We’re pleased to report that Iveta Gourmet has been
recognized as a “Favorite Place” on Google. Between December 1 and February 28 we were one of the most
popular local businesses on Google. Less than 1% of all US businesses have received
this recognition.
While it’s always great to receive accolades, this one has
special meaning.
In recent years the specialty food business has become
dominated by a handful of national retailers who have used their economic power
to gain market share and promote their own private label products. As the
number of independent retailers has declined and the cost of “buying” shelf
space in national chains has increased, we concluded that we had to build our
own brand and use the internet to level the playing field.
So about eighteen months ago we decided to sell directly to
our customer base, abandoning our distributor and broker network and
terminating a private label contract with a big box national retailer.
For the first few months our sales plummeted. Then the
recession made things even worse. But little by little our online sales have
grown and our margins have improved. It’s been a tough year but we’re
continuing to grow and with the improving economy we’ve replaced almost all of
our lost sales with new online business.
The recognition as a Google “Favorite Place” tells us that
our strategy is working and that the future of our business is online.
Over the next several months we will be upgrading our web
site to improve your shopping experience, add more interesting and useful
information and provide more variety and value.
Your comments, suggestions, words of encouragement and
continued support have helped us get through these tough economic times. We
won’t forget it.
