. solicit, get meat manager email adresses...email them photos of new marinades, and applications of new items- this is one of the most efficient, effective ways to sell. Also send photos of used or new equipment
7. for equipment- id have brochures- hand deliver them to store managers/ meat managers also display these at the tradeshows- but,,,show videos of how and why they should buy them- if I'm selling a vacuum seal machine- id have video testimonials from meat managers themselves of how successful they are- same as a tumbler- have the videos scrolling in a tv monitor or digital picture frame
8. If im targeting independents, id offer something no other equipment company does,,,,and that would be "crisis" guarantee" if a stores' grinder dies, you will "lease" one to them for a week or month, same as a cuber-the worse position a store can be in- is to have a piece of equipment die, with no back up..and they call around to equipment companies,,the e. companies smell blood in the water- and push a high end piece of equipment- ive seen this many times. if you had say a hobart scale- even if it is a used sp 1500 with a plu code data file, have a used cuber, have a grinder, all used on hand to lease "just in case" all the sudden you are heads and tails above any other equipment company. (as a meat supervisor, i've had all these pieces of equipment on hand in my garage, and when you are their in a time of NEED, no one forgets that) 9. keep an eye on used equipment, I just bought a 403 hobart cuber from craigslist for 300.00 and its almost brand new- 2 years ago, a store paid 3500.00 for a new 403 hobart cuber its worth keeping an eye on the used equipment places-
10. Ask an account, whats on their equipment wish list??? this is powerful info to have.
11. if you ever want to break into a warehouse, go to a few of their top accounts, be sure you get into them,,,and they will tell the warehouse "you should be selling this product"
12. on your website, have a page , for pictures/videos of your products in use-name the accounts that are presently selling them but also, you could have a page ,,tailored for just meat managers to visit for new ideas- if you are trying to introduce a new seasoning or marinade- show pics of it on the meat products and meat manager testimonials- this works
13. when going into independents, notice if they have a small grinder- most may have just one larger one- if they dont have a smaller one-for ground pork/chicken/sausage- target that small grinder for sale you can sell hundreds of these
14 sell forschner knives- thats the quality brand of knife that is mostly preferred- but also sell knife sharpeners
15. if you sell, say hobart scales, for ex, the quantums, be sure you know the basics of how to program..yes there are hobart techs out there but- for 200.00 an hr. learn the programming basics- how to go into function code 10, set up a new description- take a video of this- from a meat manager or wrapper that knows how,,, and you can always email this out to people asking you questions
16...go by volume - make friends, instead of high profit margins and hope for the best lower margins, move more equipment, makes more friends- you are the "go to" people.
jsummers, when I first started going to foodshows, i'd see the equipment companies setting up their equipment... the customers would come around and ask "how much" and that this piece of equipment is on their "wish list"
this was about 20 yrs ago.....after the show we are having some drinks, and the equipment vendor asked me a question- how can his company sell more equipment- I said I can tell him in 5 minutes how to sell twice the amount of 3 pieces of equipment- but i said I wanted a kickback....which was totally the wrong thing to say around my bosses- I didnt realize how badly that sort of thing was frowned upon... I was new in my position anyways, he had three rotiserries on display at the show, with pamphlets and pictures. I suggested he create a BREAK-EVEN chart for each rotiserrie- how many birds a store would have to sell a day, the gross profit off each bird,,and time/break even payback. I told him how much the birds cost-whether they were already injected, or a store seasons them- then calculate the gross profit on a daily/weekly/monthly basis...what we found was,,,,most stores could take a loan with confidence if they had to... we did that with tumblers and vacuum sealers too the next foodshow, he did sell triple the amount, of machines, because the store owners could see the breakdown.. the breakdown also take the shine off the stickershock of the retail price, and says "you can do this"!
with rotiserries come food warmers... which the store can use other items for
I like rotiserries in meat departments, not deli's (unless super high volume store) You can put 35% margin(most meat dept. are targeted around 30% margin) on the retail and beat competition- most deli's margins are targeted at 50%, - retail will be significantly higher also, if you season your own bird, this almost guarantees, you will never reduce a chicken again and, when using baskets, you can cook just about anything, which can cut your shrink in half...
