PROFIT FROM YOUR OWN BRAND NAME by Adam Starchild Ask any retailer his or her best vitamin brand for sales and gross profit, and the answer is likely to be "our private label." For many years major retailers across the country have enjoyed the benefits of a private label vitamin line. Lower cost and store name advertising are the primary compelling reasons for a retailer to enter the private label world. In fact, private label vitamins have been so successful for store owners that many go on to actively pursue applying their store name to other product areas within the store. Private label may seem beyond your reach, but it is actually possible to purchase products bearing your label in quantities as small as a single case. One of the most important facts to remember when exploring the private label option is that it is a new business. You are in effect creating a new brand that has no current consumer support. As most manufacturers know, building a brand cannot be accomplished overnight. Only after countless hours and thousands of marketing dollars does a brand build momentum and become a success. If you enter a private label program with the expectation that success will come just by putting your name on the product, then the expectation is often met with disappointment and frustration. If the entry into private label includes marketing steps and is implemented with discipline, then often the long-term effect far outperforms expectations. However, there are several reasons to endure the hassle of private label, namely profit, market competition and market uniqueness. Private label products offer your customers products that they cannot purchase in the store down the street and so build a connection with your customers. This connection has been used successfully to transform consumers into your best advocates. In effect, your best advertising dollar could be your private label products, creating that ever-elusive, coveted word- of-mouth advertising. In addition to these benefits, private label is used to boost margins and gives you an opportunity to customize a marketing plan that works best for you. Promotion frequency, margin, advertising are all set by you. You can lock in customers by providing products that are not available anywhere else, thus relieving some of the market pressure that comes with retailing competing brand- name products. There are even distributors who have successfully used private label products to lock in retailer customers, such as local health food and drug stores. Selling methods are also up to you -- retail to the consumer, mail order, starting your own multi- level company, export -- or whatever works best for you. Developing private label lines is a long-term commitment. If you are willing to make the effort, the benefits of locking in your customer base, earning higher margins and giving yourself a strong market position in respect to your competition are worth it. There is a company that makes it extremely easy for you to be a distributor of private label health products. They will customize the promotional materials and bottle labels to make sure that the repeat business comes to you. Their prices are a fraction of what other companies are charging. Amongst the products they offer are proanthocyanidin (a/k/a Pycnogenol), cold-processed whole leaf aloe vera, colloidal silver, shark cartilage, Coenzyme Q-10, melatonin, blue green algae, and many more. For $5 they'll send you a distributor package. When you send them the $5 for the information, print clearly (better yet, typewrite it) the name, address, and telephone number you will use as a distributor. The literature you get will be custom laser- printed with your information so that you can immediately make copies to distribute to your prospects. That way there is no waiting time at all. Send $5 with the requested information to: Specialized Marketing Services Attn: New Distributor Kits 1441 North Clovis Avenue, Suite 62A Fresno CA 93727 With private label, you can truly get paid to be healthy. About the Author Adam Starchild has been writing on business, taxes and personal finance for over 20 years. Copyright © 1995, 1997 by Adam Starchild The Nutrition Library has reprinted this copyrighted article with the permission of the author. Mention of Specialized Marketing Services is an editorial recommendation by the author and is not advertising for the firm.

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