Last updated on June 14th, 2024 at 10:59 am
Lakewood, Colorado-based Natural Grocers is partnering with RangeMe, an online product sourcing platform for retailers and suppliers, to streamline the search for products that meet its customer standards.
Laura Perkins, VP of purchasing, said the partnership with RangeMe will help streamline Natural Grocers’ vendor submission program.
“The digitization of the process means that before samples are even sent we can quickly see which vendor submissions meet our high-quality standards,” she said.
“The efficiency this brings to our process helps save on shipping and packaging waste and allows the purchasing team time to focus on key items and categories that we are looking to expand. We are also excited about the possibilities RangeMe provides in connecting us with new brands and products.”
Natural Grocers, the nation’s largest family-operated natural and organic grocery retailer, has 162 stores in 20 states. The company follows a defined list of ingredients it will not carry, including hydrogenated oils, colors, flavors, sweeteners or preservatives.
Nicky Jackson, CEO and founder of RangeMe, noted that Natural Grocers is committed to the communities it serves and providing them “with the innovative, high-quality products they want is critical.
“They have high standards for their products across all departments, and with more than 200,000 suppliers on RangeMe, their buyers can connect with both emerging and established brands that meet those standards,” Jackson said.
According to the companies, leveraging RangeMe will help streamline the discovery process by getting products in front of Natural Grocers’ standards teams more efficiently and help qualify vendor submissions early on. It also will eliminate the shipping of samples that do not meet criteria, avoiding any shipping and packaging waste.
RangeMe, an ECRM company, empowers retail buyers to efficiently discover innovative and emerging products, while streamlining the in-bound product submission process.
For product suppliers, RangeMe enables them to grow their retail relationships with a platform that gives them the tools to manage products, market their brand, and build awareness.
To submit products for Natural Grocers to review, visit www.rangeme.com/naturalgrocers.
