# Roadside Stand Retail Marketing Questions



## dixie_beek (Aug 4, 2009)

My grandchildren and I already have an established Homegrown Tomato/Produce stand business going next to our restaurant, all located on a major traffic artery. Some of our gardens and apiary can be seen from the road. We've done quite well with the veggies this year and our customers are asking when our honey will be ready. We are very close to extracting and bottling our first crop from 4 hives.

My questions are as follows;
1. What is best size and type container, plastic or glass, for a roadside stand, and are the little plastic honey bears really worth it? (frankly, they look tacky to me), IMHO.
2. What are the going retail prices for top grade hobby honey in attractive packaging and labeling?
3. Who makes the most attractive custom labels?

Please be freely forthcoming with your opinions. The more the merrier.


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## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

1. 1 lbs. squeeze bottle, Quart jars(they are reusable for many things), and 3-5 lbs. jugs. for starters. The little bears are cute but some manufactures make them to hard and it is difficult to get the honey out.

2.$4.00-$6.00 on the 1 lbs, $9.00-$15.00 on the quart. 

3. That all depends on who you talk to.


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## dixie_beek (Aug 4, 2009)

That helps. Thanks much! 

db


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## BigLongYellowMFerz (Aug 5, 2009)

Beeslave said:


> Quart jars(they are reusable for many things)


pints too!


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## Beeslave (Feb 6, 2009)

Don't price your honey comparing it to the "honey" you find in the store unless it is from someone local. Being your honey is local and not a packers blend that gives you an edge( better quality, fresher). Buying local is a growing trend and people expect to pay more for the quality and knowing exactly where there food is coming from.


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## GaSteve (Apr 28, 2004)

That's exactly right. In fact if you price it too low, consumers will not assume it's a good deal, but instead will assume that the honey is of lower quality. Attractive labelling and presentation also helps tremendously.


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## dixie_beek (Aug 4, 2009)

Oh my goodness, there is lots of labor in this old man's hobby honey as well as startup equip cost so I am trying very hard to maximize profit by cutting overhead, i.e. unit cost.

*Where is the best place you've found to buy containers?* I have noticed a very large difference in what some of the better known bee catalog suppliers charge for freight. One of them was outright ridiculous. You can prolly guess which.

Okay, I know what type containers I want to market my honey: 
*Pint Glass Jars &
One Pound Plastic Bottles with Inverted Snap Caps*

One supplier's freight charge cost as much as the containers themselves, therefore doubling the misleading catalog price. The same supplier wanted $65 freight to ship just one case (367 unit count) of plastic bottles.


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## TwT (Aug 5, 2004)

I sale all mine from home, I only use quarts, pints and 8oz jelly jars, I like using these because people can use them for canning after they finish the honey, because I only sale from home I don't use labels, now if had a stand and or sold in stores then I would have to but I sale all I get from home mainly by word of mouth. my prices are quarts $12.50, pints $6.50, and 8oz $4.50. I have some that has standing orders for cases every year. never been able to fill all orders because they increase every year, usually sold out after 2 weeks because people start calling in april saying call me as soon as you rob them bee's. Good luck!!


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## dixie_beek (Aug 4, 2009)

Thanks Ted! Yes, I've been pricing all the different types of jars and lids and they, themselves, aren't too bad, but freight eats my butt up. I did some searching back into the archives last evening and what you say seems to be the right thing for me. I'm going to Big Lots today to check on jar prices. And I like the idea one person had of using little parchment cards tied to the jar with old hay string or ribbon. That sounds pretty classy to me in a rustic elegance sort of way.


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## Michigan Hobby (Feb 24, 2005)

What has helped me and my customers is offering them a refund on returned glass jars. I give them $0.50 for returned jar and lid. I tell them I'm trying to be "green" and they understand and like it. It also gets repeat business and helps me so I am not forced to continue to buy new jars. Just include the price of the jar in the retail cost and you will be fine. Then give them their refund.

Hope this helps.


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## Rohe Bee Ranch (Feb 12, 2008)

Make sure you use tamper resistant safety seals on your jars and bears. You don't need to be the victim of a practical joker. :doh:


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## justgojumpit (Apr 9, 2004)

i like the refund on the glass jars. i think pricing is important, however. take a look at how much honey you will be producing. make it cheap enough that it sells steadily, but not so cheap that it is all gone in two weeks. I sold my honey for $7.50 per pound and sold out well before my next extraction. If people comment on your price, you can always tell them that quality is high, it comes from those hives right over there, supply is not endless, and demand is increasing. You have learned with the tomatoes, I'm sure, that some people will always complain about the price, just to see if they can get a discount. Now if you find that you're producing more than you are selling, you can decrease the price a bit or find another retail location. Sometimes you will make more money keeping your own retail price firm and marketing excess honey wholesale to another source. 

justgojumpit


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## Black Creek (May 19, 2006)

Labels..... Amy's Labels , you can find her right here on bee source makes excellent labels at a good price.


