In my quest to really grok the food and beverage business, I have been reading anything I can get my hands on. One such resource is “Sell Your Specialty Food” by Stephen F. Hall. If you are selling or planning to sell a specialty food product, you owe it to yourself to get and read this book. Admittedly, it is addressed primarily to beginners–folks getting ready to take their first product from the kitchen to the store shelf. But as with many startup books, it has many useful reminders and resources that veterans may also find useful. In my eyes, the appendices alone were worth the cover price.
Stephen F. Hall is an industry guru. He has been a thought leader for more than 20 years and the book is preparing for the release of its 6th Edition. That is some impressive staying power. And, with each edition, he has refreshed the content and had guest contributors provide added timely insights, such as the “State of the Industry Report: Prime Time for Fancy Foods” by A. Elizabeth Sloan in Appendix O. There is little doubt that you will be reading practical advice from a food industry professional who has been there and done that.
The subtitle of the book is “Market, Distribute, and Profit from your Kitchen Creation.” Appropriately, the best parts of the book highlight the challenges of positioning your product, understanding distribution channels for speciality foods, and what that all means for your pricing. The book is organized like a textbook, with very clear, topical chapters, cross-references to related material, and a good index. You can pick and choose chapters as you need them, though I would certainly recommend that the following chapters be studied in detail:
- Chapter 2: Understanding the Food Industry
- Chapter 3: Getting Ready to Market
- Chapter 4: Product Packaging, Labeling, and Pricing
- Chapter 6: Taking Your Product to Market
The insights on working with retailers, distributors, and brokers are particularly valuable for food entrepreneurs starting out.
As I mentioned, the appendices alone (all 16 of them) justify the cost of the book. Need a list of trade journals, trade associations, and trade shows for specialty foods? Yup, got that. Need someplace to start looking for co-packers, brokers, or help with packaging or labeling? Here are some lists. Internet resources? Check. Federal and state resources, including export assistance? Check. If you just went through the appendices and highlighted the new resources you could reach out to for information and assistance (and then actually followed-up with them), I guarantee you would get massive value for your business. The growth of your network and knowledge would be awesome.
So, if you are in the first few years of your food business, get this book. If you are looking for some ideas to try to get your products into new and different markets, buy this book. If you haven’t started your business but are thinking about, you would be foolish not to buy this book.
Learn more at www.specialtyfoodresource.com or order the book at Amazon.
Leave A Comment