Both Kindle Bowden and Stacey Oakley had low expectations when it came to pitching their products to Walmart.
They wanted deals, of course. But neither had pitched for the corporation before, let alone in a Covid-world when it was done entirely online.
"It was pretty stressful and it was the first time for Walmart doing it this way (online)," Bowden, CEO and president of Platinum Reserve Distribution, said.
But both women received on the spot offers for their products to be on shelves — In Walmart, in Bowden's case and in Sam's Club, in Oakley's case.
"It was like preparing for a mini 'Shark Tank' presentation, that's how we prepared," Oakley, chief financial officer at The Florida Brewery, said. "It was making sure we knew things like our numbers, what we could support volume-wise."
Oakley originally began searching for ways to get into stores after the pandemic shut down breweries across the nation.
"Back in March we were supposed to be launching two of our craft beers and obviously everything changed," she said. "We had to make a quick pivot in they way we did business, because we knew Covid wasn’t going to be a fleeting thing. So, I started researching online ways to present for chain authorizations."
She came across RangeMe, which Bowden also used. It's a paid website that allows businesses to upload their products and submit to large company accounts for the chance for a meeting. In Bowden and Oakley's case, more than 5,000 products were submitted and roughly 800 were chosen for the "open call" event.
The company would send weekly emails explaining to those chosen for the Open Call about what would be important to know, including knowing the company's amount of product along with what previous companies did to make them stand out.
"We were really focusing on the fact that they understand the product, understood it was made in USA, the benefit it had to the Blairsville community (in Georgia, where it is distilled and bottled) and to us in Lakeland," Bowden said. "We really didn't think they would give us an on-the-spot commitment. We weren’t focusing on that piece, just how good and valuable the product would be to everyone and what we bring to the table."
The buyer was so impressed they asked if Bowden had a second product they could also put on the shelves. The agreement is currently finalized and they are working on a sales plan. The plan is to sell the Handcrafted Peach Moonshine and Apple Brown Betty Moonshine, with plans to start in Central Florida stores.
"We wanted to make sure everything was going to fit within their community, our community and we want to really grow within our community," she said. "As they take us on, we will then try to advance to other states but we want to do well in Florida first and grow as we go."
Oakley said a potential key to her pitch was differentiating the offering from others already on the shelves.
"They encouraged us to go to stores, understand where you would be displayed, who would be next to you," she said. "For us it important to show what Sam's Club offers and how we will be different. Asking, 'Can we offer a package that looks competitive?'"
She will be offering her "Beach Me Up" grapefruit shandy, available in roughly 20 stores in central Florida. They are also in 13 Publix stores in Polk County, and the product will expand to more stores in Orlando and Tampa later this year.
"Really, we've learned that diversity is key and not relying on one avenue of revenue sourcing," she said. "The biggest thing is expanding distribution. A lot couldn’t make the shift, but luckily we did and shifting helped significantly versus hurting us. We will continue to focus on diversity, because who knows what the future brings."
