Welcome to Day 14: Episode 286 — Identify Your Ideal Retail Partner (Including Online)
Day 14 of 30 Days to Prosperity

If there’s one lesson that doesn’t get talked about enough in this industry, it’s this:
Not every retailer is right for your brand. And chasing the wrong ones can quietly drain your runway and jeopardize your future.

Just like every customer is unique, every store is unique.
Every chain has its own priorities, its own shopper base, and its own definition of success.

You are not supposed to be everywhere.
You are supposed to be where your ideal customer shops and where the retailer actually values what you bring to the table.

Today we’re going to talk about how to identify your ideal retail partners—brick & mortar and online—so you can stop chasing distribution for ego and start building distribution for impact, profitability, and scale.

Start With Your Dream Shopper, Not Your Dream Logo
A lot of brands chase big name logos:
“I want to be in that natural chain.”
“I want to be in that mass retailer.”
“I want to be on that online platform.”
But here’s the question that matters far more:
Does your dream shopper actually shop there—and do you have the ability to support that business well?

Your ideal customer:
Doesn’t settle for cheap ingredients
Chooses quality over price
Wants transparency, authenticity, and values alignment
Is willing to pay a fair premium for products they know, like, and trust
That shopper is your most valuable asset.
Your job is to meet them where they are—not where your ego wants you to be.

So instead of asking, “How do I get into every retailer?”
Ask:
“Where does my ideal shopper already shop—and where can my brand truly thrive?”
That’s where you focus.

What Retailers Really Want (And How You Fit In)
I keep coming back to this because it never stops being true:
Retailers really want three things:
More foot traffic
A competitive advantage in their market
A reasonable profit
That’s it.

When you show a retailer that your brand:
Brings in high-value, better-for-you shoppers
Increases basket size
Helps them differentiate from their competition
Supports their shopper’s lifestyle and values
And delivers fair margins consistently
…you become incredibly valuable to them.

This is where your work from the earlier episodes pays off. Because when you understand:
Who your unique customer is
How they shop the store
What else they buy
How they affect the basket
Then you can offer actionable insights retailers can’t get from anyone else—not big solution providers, not syndicated data, not your competitors.
That’s how you stand out.
That’s how you earn the right to be selective about your retailers.

Why You Must Own Your Strategy (And Not Hand Over the Keys)
One of my biggest frustrations with how this industry “supports” brands is this endless drumbeat:
Raise money.
Then raise more money.
Then raise more money.
Then hand your strategy to someone else.

You’re told:
Hire the master broker.
Hire the big agency.
Let them “take you national.”
And in the process, you’re quietly encouraged to hand over the keys to your brand.
That’s a massive mistake.
You are the person who knows your customer best.
You are the person who knows your WHY.
You are the person who understands the problem you solved.
Your brand was born because you were trying to solve a specific problem—for yourself, your family, or someone you care about. Your ideal shopper is basically you, a few steps behind on the journey.
You’ve already climbed the mountain.
They’re just starting the ascent.
You’re the Sherpa.
This is why I am adamant that:
You own the strategy in-house.
Brokers, distributors, and agencies execute on your behalf.
They’re important partners. They can add tremendous value.
But they should never own your strategy.

The Danger of “Spray and Pray” Distribution
Let me give you a real example.
I worked with a brand in California that had an incredible product. A big distributor approached her at a trade show and promised national distribution. It sounded like a dream, so she said yes.
Here’s what actually happened:
She ended up in four random stores:
One in Florida
Two in Indiana
One in Louisiana
Freight costs were ridiculous.
She had no ability to support those stores.
She had no one to merchandise, monitor out-of-stocks, or build relationships.
Then the distributor demanded she pay for promotions in stores where she wasn’t even on the shelf.
Saying yes to those promotions could have bankrupted her.
This is not an isolated story. I see this all the time.
The problem wasn’t her product.
The problem was misaligned strategy.
She needed:
Retailers in her region
Retailers with her ideal shopper
Retailers she could support properly
Instead, she got scattered placements that looked impressive on a coverage map but delivered almost no value—and a ton of risk.

