Honey
Honey is one of those things that we can all afford but it seems to hold a certain luxury to it that isn't the case with other similar food stuffs. Honey is basically sugar pure and simple, it is relatively unprocessed from the hive to the store, soothes a sore throat like magic and adds a certain something to a cup of hot tea.
Unfortunately the import of honey has a number of restrictions in both the US and European markets. This is to assist with disease control as well as ensuring a minimum quality. This in turn makes imported Honey expensive and as with all products with restricted supply ensures a healthy margin.
Assuming that you resolve the issue of supply distribution should be relatively
straight forwards. Some ideas include: -
Direct Distribution
Advertising in local newspapers, health related magazines
Website
Trade and Craft fairs/exhibitions
Selling through Health and alternative medicine shops
Agency sales
Opening a Shop
I love Honey as a potential product for Direct Distribution. If you can promote your product on the back of a health newsletter, or through a health magazine with a phone or email ordering service then orders should literally come to you. Honey is seen as a pure, wholesome, natural product and is preferred by many over processed cane sugar. You will of course need to pay either for advertising or as a percentage of sales. You will also need to experiment with different wording to understand what works best. You can read more on direct distribution in our "finding customers" pages on the website.
An extension of this is to advertise in Health magazines, or your local newspaper if you feel you can only deal with a smaller readership. Make sure you include appropriate contact information such as your web address. Think twice about including a phone number for a national magazine if you only have one line available.
Building your own website for this product (or product range) is a must. Even if you don't intend to sell online your offline customers will appreciate a site that outlines the benefits of your product, where it comes from etc. If you end up using Agency sales it is also a useful tool for your agents to refer customers to. You should include the web address on your business cards, labels and any other promotional materials.
Trade and craft fairs will attract exactly the kind of customers that you are looking for. Anyone with an eye on tradition, and rural crafts will surely appreciate the value of a natural country product such as Honey. The cost of a stand will vary depending upon the size of the function, expected number of guests etc. Try to create some kind of movement to ensure that people stop and look, this can be done with a laptop and projector, or a fan and some paper windmills if nothing else. Even a goldfish in a bowl has been shown to stop more customers than a stand with no movement. If you can¡¦t afford a stand when you start out then pack samples in a hold all and hand them out along with your business card when you get chatting to people.
Many health and alternative medicine shops remain independent. There is a sub culture of people interested in these kinds of products who will undoubtedly quiz you on where your product comes from and how it is produced. Make sure you have sufficient facts to assure them of the benefits of your product and be prepared to help market the product either by providing a display stand, printing posters for the store or some similar gesture. Assure the store owner that you will tell your friends and family they are stocking your products which should help drive additional business into their store.
Importing honey to the US or the EU can be complex and expensive. If you can find a local honey producer then start locally rather than importing.
Within the US then you may want to check out www.honeylocator.com/apply.asp which lists all the suppliers approved by The National Honey Board. If you search using <honey supplier UK> there are in excess of 800,000 hits on www.google.com so finding a supplier should be relatively straight forwards.
There are greater margins to be earned through importing but you will need
to start educating yourself on acceptable sources, and what exactly the rules
and regulations entail. Some good start points can be found here: -
http://www.defra.gov.uk/hort/Bees/Intertrade/index.htm
http://www.honey.com/honeyindustry/resources/importexport.asp
Additional information can be found by searching with your chosen search engine.
There is of course an option to produce your own honey, but even though I highly recommend a degree of hard work, that may be taking things a little too far as a beginner in this industry.
You will need to comply with regulations relating to food distribution and possibly import. Make sure you understand them, and then double check your understanding with a lawyer to make sure that you don¡¦t get into hot water.