I'm Avi, the founder of Lazrbeam. Every CPG brand that's in 1,000 stores today started at zero. And almost none of them started with UNFI or KeHE. They started by walking into a local store with samples and a sell sheet, and convincing someone to give them shelf space.
Your first 10 stores won't be Whole Foods or Kroger. They'll be indie natural food stores, local co-ops, specialty shops, and maybe a small regional chain. And that's exactly where you want to start. These first accounts teach you how retail works, give you velocity data, and build the story you need to pitch larger retailers later.
Here's the playbook.
Step 1: Get retail-ready
Before you approach any store, make sure your product is actually ready for a shelf. Retailers won't take you seriously if you show up without the basics.
UPC barcodes. Register with GS1 and get your barcodes. Every product needs a unique UPC. This costs about $250 for the initial registration plus a per-barcode fee. Do not buy cheap barcodes from resellers. Legitimate retailers require GS1-registered codes.
Retail-ready packaging. Your packaging needs to stand on a shelf, clearly display the brand name and product type, include a compliant nutrition facts panel, and list ingredients. If you've been selling at farmers markets with hand-labeled jars, it's time to upgrade.
Liability insurance. Most retailers require at least $1 million in general liability insurance. Some require $2 million. Get a policy before you start pitching. Companies like Next Insurance or Hiscox offer affordable policies for small food brands.
Shelf life. Know your product's shelf life and be able to state it clearly. Most retailers want a minimum of 6 months remaining shelf life at delivery. If your product has a 4-month shelf life, that's going to be a hard sell.
Case packs. Your product needs to be packed in cases that are easy to ship and stock. Standard case sizes are 6, 12, or 24 units. Include the case UPC on the outer carton.
Step 2: Identify your first targets
Your first 10 stores should be within driving distance. You're going to self-distribute, which means you're loading cases into your car and delivering them yourself. This is the DSD (direct store delivery) model, and it's how most CPG brands start.
The best first targets are independent natural food stores, local co-ops and community groceries, specialty food shops (cheese shops, gourmet stores, health food stores), local chains with 3 to 10 locations, and farmers market connections who also have a retail storefront.
These stores are ideal because the decision-maker is often the store owner or a single buyer, not a corporate buying team. You can walk in, have a conversation, and get a yes or no in the same visit. The process that takes 6 months at Kroger takes 6 minutes at a local indie store.
Step 3: Walk in with samples
Cold calling indie stores is simple. Bring samples, your sell sheet, and a price sheet.
Walk in during a slow time, usually mid-morning on a weekday. Ask to speak with the owner or the person who manages purchasing. Introduce yourself, hand them a sample, and explain your product in 30 seconds. What it is, what makes it different, and why it would fit their store.
Don't pitch a 20-minute brand story. Keep it short. "I make an organic hot sauce with ghost peppers and local honey. It's made here in Austin. I sell about 200 bottles a month online and I'm looking for a few local stores to carry it. Can I leave some samples?"
If they're interested, they'll ask about pricing, minimum orders, delivery schedule, and whether you handle unsold product. Have answers ready for all of these.
Pricing: Offer a wholesale price that gives the retailer 35 to 50 percent margin. If your product retails for $8.99, your wholesale price to the store should be around $4.50 to $5.85.
Minimum order: Keep it low. One case per SKU is fine for a first order. You want to make it easy for them to say yes.
Delivery: You deliver. Once a week or every two weeks, depending on velocity. You'll also restock the shelf and rotate product when you deliver.
Unsold product: Most indie stores expect you to handle product that doesn't sell within a reasonable timeframe. Offer to swap out slow-moving product for fresh inventory.
Step 4: Support your accounts
Getting on the shelf is not the win. Selling through is the win. Your first 10 stores are where you learn what drives velocity at retail.
Do demos. Set up a sampling table on a Saturday. Hand out samples to shoppers. Talk about your product. In-store demos are the single most effective way to drive trial at an indie store. Most stores will let you demo for free or for a small fee.
Tell your customers. If you have a DTC customer base, social media following, or email list, tell them where to find you in stores. "Now available at [Store Name] on [Street]" posts drive foot traffic and show the store owner that you're actively marketing the product.
Check on your product. Visit your accounts weekly. Make sure your product is stocked, faced properly, and not buried behind other products. If it's out of stock, restock immediately. Nothing kills velocity faster than an empty shelf.
Build a relationship with the store. The owner or manager at an indie store can become your biggest advocate. They'll hand-sell your product to customers if they believe in it. Drop off extra samples for the staff to try. Ask for feedback. Be present.
Step 5: Track everything
From day one, track your sales by store, by SKU, by week. This data is the foundation of every retail pitch you'll make for the rest of your brand's life.
Units per store per week (UPSw). This is the metric retailers care about. If you're selling 5 units per week at an indie store, that's a solid number. 10+ is excellent.
Reorder frequency. How often does each store reorder? This tells you about sell-through rate and helps you manage inventory.
Best-performing SKU. If you have multiple flavors or products, which one sells the fastest? Lead with that SKU when you pitch the next store.
Seasonality. Does your product sell better in summer or winter? Track this so you can plan inventory and promotional timing.
This data goes directly into your sell sheet and your pitch emails when you're ready to approach larger retailers.
Step 6: Go from 10 to 50
Once you have 10 stores performing well, you have a story to tell. Your next targets are small regional chains (5 to 20 locations), larger co-op networks, and the lower tier of natural grocery chains.
At this stage, you're still self-distributing if the stores are within driving distance. But you're also starting to bump up against the limits of DSD. Driving to 30 stores every week while also running a business is exhausting.
This is the inflection point where you either hire a part-time driver, engage a small local distributor, or start the conversation with UNFI or KeHE for the accounts that require it.
It's also the point where tools like Lazrbeam become especially useful. You're no longer walking into stores and asking for the owner. You're emailing category buyers at regional chains who you've never met. You need their contact information and a pitch that's specific to their store.
Step 7: Use your story to pitch up
Your first 10 stores aren't the destination. They're the proof of concept. Every subsequent retail pitch gets easier because you can say:
"We're in 10 stores in the Austin area doing 8 units per store per week with zero marketing spend. Our reorder rate is 100%. We'd like to bring this to your natural snacks set across your Texas locations."
That's a fundamentally different pitch than "we have a great product and we'd love to be in your stores." The first one has data. The second one has hope.
How Lazrbeam helps
Your first 10 stores will mostly come from in-person visits and local relationships. But the jump from 10 to 50 and beyond requires finding buyers you can't walk in and meet.
Lazrbeam lets you search for retail buyers at regional and national chains by category and region. You get their verified contact information and generate a pitch email that includes the velocity data and retail story you built in your first 10 accounts.
I built Lazrbeam because I've seen the gap that kills momentum for CPG brands. They crush it in 10 local stores. They have the data. They have the product. But they don't know how to reach the buyer at the next chain. That's the gap Lazrbeam fills.