In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Upcycled Food and Beverages Are on the up and Up

Our grandmothers did it really well: Taking leftover foods and turning them into something else. Scraps of vegetables and animal bones made stock; leftover bread turned into bread pudding; croutons became breadcrumbs. 

What’s old is new again and companies are following grandma’s lead. And now it’s got a new fancy name: Upcycling. Upcycling means taking food that would otherwise be wasted and turning it into something new. It also means, hopefully, that the 1.3 billion tons of food that is wasted every year, according to the Food & Agriculture Association, will be reduced.

America’s upcycled industry was estimated at $ 46.7 billion in 2019, according to the Financial Times and by this year, more than 160 products from 37 companies are Upcycled Certified by the Upcycled Food Association (UFA), Greenwood Village, Colo. 

Upcycling is gaining traction, especially with the environmentally minded, but even big companies are getting in on the action. Anheuser Busch is building two facilities, in the U.S. and Belgium, to process barley, which would otherwise be discarded or fed to cattle, to sell to companies like Nestle.

The greatest solution

Upcycling means doing more with less and protecting the planet at the same time. According to Project …

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In: Dropshipping|Last Updated:
How to Turn a Hobby into a Business in 6 Easy Steps

Maybe you’ve heard that old saying, “Do what you love and you’ll never work a day in your life.” Regardless of how true it is, it certainly has a good point about enjoying your work. And the good news is, if you’re a hobbyist, you might just be able to attain this lifestyle goal.

Whether you love spending hours in the shop building furniture, knitting away while you watch TV or wait in line at the DMV, or concocting sweet-smelling soaps and candles, you may be able to turn your hobby into a business.

In this article, we’re going to take a look at some of the easiest hobbies to monetize, what you should consider before taking the plunge, and how to go about building your business. We’ve got all the starter tips you need to help get you pointed in the right direction.

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Hobby to business in 6 steps

turn hobby to business 6 steps

As a hobbyist, you may not know where to begin from a business perspective. Lucky for you, we’re here to guide you.

First, validate your hobby’s potential through research to determine if there’s a demand for what you’re offering and …

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In: Wholesale Advice|Last Updated:

 Dropshipping pricing strategy: The best 10 Tips Does your business have a dropshipping pricing strategy? If your answer is no, that’s not a good sign. Two things are likely to happen if you don’t have a pricing strategy; you will either overprice your goods, make limited sales, or underprice your products and earn less income. […]

The post Dropshipping pricing strategy: The best 10 Tips appeared first on Wholesale2B Blog.

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Loyalty Programs: Personalization Is the Key To Keeping Shoppers Interested

Inflation in the U.K. is through the roof, and prices in grocery stores are rising along with it. As shoppers look for the lowest prices and are ready to shop around at different stores, loyalty programs are becoming key to retaining consumers.

Loyalty programs are popular in the U.K., where 65% of the population is signed up with a supermarket scheme. These programs lead to more loyal customers since 47% say they spend more with the supermarket whose program they belong to, according to the Data and Marketing Association in London.

Britain’s various supermarket loyalty schemes run the gamut from Lidl’s, which offers limited-time coupons; to Morrisons, which sends personalized money-off offers to shoppers; to Sainsbury’s, whose Nectar scheme lets customers gain one point per £1 they spend to save on groceries or with partner brands. Users also receive limited time offers, based on what they most frequently buy. Many Brits sign up to a grocery store’s loyalty program in order to get rewards from a partner brand, such as Tesco (partners include Disney+, Pizza Express) and Waitrose (partners with John Lewis department store).

Mark Johnson, CEO and CMO of Loyalty360

Grocery store loyalty programs in the U.S. are similar, offering coupons, which are often personalized, fuel …

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In: Wholesale Advice|Last Updated:

This article highlights the reasons for finding a dropshipping niche market, examples of niche products for your store, and also includes the strategies to find your niche. What is a Niche? A niche is a unique part of any market that is frequently disregarded by other enterprises. Ecommerce niche stores, on the other hand, are […]

The post The benefits of dropshipping niches and how to find them appeared first on Wholesale2B Blog.

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Inclusivity Over Profit: How To Show Support for LGBTQ+ Brands Beyond Pride Month

In June, many brands show their support for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ+) community with rainbow-colored merchandise, community partnerships, artist collaborations, proceeds donations, and more. Perhaps you have seen Lego’s Everyone is Awesome set or Skittles’ Pride Pack sitting on retailers’ shelves. However, while the intention to bring awareness to the LGBTQ+ community and celebrate Pride month may be genuine, these can quickly be perceived as ill-hearted marketing tactics known as “rainbow washing.”

What is rainbow washing?

Rainbow Washing

What is rainbow washing? It’s when a brand uses Pride colors to indicate their support of the LGBTQ+ community without taking any real action. Sentiment quickly falls flat for brands who simply swap out logos on social media during June and can backfire if consumers believe a retailer’s colorful products are released with the sole intention of boosting sales. 

Younger generations are quick to call out brands that aren’t practicing what they preach when promoting diversity, and Pride month is no exception. This shouldn’t come as much of a shock, with more than 20% of Gen Z adults self-identifying as LGBT in a survey done by Gallup, compared to the national average of 7.1%. Other common examples of rainbow washing …

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