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## TwT (Aug 5, 2004)

I usually get half my jars given back to me when emptied, a bunch have been buying from me for years and they just save them for me, just luck mainly plus we have become good friends, I am talking about 8-10 people that order cases from me. aw and I should say I do cut 0.50 cents a jar on cases so I guest its the same.


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## 123456789 (May 24, 2009)

I would suggest a bulk tank to fill customers containers that they return. As a consumer I wouldn't like the fact that the honey I'm buying is in a jar that has been used by several people. Remember, the containers are free to you as you are passing the cost on to the consumer.


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## Michigan Hobby (Feb 24, 2005)

I will do things to get people back to my door. Yes, you are passing the cost of the jar on to the customer. But when I hear people say they get $5.00 lb. for a one-pound jar of honey, in fact, they are only getting about $4.00 (considering the cost of jar/lid and label).

So when I offer $0.50/jar for refund it saves me buying more (and less shipping). Also people like the idea of recycling. And as far as other people using other peoples jars? As long as they are completely cleaned and sterilized, there are no problems. Never had a person have any issues with it yet.

When people can buy the next one-pound honey for $4.50 instead of $5.00, everyone is happy and it's a little more money in my pocket. 

Call me "tight" or call me a businessman. I want repeat customers and more money in my pocket.


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## James Gauthier (Jul 4, 2006)

I buy quart jars from Big Lots. They usually have the best price, but if you watch Walmart, they will usually sell them at a lower price at the end of the season. Big Lots had them for $7.50 a case of 12. Dollar store has them for $8. Walmart sold them last year at the end of the season for $6..

James


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

I just saw quart jars on sale (clearance) at Lowe's for $6.30 for narrow mouth case and $7.30 for wide mouth. Pints weren't on sale.


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## Hambone (Mar 17, 2008)

Tractor Supply has all their size jars on sale for $2.99 a case. :banana:


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

Wow! Thanks Derek!! Now I know where I'm going after work.  Too bad I didn't post the Lowe's price before I bought them!


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

Just noticed the Hambone is now present! :applause:


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## sqkcrk (Dec 10, 2005)

justgojumpit said:


> i like the refund on the glass jars.
> justgojumpit


I don't like to wash jars and remove labels. Or save boxes to put them back into. But that's just me. If I was getting $7.50 per lb I'd probably buy a dishwashing machine.  I'm glad for you, justgojumpit.


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

Hambone (Derek) said:


> Tractor Supply has all their size jars on sale for $2.99 a case. :banana:


I was too late...they sold out at at least the 3 stores I checked.


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## beesweetie (Sep 5, 2009)

Sounds like a place I'd like to visit!
I am a hobbyist also. I use only jellies, pints, and quarts as they are easy to pick up at local stores so, no shipping. Lids come with them so thats nice too. I use labels with preprinted artwork and add my own info (make sure you are including all that is required legally), it's been great. The upside is that people can reuse the jars or recycle at home. Use only NEW jars for selling your honey. The down side is, its glass, which opens up liability for shards should someone decide you give you a problem. Decide whether you are going to pasteurize it or sell it as RAW and label it as such. Correct weight is important! A pint of honey is not 16oz, its 24! That loss of 1/2 pound can add up very fast! Generally I do cost of 5.oo per pound of honey plus the cost of the container. Explaining to people that no years bounty is ever guaranteed and when this years crop is gone, its gone, we hope to have more next year. Proper labeling is of the utmost importance. Pop for the other labels that speak of granulation and infants too, it's worth it. Don't give, dive in and do it, it becomes easy peasy.


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

Good info, beesweetie. The thing I don't like about the canning jars is the 2 part lids. Well, and not crazy about some of the ones with lots of raised letterings on the jar and tops decorated with fruit! It is nice that people can reuse them, though. Good info on weights...I think honey weights throw some off when they're new.


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## beesweetie (Sep 5, 2009)

Good points, tl. True true, on the jars embossed surfaces, especially the jellies! I used the reverse side on the others but I hadn't found jellies with smooth sides that I didn't need to ship. This year I did just use the lids and rings that came with but, I had been thinking afterwards that I may just order the one piece lids from the supply house. 
The lids and rings that come with the jars could just be set aside and used when I do my own garden canning for the family.


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## terri lynn (Apr 5, 2009)

That's true. I try to get them all together and tend to forget you can order just the lids. We can and make jelly as well, and you're right, the 2 piece lids can be used then.


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