How to Get Your Share of the $5 Billion Food Gift Business

One of the biggest frustrations distributors report to us is the discovery of a client who purchases food gifts at a retail store.

When we hear this, we ask: “Do all of your clients know that you sell food gifts?” Too often the answer we’re given is “No.”

Here are the facts:

• Business food gift sales are estimated to be about $5 billion dollars.




• The promotional products industry reports earning about 4 percent of this business.

That means too many companies are purchasing food gifts from retail or mail-order vendors. However, this problem can be solved. We work with thousands of distributors who at one point (obviously) started with zero sales in food gifts and have grown this part of their business over the years.

The first step is to start talking about food gifts in Q1. Don’t wait until Q4 and expect overloaded buyers to jump on your bandwagon. Present year-round ideas for thanking and rewarding employees and clients with food gifts. By September, you won’t be springing a new concept on your clients they aren’t ready to embrace overnight.

Next, be prepared to explain the differences between buying retail or mail-order and buying from you. Below are a few of the arguments used by distributors who sell upwards of $20,000 of food gifts each year.

Convenience – It’s more convenient and efficient to purchase food gifts from you vs. having an employee drive to a local store and/or shop on the internet. Also point out they won’t need to turn their conference or break room into a warehouse – we individually ship gifts.

We Remain Invisible - When your client’s employees or customers open a package from Maple Ridge Farms, they won’t find one of our catalogs or sales literature from us.

The Gifts Are Fresher – We don’t pack gifts months in advance. We get the order, we pack the gifts.

There’s No Risk – Every gift in our product line is accompanied by a 100% Money-Back Guarantee.

For additional suggestions on how to entice buyers to purchase food gifts from you and not retail or mail-order, let us know.