At age fourteen, Tyler Ornstein knew he wanted to create the world’s first and only of something. What he chose to create, with the help of his father, was an organic and acid-free coffee that is better for the customer. Fifteen years later, Ornstein has been hustling to increase Tyler’s Coffee’s brand awareness.
In 2016, when RangeMe was just getting started, RangeMe CEO Nicky Jackson put in a personal call to Ornstein sharing that she believed he had a great product and could benefit from joining the platform. After a few years of hard work, determination, and patience, Tylers Coffee scored its first contact on RangeMe that ended with a significant order from Home Pack as well as conversations with other major retailers.
A need for a new cup of coffee
Consumers are often unaware of the number of everyday foods and beverages that contain harmful acids. One of the worst and most common culprits is your morning cup of coffee. Knowing this, Ornstein set out to create the world’s first acid-free and organic coffee that was the purest of pure and contained the utmost quality ingredients. “To do this,” Ornstein shares, “we single-source our USDA organic coffee beans and use an all-natural Swiss water process so we don’t short-cut our customers with a chemical process.”
What makes Tylers Coffee stand out is their “Z-Roasting” process. Unlike your typical roasting processes, the Z-Roasting process does not release harmful acids which makes Tylers Coffee a healthier choice as it is pH neutral, safe on tooth enamel and gentle on your GI tract–as well as less bitter tasting than other coffees. Today, Tylers Coffee sells regular and decaf whole beans, ground coffee, and K-Cups in a number of retailers.
Sell coffee, do good
Tylers Coffee is in the business to sell coffee, and they’re open to new retail opportunities and are working to build their brand awareness. But they are also determined to do good for their customers, whether that means creating a healthy product, or supporting organizations that put good back into the world. For example, Tylers Coffee partners with a nonprofit to help provide jobs in their production facility for people with mental disabilities. “We’re able to give them jobs while fulfilling our package orders, and we’re really proud of that,” says Ornstein.
Perks of RangeMe
Ornstein knew they would increase their visibility with buyers after signing up with RangeMe. “The driving factor for us using RangeMe was knowing that it was going to happen. I believed it was going to happen and it did. We can’t thank RangeMe enough for believing in us as much as we believed in RangeMe,” says Ornstein.
But those retail connections didn’t just happen–Ornstein was proactive on RangeMe, and signed up as a Premium supplier and got Verified to be retail-ready immediately before submitting to retailers. Tylers Coffee uses each tool RangeMe offers, from viewing Profile Insights to submitting their brand during appropriate retailer category reviews. Ornstein sees these tools as the essential steps to achieving retail success. And it’s paid off. Tylers Coffee is currently being sold in about 1,000 stores across the country and because of their most recent deal with Home Pack and communication with Southern Grocer, that number is sure to grow.
“Believe in the platform and it will help you”
For suppliers working to get into retail stores, Ornstein offers this advice: “You have to believe in the platform before you start seeing the value. I stuck with RangeMe for two years before seeing any return but I knew that these things take time, it won’t happen overnight,” he says. “Stay the course, respond to any and all messages, in a prompt matter, send samples with tracking numbers so you can follow-up and let buyers know they were delivered. You have to show your value.”
Whether you’re just getting started or if you’ve been on the platform for a few years, it’s important to remember that time and effort are essential. Be proactive on RangeMe and find the special selling point that makes you stand out to buyers. Take advantage of all the Resources RangeMe has to offer and that will open the door to help you grow your business.
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