Show Notes
Jim Kavanagh spent 49 years in Canadian grocery as a Sobeys and Metro category manager, a distributor, and now a food broker.
He explains what getting on shelf actually costs.
In this episode: - Why a $30,000 listing fee can be the wrong move in year one, and what to take instead. - What a category manager is thinking the moment you sit down: what am I removing for you? - Off-invoice programs, free fills, shrink allowances, and the costs founders never model, - How to read a store before you pitch it, including the dust ring trick - Why retailers now demand non-GMO certification instead of accepting the claim on pack, - The signs Jim uses to decide a brand isn't ready for a broker yet
Jim founded Brandseed Marketing in 2014 after leaving a senior grocery role at 51.
He represents better-for-you brands into Canadian retail and works as a master broker into the US.
He turns down brands that compete with each other on the same shelf, which is rarer in brokerage than founders assume.
Website - https://www.brandseedmarketing.ca/ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jkavanagh/
Shelf to Scale is a weekly podcast for CPG and FMCG founders navigating distribution, retail, and international scaling. Hosted by Devesh Tilokani.
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