The holidays are right around the corner! No doubt, this busy time provides an ideal opportunity for distributors to offer their customers high-end, unique specialty foods, candies and beverages. Cookies, chocolates, specialty coffees, popcorn, jelly beans, gumballs, mixed nuts and mints are strong offerings in the edibles market – and are sure to leave a lasting impression.
David Katz of Midnite Snax maintains that the edibles market affords the opportunity to develop unique, custom work. He cites Midnite Snax’s popcorn products as a prime example, noting that the company can custom create flavors when requested. Brett Hersh of Admints & Zagabor agrees, adding, "End-users are looking for more creative solutions than what the industry has been offering. We need to provide what they see on the retail shelves."
At The Magnet Group, Dan Jellinek says that marketers are willing to pay for quality edibles and price isn’t “as big a factor.” That said, he is quick to add that promotional products suppliers must also provide low-cost solutions for everyday business needs.
Nick Caputi of Chocolate Inn/Taylor & Grant points out that imprinting on candies is one of the fastest-growing trends this year. "One of the factors driving this trend is the unique ability to include multiple brand messages, logos, etc. in one inexpensive yet memorable package," he comments.
Marissa Bond of Hospitality Mints agrees, noting that the company has seen an increase in requests to use all of the available space on the wrapper. "We think this driven by the desire to maximize opportunities to be noticed and stand out," she says.
Promotional products suppliers are in agreement that demand for promotional foods steadily increases as the year progresses. "Marketers across many different vertical markets recognize the value and benefit of using promotional candy to deliver and enhance a brand message," Caputi says. "Furthermore, as we get deeper into the fourth quarter, demand will no doubt continue to rise as food gifts remain an integral part of the holiday selling season for distributors."
There is no shortage of new and best-selling products in this delectable market segment. The Magnet Group has rolled out a line of cookies using the "finest, freshest ingredients," with the "taste and quality superior" to other marketplace offerings, according to Jellinek. Also new is the "Everyday Delicious" line, which he says is the result of customer demand for low-cost candy/food giveaways for room drops, trade shows, etc.
Over at Chocolate Inn/Taylor & Grant, new offerings feature functionality and versatility, Caputi highlights. The Tube of Treats and Supreme Treats Box offer recipients the fun opportunity to remove each sub-compartment and enjoy a "candy tasting" or "popcorn tasting." Additionally, the huge four-color process imprint area allows marketers to take a quirky, classic, or modern approach to the development of their graphics, he adds.
Belgian chocolate is all the rage at Chocolate Chocolate and Midnite Snax. Katz says the Midnite Snax' line of Belgian chocolate items has been getting a lot of attention. "From a variety of flavors of hot chocolate on a spoon, to gourmet customizable bars, we have so much to choose from," he comments. "It's new, unique and perfect for the coming holiday season."
Brandon Strong of Chocolate Chocolate says that one of the company's best sellers is the Deluxe Chocolate Trio. "Our variation on this product, the Deluxe Trio Wallet, has been a crowd favorite, being one of the most unique things to land in the market today," he describes. In the higher end gift segment, he adds, Chocolate Chocolate's Executive two-pound bar and custom packaging continues to be a Chocolate Chocolate best seller.
Custom packaging for its candy, nuts and pretzels is new at Admints & Zagabor. And, although Hospitality Mints has not introduced any new products in 2015, Bond reports the white buttermint continues be the company’s best seller. “The buttery richness is pretty hard to resist,” she states.
Speaking of hard to resist, suppliers overwhelmingly agree that samples are the best way to push edibles. Jellinek states this segment is one of the easiest things in the world to sell. "Everyone loves food, candy and treats!" he explains. "Quite often we hear from our clients, 'I am looking for a gift for men and women of all ages.' Can you say cookies and chocolate?"
Bond agrees. "Offering samples gives end-users the opportunity to get familiar with the candies and make a solid decision on what fits their needs," she says. “In addition, offering the candies is a great ice breaker. Who doesn't like candy?"
Strong urges distributors to not only ask for samples, but also photos and visuals. "Once the distributor shares with their clients the imagination of what we can create, the product 100 percent sells itself," he asserts. "Our packaging can make a 300 dpi photo stand out with amazing clarity. Dealing with a law firm or a bank that has a beautiful sky tower or office? Ask for professional photos and we can use them in the design process. If your client is a business with a small highly personal team like real estate or insurance, get a staff photo to showcase proudly on the package to remind recipients who their valued partner is."
During this busy season, it is vital to make sure clients are not sourcing gifts or event pieces from retail stores or grocery marts with off-the-shelf options, Strong adds. He urges distributors to illustrate what is possible through a combination of "high level branding with high quality chocolate for something as simple as a trade show handout or appreciation gift in a sales meeting. Awareness of what exists will be what grows your bottom line."
Awareness and sampling boost the opportunity for sales success in promotional foods because they are immediately gratifying to the senses. Says Katz, "Edibles are the only promotional product that engage all five senses. Can you smell a pen? Can you taste a phone charger or a golf shirt? No! But you can taste, touch, see, smell and hear edibles. No question. Food is fun and engages all the senses."
Case Studies
Marissa Bond, Hospitality Mints: "A distributor's customer offered several travel mugs, water bottles and coffee mugs on its online store. The distributor recommended offering the containers filled with individually wrapped mints. The customer liked the idea and tested it with the water bottle selections. The water bottle sales increased more than 25 percent during the test. Now all beverage items can be ordered with the mints."
Dan Jellinek of The Magnet Group: "We recently worked with a telecommunications company that was doing a B2B gift for all of its resellers. The audience was diverse, so we needed to create a solution that would work for all – a gourmet cookie that would be custom packaged and sent out to all the resellers. The end-user lined up several cookies from different suppliers in and out of the industry. We were not the cheapest, but we were the best tasting and we won the job; 200,000 cookies sold."
Brandon Strong of Chocolate Chocolate: "One of our distributors had a real estate team that wanted to increase its referral business with a mid-season gift to valued clientele. We created a highly unique piece that showcased a sincere message about the importance of referral business to the company. The custom chocolate piece resulted in a 45 percent jump in personal referrals in two months. A $3,400 order of custom chocolate resulted in more than 95 new leads for this company, which is continuing to bring millions of dollars in home sale revenue — all from a well-designed edible appreciation piece."