In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:

There’s a certain allure to big box placement—your product gleaming under fluorescent lights, stacked high in national chains, your brand name echoing across the country. But behind the gloss lies a reality that can quickly outpace even the most prepared entrepreneurs. Demands are steep, the margins are thin, and the risks are high. What looks like a milestone can quietly become a misstep.

Starting with independent retail, however, offers a smarter, more sustainable path. It’s not a detour—it’s a deliberate strategy.

Benefits of launching your brand with independent retailers

Independent retail gives your brand the space to breathe, learn, and adapt. You’re not locked into inflexible terms or drowning in compliance. Instead, you get real-world feedback, direct communication with decision-makers, and the opportunity to refine everything—from your packaging to your pitch—before scaling. These stores become your proving ground, your test market, your brand’s first true believers.

Early wins in this channel build leverage. When your product performs well in independent stores—when it moves, resonates, and returns—those metrics become your currency. You walk into big box meetings not with a concept, but with a case study. Not with potential, but with proof. That changes everything.

Use independent retailers as your test

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:

Last year, Sugar Bliss was accepted into the Compass Group accelerator program from a RangeMe submission, and A LOT has happened since then!

In this video interview with Joseph Tarnowski at ECRM’s Foodservice Session in Chicago, Sugar Bliss Founder & CEO Teresa Ging shared an update on how it’s going, including:

An intro to Compass Group’s Levy Restaurants, which got Sugar Bliss cookies, cake puffs, brownies and Rice Krispy treats into Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears. Entry into grab and go and convenience locations through Compass Group’s Food Works Group and Canteen North America (her 2 ounce cookies and 5 ounce bags of cookies).

All from one RangeMe submission!

She was also accepted into the new Convenience Store News collection on RangeMe for Diverse-owned and emerging brands.

The RangeMe Blog…

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Strengthen Your Tactical Demand Planning with These 7 Steps

As brands grow, demand planning evolves from a monthly or batch-based spreadsheet chore into a reality that can make or break a fiscal quarter. With sales channels multiplying, supply chains still shaky, and consumer behavior moving fast, your ops need to be nimble even when you don’t have perfect data. 

Following are 7 steps you can take to secure your supply chain.

Step 1: Get Granular With Your Forecasting

Forget historical averages. They’re too blunt. You need to understand demand by SKU, channel, geography, and time period. “Brand X will sell 1,000 units next month,” isn’t enough. Think:

“Brand X 12oz will sell 400 units through grocery, 200 through e-comm, and 150 through club—mostly in the Northeast.”

That level of detail lets you plan for everything from restocks to influencer pulls to spoilage write-offs. It also helps you spot what’s predictable (and what’s not). Stable best-sellers? Use classic forecasting models. Seasonal or volatile SKUs? Different playbook. New launches or discontinued items? They need their own lane entirely.

Try grouping products by forecastability, not just revenue. Your “A” items should be the ones you can confidently plan for—even if they’re not your top sellers.

Step 2: Connect Your Data Pipes

Most …

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
From Corporate Exec to Brand Owner – and Straight Onto Walmart Shelves

One of the things Alex Yale loves about being an entrepreneur is that whatever work he invests into the business, he gets back. Every action he takes is one meant to directly benefit the brand. He’s not pulled into other people’s projects, and his calendar is not filled with other people’s meetings.

Yale

At the same time, the challenges are all his own. If a problem arises in the middle of the night, it’s up to him to solve it right then. And of course, it can be difficult to unplug. Indeed, there are no traditional office hours when you are a brand-owner.

But it’s in Yale’s blood to be an entrepreneur. After all, each of his parents is a small business owner, and after a career in the corporate world that spanned a consulting firm, teach company and an e-commerce business, he felt the need – or calling, if you will – to launch household cleaning and chemicals brand Uncle Todd’s, and with a small investment of time on a RangeMe submission, ended up on the shelves of 2,000 Walmart stores to date.

Who is Uncle Todd?

We all have one of those people in our lives. The person …

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Navigating the Tariff Challenges: How RangeMe & ECRM Can Help

It seems as if Liberation Day has been anything but liberating for those in the retail and foodservice industries. President Trump’s reciprocal tariff strategy launched on April 2 has led to buyers and brand-owners scrambling to adjust their sourcing practices in an effort  to minimize the impact on their businesses.

As some countries try to engage in bilateral negotiations to modify some of these tariff rates, and some exemptions are being made, the fluidity of the situation makes it difficult to predict what the final outcome of these tariffs will be. As a result, retailers and foodservice operators are now paying much closer attention to where their products and ingredients are coming from. To help in these efforts, RangeMe and ECRM launched its new TariffSmart Sourcing initiative.

What is TariffSmart Sourcing?

TariffSmart Sourcing is a global sourcing initiative that connects buyers and brands based on Primary Country of Origin—helping retailers discover products from trade-friendly regions that align with their sourcing strategies, cost structures, and compliance goals. It  empowers buyers to navigate shifting trade landscapes and find the right products—made in the right places—faster. It also enables suppliers to gain exposure with buyers who are specifically seeking products from their region …

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In: Retailing Tips|Last Updated:
Why Independent Retail Still Wins for Emerging CPG Brands

While many entrepreneurs dream of their products dancing beneath the fluorescent lights of a national chain, the reality behind those dreams often carries a cost. Hidden among the towering pallets and pristine endcaps are pitfalls that few discuss: slotting fees that siphon margins, chargebacks that gnaw at profits, and a glacial approval process designed less for innovation than for inertia.

In contrast, independent retail doesn’t shout. It whispers with weight. It listens. And most importantly—it acts.

These retailers are more than storefronts; they are sentinels of their communities. Each product on their shelves isn’t just another item—it’s a handshake, a recommendation, a vote of confidence. Step into a family-run corner store, and you’re not just entering a point of sale—you’re stepping into a story, often generations in the making. Every squeak of the wooden floorboards tells of endurance. Every worn countertop hints at a thousand exchanged smiles.

And this is where new products thrive—not because of glitzy packaging or a massive ad budget, but because of trust. A trust that’s built face to face, one conversation at a time.

Independent retailers know their customers

Independent retailers operate close to the customer. They don’t just know buying patterns—they know birthdays. They …

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