The National Grocers Association has partnered with online product discovery platform RangeMe to help independent grocers discover brands and products that are not distributed at national chains.
RangeMe has launched a special collection of suppliers, called The NGA Collection of Emerging Brands, that will showcase thousands of suppliers of food and beverage, health and beauty and select general merchandise products that meet the needs of the NGA retail membership.
More than 5,500 brands will be featured in the collection, each of which will be RangeMe Verified, meaning they are ready to do business at retail. The collection will also receive quarterly updates to ensure that the newest qualified brands are featured.
“Independent grocers are always seeking products that will help differentiate their businesses from the national chain retailer down the street,” said Jonathan Downey, SVP of membership and industry relations. “RangeMe provides a quick and easy way for our members to discover these innovative brands that will provide yet another reason for consumers to visit their stores.”
NGA will invite its retailer members to join the platform which, in addition to the special collection, offers 250,000 brands they can peruse by category, keyword, certification and location. There is no cost for buyers to join, and NGA members will get expedited approval.
For RangeMe brands, the NGA partnership will provide the opportunity for exposure to its hundreds of member-retailers, all of which are seeking new product innovation to best serve their local communities.
“The independent food retail sector makes up 30 percent of all grocery sales and is a great segment for emerging brands to enhance their organic growth,” said Greg Farrar, CEO of ECRM, the parent company of RangeMe.
“The NGA membership is known for its strong community focus and outstanding service and product selections, and they will be a great complement to RangeMe’s…base of 15,000 buyers.
RangeMe and NGA will host a webcast following the NGA Show to educate NGA’s retailer members on how to get the most value from the platform.
