Food Industry Expert Jason Wong Joins the Conversation

Ditch The Box welcomes industry expert Jason Wong to our show. Jason has accumulated 20 years of experience in the food industry. Founder and president of Asia Foods, LLC., he also has much experience in New Product Development with Roland Foods. Currently the VP of Sales at HFM FoodService, Jason's inimitable perspective, clarity, and strategic advice offers outstanding perception on the industry as a whole.

The first topic he touches on during the discussion is grocery channels. According to Jason, there are four main grocery channels in the marketplace:

1. Mainstream Grocery: Everyday grocery stores (i.e. Kroger)
2. Natural Foods Stores: Usually smaller units driven by natural/organic trends (i.e. Whole Foods)
3. Club Channel: (i.e. Sam’s Club, Costco)
4. Mass Merchandisers: (i.e. Target, Walmart)

*outlier = Military

All four of these channels (plus the outlier) have different and unique nuances that play a part in how you go about selling your product to them. This brings us to Jason’s next point: Utilizing Brokers.

The key to getting in these grocery channels is catering your selling agenda to each channel specifically. In order to do this it is vital that you understand the nuances of each. Brokers bring a huge amount of value to the table. They know the local market, understand the nuances of the channel, and ultimately offer the highest probability of success in getting your product in the door and on store shelves. For example, have you ever heard of a “slotting fee”? This is a one-time rental fee you pay for the privilege of getting on the shelf. What a lot of people don’t realize is that this fee is negotiable – something that the broker would know ahead of time and could advise upon. If you want to maximize the chances of getting your product on store shelves without getting ripped off in the process, it is highly recommended to utilize a broker.

One of the most important aspects of your sales pitch when trying to get your product in stores is… you guessed it… THE PACKAGING! Jason agrees. In fact, in his experience, 99% never even taste the product. People buy with their eyes and you sell them with the product packaging. If that statistic from a 20 year food industry veteran doesn’t drive the importance of packaging home, then we don’t know what will. Packaging is the one and only voice of your brand. Taking this for granted and throwing packaging together at the last minute is a terrible mistake. Your food packaging is just as important as the product itself. You may have the best flavor profile in the world but if packaging doesn’t sell the brand, the product won’t even get a chance to be tasted.

We want to thank Jason Wong once again for joining us on Ditch The Box and for sharing the very best insight on packaging's place in the ever growing food industry.

Stay tuned and be sure to follow Ditch The Box to access upcoming episodes on the packaging industry. In the meantime check out some awesome product packaging options!