Food-Preneur 101: Part 1
So you have an absolutely amazing food recipe. All your friends and family are encouraging you to take this recipe to the world, sell it, and make a fortune. But how do you start? Here are my tips:
However, you would like to know, based on their expertise, whether you have a saleable product. Ask them:
Most buyers are willing to share their knowledge, but you need to be courteous of their time, make an appointment and make sure you send a thank you note!!!
Using this information, you may want to tweak your product.
8. Investigate packaging. How do you want to package your product? Which is the best type of packaging to maintain freshness, flavor and product shape? The internet is your best friend. Remember that this will affect your price point through actual cost as well as perceived value.
9. Now you need to make an appointment or two to work on pricing your product and to also start a marketing outreach plan. You will need to work on pricing on each of your recipes and that will involve you to go to Costco or your local supermarket and find the cost of each of your ingredients that you use. Contact a counselor at QEDC at 718-263-0546 or visit them at www.QueensNY.org
10. You must also evaluate which stores are the proper stores for you to sell. This is your target market i.e. if you are selling a package of 2 cookies, which you sell at $5, you certainly cannot go to the local supermarket, but to the gourmet store
If you do not sell your product, you do not have a business.
If you do not make a profit on each unit, you will soon have spent your life savings.
You have now completed your preliminary homework. Although it did not cost you much money, the process takes time, and it is time well spent. You now know you have something truly viable that the public will want to buy, adjusting your recipe if needed to make your product different than what is currently out there.
About Kathrine Gregory: With over 40 years of experience in the food industry, and currently the managing consultant at the Entrepreneur Space, Kathrine Gregory wants to help budding food-preneurs build their dream to success. She will never start her own food business, but is happy to share her expertise with you.