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Janis Grover<\/p>\n
Americans overwhelmingly buy their tea where they shop for food. Only 7 percent report buying packaged tea in tea houses and coffee shops.<\/p>\n
Specialty tea is a very appealing category in niche food markets, explains Janis H. Grover, a marketing, new product development and sales professional presenting at this year\u2019s World Tea Expo.<\/p>\n
\u201cRetailers use specialty tea to bring excitement and world trends to their stores,\u201d she says. \u201cTea is an incremental purchase. Tea consumers can always be enticed to buy a new flavor and variety,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n
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\u201cRetailers are always looking for ways to add to the market basket. Something unique,\u201d she said. According to Grover selling tea starts a chain-reaction that leads to buying d\u00e9marrage sugar or<\/em> tea biscuits, clotted cream and pastries, adding to the total purchase. Tea drinkers exhibit greater price elasticity once they move beyond orange pekoe, she explains. \u201cThey do not directly compare prices as they might with condiments,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Grocers may be enthusiastic about the category but landing your brand on the shelf is harder than it sounds.<\/p>\n , founded by , is an example of a specialty tea brand that successfully navigated the daunting gauntlet and layers of distribution in the U.S. specialty retail market. It took her 12 years.<\/p>\n The Boulder, Colo.-based firm expanded into grocery shortly after launching the company in 2004, recalls Uspenski.<\/p>\n \u201cWe collectively were looking to grow way too big, way too fast,\u201d she said. The line failed and that led Uspenski to rethink her retail strategy. During the years that followed, she concentrated on developing wholesale clients and building an online presence. Two years ago, she once again worked her way into specialty retail with 10 SKUs of organic tea.<\/p>\n 2017 consumer survey by German-based market research firm Statista found that 80% of U.S. tea drinkers shop for tea in supermarkets. An additional 21percent say they buy from discount stores and 12 percent from department stores (including big-box retailers). Only 14 percent of tea drinkers purchase their product online (10 percent identified Amazon as their supplier) and 1 percent by mail order catalog (kudos to Upton Tea).<\/p>\n In the 1980s Grover was product development manager at The Great Atlantic & Pacific (A&P) Tea Co., launching 500 SKUs to create the first premium store brand in the U.S. In recent years she has mastered an understanding of the key regulations, logistics, label requirements, pricing, promotional strategies, and retailer fees necessary to successfully navigate the U.S. specialty food markets.<\/p>\n Understanding the roles, services and margin requirements of importers, distributors, wholesalers, brokers and retailers enables her to assist brands with the difficult transition from tea garden to top shelf. Successful entry into the U.S. depends on developing a comprehensive blueprint and creating a strategy to execute this plan, says Grover.<\/p>\n Brands with a trendy profile stand out in an aisle with lots of duplication and big selections.<\/p>\n \u201cIn my experience the stores will find space for a new attractive, creatively packaged specialty teas,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Grover says she is \u201cexcited to be returning as a speaker after attending World Tea Expo last year. I\u2019m looking forward to tasting new flavors and meeting new potential suppliers focused on tea and a community of tea people interested tea retail,\u201d she said. \u201cI have encouraged everyone I know in the tea and beverage world to attend as an essential part of their schedule for the year,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Marketing & Retailer Skills By Janis H. Grover, President Janis Grover Americans overwhelmingly buy their tea where they shop for food. Only 7 percent report buying packaged tea in tea houses and coffee shops. Specialty tea is a very appealing category in niche food markets, explains Janis H. Grover, a marketing, new product development and sales professional presenting at this year\u2019s World Tea Expo.<\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/s25491.pcdn.co\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/tea-graph.png\")
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Grover Global Food Marketing
11:30 am \u2013 12:40 pm \u2013 Tuesday, June 12<\/p>\nRelated Posts:<\/h3>\n
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