An independent or an “indie” are independently owned grocery stores that usually have a central buyer inside of the store, who could also potentially be the owner. Indies can also include small chains that either have one buyer for the whole chain or a buyer for each location.
Most brands start out selling to independents. They often times don’t require a distributor so you can sell to them directly or use a platform like
Way too many brands and founders just go into these stores cold and hope to get an order, but we believe there is a clear playbook to open these accounts.
Call Ahead
Make sure to call ahead to the buyer, let them know that you want to stop by with samples, confirm when they will be there, and get off the phone quick. You are looking for a quick yes to see samples, not to ordering the product.
Plan Your Visit
Plan to visit during the day/time that the buyer said they would be available. Have your sell sheet printed and your quick pitch ready. This meeting is going to be 5-10 minutes long at the most. You want to have a clear reason on why you are there, have them try samples, and move to what is needed to secure an order.
"I am the founder of Cameron's Coconuts, a high-end coconut beverage. I feel strongly that the type of customers who want our product are your shoppers. I want to fully support your store and it would be great to know what you need from me to get my product on shelf."
This type of framing makes the buyer understand you want to simply know what they require from you versus you rambling on about your product attributes for 15-20 minutes.
Secure The Order
There is no email follow up or long sales cycle with an indie, you want to secure that order in the moment or you are never going to.
Pack It Out
Make sure you are there to pack out the first order. You want to understand where your product is going in the store and ensure it gets on-shelf the way you want shoppers to see it.
Support
Have your support plan ready. Demos, promotions, and weekly merchandising all have to be buttoned up to ensure success. We’ll talk more about trade spend in a future module.
Below is a longer video on perfecting your buyer pitch for independents. It is ran by our CEO and an actual retail buyer. The video is insightful and in-depth, and we know you will feel confident about pitching indies and small chains after watching.
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Now that you know everything about how to pitch an indie, let’s move on to how you should approach reaching out to larger chain stores.
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Opening Independents