What I Learned When Big CPG Went From Direct to Broker
Back when I worked for Unilever and Kimberly-Clark, we had our own direct sales forces. Our reps:
Represented only our brands
Were trained together
Were incented on the same priorities
They Had dedicated time in every store
If you were the rep, you had roughly two hours per store to manage just our portfolio - just our brands.

Then we went to a broker model.
Overnight, that two-hour window didn’t just belong to us. The broker had to:
Represent dozens, sometimes hundreds of brands
Work down a long checklist
Split attention across competing priorities

Nothing against brokers—they can be fantastic partners—but from the retailer’s perspective, our brand became one of many.
Our influence dropped.
Our execution suffered.
Our share declined.

This is what brands don’t fully appreciate when they “go national” with a broker or distributor:
You’re now on a very crowded roster with limited time and attention.
So you must:
Be realistic about what they can actually do
Give them crystal clear direction
Support your own execution whenever possible
Choose retailers where you can genuinely show up
This is exactly why I created the Effective Broker Management course and the Simple Solutions to Maximize Broker/Distributor Effectiveness guide—because brands everywhere were asking the same questions:
How do we get the most from our brokers?
How do we hold them accountable?
How do we focus their time?
How do we leverage their retail relationships without losing control?
You’re not alone in this. Every brand wrestles with it.

In fact, the Effective Broker Management course is actually the same framework I used when brands hired me to work with their senior management teams in person.

Why Velocity Alone Is a Dangerous North Star
Another myth you’ve been sold is that velocity is all that matters.
It’s not.
Big brands with deep pockets can buy velocity:
Deep discounts
Forward buys
Loss-leader pricing
All of that pulls profit out of the category and out of the retailer’s pocket. It doesn’t build loyalty, and it doesn’t build a healthy business.

Your strength is different.
Your customer:
Will pay a fair premium for quality
Buys across the store
Has a higher basket value
Cares about alignment and impact
That is far more valuable to a retailer than a temporary spike in units during a promo.

So instead of obsessing over velocity alone, focus on contribution:
Contribution to category profit
Contribution to basket size
Contribution to shopper loyalty
Contribution to the retailer’s competitive position
Retailers who understand this are your ideal partners.
Retailers who only see you as an ATM for fees are not.

A Cautionary Tale: Bubba’s Fine Foods
In Episode 132, Jeff from Bubba’s Fine Foods shared what happened when he followed “expert” advice and hired a master broker.
The master broker did exactly what he promised:
He Got Jeff’s brand into lots of stores across the country
Generated impressive distribution on paper
But here’s what Jeff didn’t have:
The ability to support those stores
The budget for the slotting and promotion fees
The manpower to manage resets, out-of-stocks, and execution
The regional focus needed to build depth before expanding
He felt like an ATM machine.
He was bleeding cash.
The brand was at risk.
In the end, he had to:
Fire the master broker
Walk away from a bunch of stores he paid to get into
Refocus on “backyard” retailers he could support well
It was painful—but it saved his brand.
This is why choosing the right retail partners is so critical.

How to Identify Your Ideal Retail Partners (Including Online)
Here’s how to apply all of this in a practical way.
1. Start With Your Ideal Shopper
Where do they actually shop?
Natural independents?
Regional natural chains?
Conventional retailers with strong natural sets?
Online marketplaces like Amazon or Thrive?
Your own online store?
List the top 3–5 places they are most likely to shop regularly.
2. Evaluate Retailer Fit Against the “Big 3”
For each potential retailer, ask:
Can my brand help drive more foot traffic (or clicks)?
Can I help them gain a competitive advantage?
Can I help them earn a reasonable profit?
If the answer is “yes” and you can prove it with insights and data, that retailer is a strong candidate.
3. Assess Your Ability to Support
Could you:
Visit key stores?
Train staff (even virtually)?
Support promotions?
Monitor execution?
Respond to issues quickly?
If you can’t support it, you probably shouldn’t pursue it—yet.
4. Prioritize Contribution Over Coverage
Instead of “How many doors can I get into?”
Ask:
“How much contribution can I deliver in the right doors?”
Depth before breadth.
Impact before ego.
5. Apply the Same Discipline Online
Online is not “free shelf space.” It has its own costs and expectations.
Ask:
Can shoppers find me quickly?
Am I on the right platforms for my ideal customer?
Do I have the resources to drive awareness and reviews?
Does this channel help me deepen my relationship with my tribe?

