Farm to Chef
The Northwest Ohio Fresh Network
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TIPS FOR SELLING TO RESTAURANTS
By Shoshanah Inwood and Jeff Sharp
The Ohio State University
Selling to restaurants provides a way for growers to increase their sales and marketing options and provides chefs with high quality fresh foods to prepare. The following sets of tips are some ways to increase connections between local farms and local restaurants.
How do I find a restaurant to sell to?
- Discover which restaurants in the area would be most interested in purchasing farm fresh products. Consult the dining section of your local or regional paper, travel and city restaurant guides and the phone book.
- Look for restaurants that change their menus often and feature a wide variety of specials. Restaurants often post their menus on-line or in their window. Reading a menu can give you a good idea about foods a particular chef is interested in. Target independent or chef-owned restaurants.
- Talk to other producers and farm organizations about their experiences or connections with alternative markets like restaurants.
How should I approach a restaurant?
- Call restaurants after lunch and before dinner, between the hours of 2-5pm.
- Always asks to speak to the chef. Chefs have the most influence over which products are purchased.
- Set up a ten minute appointment to present your product (kitchens are hectic places, come prepared with a short sales pitch).
- Bring samples or photographs of your product. Bring along a sample availability and price sheet. This is a good way for a chef to get to know what you offer and provides a mechanism for instant feedback and negotiation.
- Educate chefs about what you grow and growing season fluctuations. Invite them to visit your farm during the planting, growing and harvest.
- Remember to bring a business card or other information with you indicating how best to reach you.
- When you leave, establish if you or the chef will make the follow up contact call.
Do I need to produce large quantities?
- It depends on the specific item and the restaurant. For example, one restaurant might be okay with garden variety corn, beans and tomatoes, but having unusual or heirloom varieties (of produce and/or meats) sets you apart, especially if you want to enter the upscale market.
Generally restaurants will want a large supply of staple items, while more unusual products are generally ordered less.
- Most restaurants have limited cooler space and may not be able to handle large quantities. The best way to figure our how much you need to grow is to ask your chef what they need and to define "large" and "small" quantities.
- Some restaurants may ask for deliveries once a week, others several times a week. Identify your delivery schedule in advance, keeping in mind what best suits your operation based on volume of product, time, labor, and distance to delivery site.
What are some useful strategies for selling to restaurants?
- Know the cleaning and post-harvest handling techniques for your specific product to ensure a long shelf-life.
- Know how to package your product. Chefs don't usually order by pounds, they order by cases or boxes. So asking chefs to show you their idea of a "box" or other unit of measure is helpful.
- Chefs may be interested in having you grow specific items for them. Presenting your seed catalogue or list of livestock varieties is one way to develop a plan for the next growing season.
- Consider asking a local distributor to carry your product or if there are other farms supplying the same restaurant with farm fresh products, then create shared distribution route. Restaurants prefer to consolidate bills if possible.
- Relationships between growers and chefs require on-going nurturing. Continually ask chefs to evaluate your products, specifically addressing how it was received by patrons, how they liked working with the product, how they liked its appearance, harvest size, taste and the way it was packaged.
- Read gourmet cooking magazines like Gourmet, Bon Appetit and Food Arts to understand culinary trends and to get ideas for new products. Chefs will appreciate your understanding of their needs.
Do I need to have a contract with the restaurant?
- Formal contracts are not necessary but there does need to be a mutual understanding between the buyer and the seller. Defining delivery days, times, payment schedules, packaging, and approximate quantities upfront help to avoid misunderstandings and confusion later.
- It is often the farmer's responsibility to call the restaurant for an order, and this is a great opportunity to inform chefs about new products.
- Deliveries should be as smooth as possible. Have a receipt ready when you deliver.
- If for some reason you are unable to fulfill an order call the restaurant as soon as possible so they may plan their menu accordingly.
- Purchasing missing items from another farm and/or giving discounts for less than perfect products are good ways to retain your customers.
- The key to maintaining an account is a personal relationship based on trust. Calling once a week or visiting a buyer during deliveries is both professionally and personally rewarding.
What kinds of products are restaurants interested in?
Restaurants are most concerned with product consistency. Here are some examples of products chefs might be interested in:
- Produce - Sequential plantings and season extension techniques offer great opportunities for: fresh herbs, heirloom variety fruits and vegetables, micro-greens, salad greens, baby vegetables, exotic mushrooms and vegetables, berries and stone fruit.
- Meat - USDA inspected poultry, lamb, goat. Meat cuts should be the same size and weight and have a consistent taste.
- Dairy - Bakeries and restaurants emphasizing premium baked goods are more likely to be interested in eggs, milk and cream. High end restaurants have a demand for high quality artisan cheeses.
- Cut flowers - Fresh flowers are a feature of many restaurants. Make sure flowers are free of aphids, insects, larvae or eggs.
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