After we nailed our online launch for Tantos, it felt like I could finally come up for air. Our website was humming, our Amazon storefront was live, and we had a 3PL handling fulfillment. But I always knew wholesale sales would be the real game-changer, likely 80% of our business in the long run, if everything went according to plan. The question was: do I handle wholesale myself or hire a sales agency that already has the grocery connections we need?
Handing Over the Reins
I initially thought, Let me dabble in wholesale myself. But as I started researching the ins and outs of managing retail accounts, juggling category review schedules, and meeting each chain’s requirements, I realized this wasn’t a job for a one-person army, especially not someone already running almost everything else. That’s when I decided to at least explore outside sales agencies. I knew it wouldn’t be cheap, so I wanted to interview three or four, do my due diligence, and pick the best one for Tantos.
As you know, I’m a firm believer in networking. So I asked around, industry friends, fellow entrepreneurs, and mentors to see who they might recommend. Each person gave me one or two names, and I ended up with a shortlist of four agencies to interview. They all seemed strong on paper, with varying success stories in food and beverage. For me, though, the biggest must-have was experience with salty snacks, that’s our world, and I wanted a partner who already understood this category.
After a series of calls that all sounded somewhat similar, it boiled down to chemistry, pricing, and gut feeling. Luckily, I landed on an agency that had the right industry relationships, got my vision for Tantos, and really felt like they’d crush it for us. Still, it was a big investment. But I knew an expert team would accelerate our sales faster than I could alone.
You’d think I’d be anxious handing off a core function like sales. In truth, I was relieved. The day-to-day grind of calling on grocery buyers, scheduling meetings, and following up can be a massive energy drain, especially when I’m also dealing with everything else. Letting the agency spearhead sales felt like a smart move: they specialize in building retailer relationships, and we needed to be in as many stores as possible, as soon as possible.
We have bi-weekly meetings where they update me on who they’re talking to, upcoming category reviews, sample needs, and any costs associated with landing new accounts. For those who might not know, category reviews are when a grocery chain decides which new products to add or current items to drop, often only once a year for salty snacks. If you miss the window, you wait another year. That’s why it’s key to have a team who knows those schedules and can get you on the radar in time.
Of course, there’s the waiting game. If you miss a chain’s salty snack review, you can’t get on shelves until the next one. I remember one retailer with over 150 stores telling us, “We’ve loved your samples since July, but you were a month late for our review, so we couldn’t add you.” Talk about a gut punch. But that’s the industry: you play by their timetables, or you don’t play at all.
Have Enough Runway
One note everyone told me and I’m passing along as well: make sure you can afford it for at least a full year. Because of how grocery reviews work, you won’t see immediate results. That means paying an agency retainer every month even if you’re not instantly landing accounts. Hiring a sales agency was a big leap of faith for me, but in a space as competitive as salty snacks, partnering with experts who have established retailer relationships can be a game-changer. I can’t say it’s cheap, but if you find the right crew, it’s absolutely worth it in the long run. If Tantos is going to reach its full potential, it means trusting the pros to help get us on grocery shelves coast to coast.
