October 2015

Changing an Edibles Product Launch from Stressful to Successful By Nathan Keil

When it comes to scaring the pants off of somebody, there are a couple situations that rank up at the top. There's the old surprise public speaking opportunity that goes something like, "Hey, Jim, I need you to make a presentation to our grower advisory board in 10 minutes." Or the famous, "It's not that high. Just climb up a little farther and grab Mr. Whiskers from that branch near the water tower."

But when it comes to business, one of the top fears is launching a new product. Will our product be ready? Is our sales team prepared? Are our distributors on board? Will consumers even care?

All very good questions that get even the most experienced professional a little flustered. Thankfully, if you're looking to launch a new product — specifically a line of edibles, in this case — we've put together a list of considerations that can take your next effort from stressful to successful.

Do Your Homework

Take it from mom, doing your homework pays off. Not only in school É but in product launches as well. So when you're ready to take the plunge into the icy waters of a new introduction, you first need to research how others before you have fared.

From an edibles standpoint, there are many offerings out there already, with new introductions seemingly popping up daily. But what makes some survive, while others fail? For the answer, you need to take a close look at their product offering, their distribution plans, their sales approach, their pricing strategy and even their marketing efforts. More specifically, you need to investigate how suppliers are trying to differentiate themselves from others. And most importantly, you need to get to understand the audience you're ultimately trying to reach.

The folks at Plug Connection, who target large retailers and independent garden centers with its private label Organiks brand vegetables and herbs, couldn't agree more. Which is why their Organiks product launch was carefully developed in consultation with growers and retailers across the country. This research impacted decisions well beyond the one to launch, including package design, merchandising options, online properties and even social media initiatives.

According to Garden Media's 2015 Garden Trends Report, the face of the today's gardening consumer is vastly different than just a few years ago. It includes three distinctive new groups: Millennials, Hispanics and young men. Comprising 25 percent of the U.S. population, Millennials (those ages 18 to 35) as a group are larger than the Baby Boomer generation and continue to grow. In particular, young men within this group are spending $100 more per year on plants and garden products than the average consumer. Hispanics, which present the fastest growing segment in the United States, have a cultural tradition of growing food for their family and sharing with friends.

What this points out is the tremendous influence and buying power these three new groups possess — making it necessary for new edibles brands to approach them in a more mobile, digital, social and creative way in order to be successful.

But to do that, you need to look beyond the raw demographics of your target audience. You need to get inside their head, as well, to understand why they buy herbs and vegetables to begin with.

While there are many reasons why consumers grow their own vegetables and herbs — from saving money and spending time with family to concerns about food safety — recent studies indicate gardening is more closely related to living a healthy lifestyle than ever before. This is especially true for Millennials, as they see their veggie and herb gardens as extensions of themselves. And they're making conscious decisions to use their gardens as a way to improve their overall well-being and lead a more sustainable lifestyle.

"In launching our new Savor Edibles & Fragrants line, we've paid special attention to the Millennial audience," says Andy Huntington, national sales manager of Pleasant View Gardens in New Hampshire.

"That focus has driven both our product mix and our marketing approach. Millennials have a completely different mindset than seasoned growers. Our goal is to engage this younger generation by introducing them to something they can continue to enjoy as they grow older É while at the same time providing enough universal appeal for seasoned growers," he adds.

Bottom line: Before you start walking down the path toward your own edibles product launch, the more historic information you have, coupled with knowledge about the market you're targeting, the better prepared you'll be.

Set Your Goals

As a grower, you know the importance of establishing goals for your operation. And that doesn't stop when you are launching a new line of edibles. So, before you start developing that new product logo or fancy schmancy packaging, you should first set some objectives. And the most important include financial ones, which define the level of income you need to generate in order to sustain your operation and deem your new launch a hit. And like many, your financial goals are dependent upon many factors, such as research and development expenses, channel pricing, seasonality, shipping costs, consumer trends and more.

The good news is that consumer behavior is trending in your favor, if your launch is going to target one of the up-and-coming edibles audiences noted earlier. According to a recent Global Sentiment Survey from Boston Consulting Group, Millennials are much more willing than others to pay extra for a brand or product that reflects their style, personality and self image; 40 versus 25 percent to be exact. While this stat is substantial on its own, its true value is in illustrating the need to evaluate multiple factors when establishing your financial goals.

Another of those influential factors is distribution. In short, you need to determine what level of market penetration you want to achieve with your new edibles line. Do you want to go direct to retail and consider a pilot program with a handful of local stores? Do you want to go through wholesalers? Do you want to branch out regionally? Or do you want to go full-out national?

As you can imagine, with each approach comes different needs and responsibilities. Establishing a goal of 75 percent distribution coverage, for example, will require you to approach your roll-out much differently than if you were just seeking 10 percent saturation.

Mix It Up

Once you've established your launch goals, you need to determine your product offering or mix. Do you want to offer a short list of traditional herbs and vegetables? Or a larger offering that contains more exotic, hard-to-find varieties? Remember, the audience you're trying to reach has a diverse range of interests, so the more unique your offering, the more you'll stand out from others in your category and the more interested consumers will be in trialing it.

Deb DeNunzio, brand manager of Petitti's Garden Centers in Cleveland, Ohio, agrees. "Prior to launching our own Angelo's Farm Market Collection in '09, we sold a small variety of vegetables and herbs in flats. Now, we offer 180 different varieties, including grafted plants, which help differentiate our line from those at big box stores and even local produce stands," affirms DeNunzio.

That said, the success of any edibles program begins by offering the basics. According to a recent gardening survey, these include the top four on everyone's list: tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and herbs (basil, chives, cilantro/coriander, lavender, lemon balm and oregano). Once you have those fundamental plants accounted for, you can now explore other varieties to that will help establish your brand presence É keeping in mind that typically the more exotic the plant, the more costly its production.

Launch Time

So now that you've done your homework, set your goals and determined your optimal product mix, it's time to move on to what's actually the scariest part of this process É the actual launch. This is where you see how well you actually performed those earlier steps.

Do them right, and you might have a winner on your hands. Otherwise, you could be looking at a significant loss that could not only sink your new offering before it even gets started, but significantly damage your corporate brand, as well. Which is exactly why launching a new edibles line isn't for the faint at heart. But if you've carefully thought through every aspect of the launch process, then you could be well on your way to creating the next big name in edibles — turning stress into success.

Changing an Edibles Product Launch from Stressful to Successful