Day 14 Action Item: Build Your Ideal Retailer Map
Today, I want you to:
List your top 3 ideal shopper profiles.
Write down where each one shops—physically and online.
Circle the top 5 retailers and/or platforms where you have the best fit AND ability to support.
Put a star next to 1–2 that you will focus on first.
Everything else is “later”—not “never,” but later.
This will help you protect your runway, sharpen your focus, and set you up to win where it matters most.

In Closing: Choose Partners Who Value What You Really Bring
Your brand is not just a product.
Your brand is a solution.
Your brand is a relationship.
Your brand is a magnet for high-value shoppers.
The right retailers will see that
The wrong retailers will just see fees.
Your job is to know the difference—and to choose wisely.

This builds a repeatable retail Execution System—so that brokers, distributors, and internal teams can deliver your standard flawlessly in every store

Tomorrow, in Episode 287, we’ll talk about How to Build a Simple, Strategic Retail Expansion Plan so you can grow on your terms, in the right places, at the right pace.
Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss it.
Share this episode with a founder who’s chasing distribution for the wrong reasons.
Downloads the free series guide to go deeper into these strategies
And remember:
When you focus on the right shopper, in the right stores, with the right strategy,
you don’t just survive—you thrive.

For additional inspiration listen to the following podcast episodes:
Episode 132 The Wrong “Expert” Jeopardizes Your Brand Success, Jeff Schmidgall with Bubba’s Fine Foods
Listen to Jeff share in his own words detailed specifics from story I just shared with you.
Avoid the pitfalls of hiring The Wrong 'Expert' Jeopardizes Your Brand. Understand the risks to your profitability. Bubba’s Fine Foods started as a grain-free snack mix business. Jeff, who has Crohn’s disease, believes in the power of the paleo diet and emphasizes the importance of real, unprocessed food. The company faced challenges in grocery distribution but prioritized customer value and strategic partnerships to grow.

Episode 189 How To Get Your Brand Discovered By Retailers Easily, Sarah Davidson, Joseph Tarnowski, Brandon Leong with ECRM & RangeMe
Learn how to get your brand discovered by retailers and successfully get onto their shelves with expert strategies and insights. ECRM facilitates connections between retailers and suppliers through category-specific programs, both in-person and virtual. RangeMe, an online product sourcing platform, enables retailers to discover new products and suppliers to submit their offerings.

This is a great episode because it gives you a framework on how you can introduce your brand to more stores. And this, of course, is the way you get your brand onto more store shelves.

Episode 175 Creative Strategies for Brands at Retail = incremental Opportunities, Brandon Leong with RangeMe
Uncover creative strategies for brands at retail aimed at making your product discoverable for target shoppers effectively. RangeMe facilitates online connections between brands and retailers becoming increasingly important for brands of all sizes to gain visibility and compete in the market
This is one of my most popular episodes because in this episode, Brandon shows you a strategy where you can leverage the RangeMe platform, which by the way has a free component, so you can get your brand discovered by more retailers.

Tip of the day: Just like every customer is unique, so is every store. Use what you have learned to find and identify your dream shopper and focus all your efforts there.

Thank you for listening. This episode has an accompanying video with illustrations and additional information I can’t share on an audio podcast. You can watch it at retailsolved.com/30daychallenge.

You can get the show notes for this episode by going to RetailSolved.com/Session286. Tomorrows episode is How To Become A Trusted And Respected Retailer Partner Today - A Category Leader.

This episode will build on today’s conversation. Thank you for listening. I look forward to seeing you in the next episode.