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Growing your business to a household name is the dream of every entrepreneur. However, achieving this level of recognition requires more than just ambition; it demands strategic planning, resource allocation, and often, significant financial investment. Access to capital isn’t always easy to come by, however. In fact, a study by U.S. Bank found that eighty-two percent of small businesses fail because of cash flow problems, and twenty-nine percent run out of cash.

Without sufficient funds to invest in inventory, marketing, and infrastructure, even the most promising ventures can struggle to gain traction. Meanwhile, the right financing strategy can provide the resources needed to grow and thrive.

Securing the right funding product 

Whether you are growing through retail, wholesale channels, ecommerce marketplaces, or your DTC website, being able to fund your growth is an essential part of being successful. There are many options to finance your production runs but not every one of them is the right option for every business. It’s important to ensure you fully understand the pros and cons of the funding solutions you may be considering.

Inventory Financing

Inventory financing can offer swift funding even for newer businesses or those with less-than-perfect credit, with funds typically available …

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RangeMe Review: How Due Diligence & Custom Offerings Land 2×4 Nutrition On Retail Shelves

Nothing irks a buyer more than a brand that goes into a meeting unprepared. In fact, the most common advice I hear from buyers with regards to supplier meeting prep is, “Do your homework.” You should have an idea about the buyer’s organization, the markets it serves, and – whenever possible – actual boots-on-the-ground experience at its locations. Then, present accordingly.

Some brands take it a step further. They do all of those items recommended above, and then tailor both their pitch and their offerings to that particular buyer. When that happens, it’s gold. 

2×4 Nutrition is a great example of this, and has reaped the benefits with broad placement of its products at national retail chains. In this post, we’re going to show you how they did it for a recent Walmart Open Call.

About 2×4 Nutrition

Michael Lebhar

2×4 was founded on the idea of making nutrition accessible to everyone, everywhere. It offers a line of supplements based on liposomal technology that provides fast absorption into the body. The brand started with the basics such as Vitamin C, Vitamin D, zinc and magnesium, then added multivitamins and now offer supplements that address specific need states.

Having already seen …

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Spritzal Cookie Company Co-Founder Taylor Elizabeth Walker leaves no stone unturned when it comes to growing her brand. Each morning at 8AM she’s on RangeMe checking out her profile insights to see what’s trending with buyers, and also seeing which retailers are conducting reviews in her category and what immediate retail opportunities are available.

She’s also a huge proponent of submitting products to relevant RangeMe and ECRM Summits, which are available to all Starter, Premium and Pro subscribers (click here to see the benefits of each RangeMe subscription tier). As a certified women-owned brand, these have included approximately a dozen supplier diversity summits, as well.

Watch the full video interview with Spritzal’s Taylor Walker

RangeMe successes

This proactive approach to leveraging RangeMe for connecting with buyers has paid off — she’s landed several deals, including two national retailers, and is in talks with several others.

In the video interview above with Joseph Tarnowski — who met Taylor via the CPG Vibes LinkedIn Live events (of which RangeMe is a sponsor), she shares the origin of the brand from her grandmother’s recipe card to the thriving business it is today, as well as some best practices that have helped her on …

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For Emerging CPG Brands, Collaboration Beats Competition Every Time

Emerging brands have to support each other. 

This is the way we climb mountains. None of us can do it on our own. It takes a collective interest. How can we together move the needle? The key word here is “together.” 

Our founders take on big CPG brands – bringing even bigger ideas and with much smaller bank accounts (we’re often just hoping to make payroll and pay the bills, right?). We are fighting for a seat at the table. This is the magic of the emerging brand. Our founders earn a seat at the table by their nature of being a change agent. By wearing the badge of an impact driver for people and the planet while driving for profit, founders become players.

Founders of emerging brands are in a position to set the stage for what consumers should expect. Consider the ripple effect of impact and innovation from emerging brands:

Brands launch innovative products.  Consumers discover innovation in ingredients, form factors, etc.  Consumers become educated about the benefits of said innovation and show up at the register. Big CPG sees the validation of concept and begins R&D/formulation, heading toward launch.

Don’t think for one minute that younger brands …

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It’s one thing to know that you need insurance to keep your business safe, and it’s another to know what the coverages are and how they serve you. Manufacturer insurance is like a production line: there are multiple pieces and moving parts, but everything comes together to form a final product. There are lots of different coverages you can mix and match to build the perfect plan for your business. It can be tough to know which ones are right for you. 

Here’s how you can use a customized manufacturing insurance policy to strengthen your business’s risk management strategy.

Protecting Your Products

Product Liability Insurance

Product Liability Insurance provides coverage for bodily injury or property damage caused by products, parts, and ingredients you manufacture and supply.

The products you make have the potential to cause injuries or damages to those who use them. From a curling iron catching fire to a candy necklace causing choking, there are thousands of ways an accident may occur.

Having to pay for legal fees, medical bills, repair costs, and more can be costly. That’s where product liability insurance helps you out. It’s designed to cover the cost of a product-related claim so you don’t …

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How Fire Department Coffee Turned Customers Into Investors With Equity Crowdfunding

During yesterday’s webcast, Fire Department Coffee CEO, Luke Schneider, discussed how he raised $ 1.8M for his business through crowdfunding with the help of StartEngine. The webcast also included Harrison Bert, Director of Sales for StartEngine and was moderated by Wayne Bennett, SVP of Retail for ECRM and RangeMe.

For those of you not familiar with it, equity crowdfunding allows startups to raise capital by selling shares of their company to a large number of investors, typically through an online platform. It’s rapidly becoming a vehicle of choice for emerging brands looking to raise capital quickly while maintaining control of their company, and enables everyday people to get in on the game with minimal investment. 

Why FDC chose equity crowdfunding

FDC’s Schneider

Fire Department Coffee Is one such brand. Based in Rockford, Ill. FDC is a veteran-owned business certified by the National Veteran-Owned Business Association and National Veteran Business Development Council, that was created and run by active and retired firefighters. Each batch of its coffee is freshly roasted in the U.S.A. Schneider and his team are committed to giving back via the Fire Department Coffee Charitable Foundation, which is dedicated to supporting first responders facing physical, mental, or other …

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