|
Story Sells Okains Bay Seafood to Major Supermarket
A great story well told made all the difference for a little kiwi company pitching for retail space in the world's
third biggest supermarket chain.
Christchurch-based exporter Okains Bay Seafood catches and add values to fish caught by longline off the Chatham Islands. So when director
Greg Summerton managed to secure a rare appointment with the supermarket freezer buyer in the US he knew he only had one chance to make the right impression.
Walking in the room, he placed a box of Okains Bay New Zealand Deep Sea Cod on the table.
"We have gone away from boxes, we use bags," said the buyer who has 500 people contact him every week trying to sell him their
fast moving consumer goods.
It was not a great start! Was this chance of a business lifetime about to amount to nothing?
"We believe we have a unique story that your customers will like and we simply can't present it on a bag. That's why we've got the box
to allow us to tell the story," said Greg.
"Really," said the buyer taking a brief look at the box.
"The packaging is all biodegradable and inside are fish caught in the cleanest waters in the world using sustainable fishing
practices," said Greg.
With more customers wanting to feel good about what they buy, the supermarket chain is increasingly looking at the environmental
credentials of its suppliers. So the buyer started taking more interest, asking prudent questions and writing notes.
"Here's a copy of our company profile. It's all written down in here," said Greg.
The box and profile work in tandem. While the box has the key points about sustainability, the profile backs it up telling the unique
Okains Bay Seafood story with its emphasis on heritage, family, sustainability and adding value.
A couple of days later Greg received an email from the buyer.
"Thanks for the visit. The fish was sensational and we love the story. We are interested. Please send us more samples and copies
of the profile."
"I always knew our story was valuable," explains Greg. "But until we got it written down nobody knew about it. We're
absolutely delighted with the way Robin Major told it and the graphic design company Meanwhile presented it to the world."
"Great work guys! You've helped us engage with a really important potential customer. Your storytelling makes all the difference."
>> Click here to read the Okains Bay Seafood Profile (PDF file 1.5
MB)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contact Robin Major today to receive obligation-free advice about how to improve your marketing.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
|
