A few big things have happened since “Good Food, Great Business” was published. Bookmark this page for ongoing updates:
Major Changes Related to Selling Your Food
Amazon acquiring Whole Foods has changed the game for how and which food producers can sell to Whole Foods and how their buying process works.
Online wholesale food marketplace Buyer’s Best Friend has pivoted to focus on providing great snacks to offices. (It is no longer a place to sell your foods directly to retailers.)
Online natural foods sellers such as Thrive as well as many new and expanding retailers including Sprouts, Natural Grocers, and even Kroger offer more options for specialty food producers to connect with sellers.
- If you want to sell to co-op markets, check out the national association.
- The association of independent grocery stores is a useful resource too.
E-commerce software such as Square and Shopify has matured, making it easier to sell online and connect online stores with social media.
Interesting Way to Sample
Watch Amazon Fresh and Groceries & Gourmet Food closely for new opportunities to sample and sell as well as distribute food locally and afar.
For example customers can buy this bundle of samples for which they get a rebate upon purchase:
The Social Media Landscape Has Evolved
Instagram has become even more relevant as a platform to build audiences and sell online. Snapchat came on the scene, although it has not quite become mainstream.
Facebook ads and boosted posts have become more important than before—largely because of the FB algorithm that makes it difficult to display your content without shelling out the bucks.
A Bunch of Food Startups Got Acquired
Just a few of the acquired food companies, whose stories you read about in the book, include:
Justin’s Nut Butter, Droga Confections, Blue Bottle Coffee, Hiball, Mary’s Gone Crackers, and Attune Foods.
And Many Companies Have Changed
Several artisan food sellers run by solo entrepreneurs shut down for various reasons, most often that the founder decided to do something else!
Others have grown and grown. Tessemae’s is especially fun to check out.
But again, the most important changes in how important selling on Amazon has become for many companies and to plan your distribution strategy carefully.