Rules by market
Retail or food service.
The same Indonesian product sells into retail and into food service in different packs, at different margins, with different requirements. Choosing the channel before choosing the specification saves an expensive rework.
What differs.
Six differences, and each one changes something upstream at the factory.
- Pack size
- Retail is consumer sized and food service is catering sized. Changing between them means new packaging, new artwork and frequently a different line.
- Labelling
- Retail packs carry the full consumer requirements. Food service packs carry less and still carry allergen and traceability information.
- Margin and volume
- Retail has higher unit margins and heavy listing costs. Food service is thinner per unit and steadier.
- Consistency
- Food service kitchens work to recipes, so a change between deliveries reaches the plate. Retail tolerates more variation.
- Who decides
- A retail listing is decided by a buyer against a category plan. A food service listing is decided by a chef and a distributor.
- Payment
- Retail terms are long and enforced. Food service through a distributor is generally shorter.
What each demands of your supplier.
Retail demands certification, audit and documentation, frequently to a specific scheme the retailer names. This narrows the Indonesian supplier pool considerably.
Food service demands consistency and continuity above all, because a menu commits a kitchen for months.
Retail demands artwork and pack development, which is a project rather than an order.
Both demand traceability, and retail demands it in writing before the first delivery.
Choosing before you specify.
Decide the channel first, because the pack, the certification and the volume all follow from it.
Doing both from one supplier is possible and it usually means two specifications rather than one product in two boxes.
Starting in food service and moving to retail is the easier direction, because the certification and pack development can be built while volume exists.
Starting in retail means the full compliance and artwork investment before any revenue, which is a different funding problem.
Questions buyers ask.
Which is easier to start with?
Food service, usually, because the packaging is simpler and the certification demands are lighter. It also builds the volume that makes a retail conversation credible later.
Can one supplier serve both?
Often yes, and it is two specifications rather than one. Treat them as separate products with separate packs, artwork and minimums rather than as one product in different boxes.
What do retailers ask for that food service does not?
Scheme certification by name, documented traceability, artwork to their standards and frequently an audit. It is a real investment and it should be made once the channel is decided rather than speculatively.
Read next.
Labelling for your market
Printed in Indonesia and judged in your country. What has to appear, and who carries the obligation.
Private label and OEM
Your brand on their product, or a product developed for you. Two different deals with two different risks.
Specifying the packaging
Left to the factory, packaging is chosen on cost. What to specify instead, and why.
Pricing what you import
Landed cost is the floor, not the price. What sits between, and the four costs that never appear on an invoice.
Sourcing from Indonesia?
Tell us the product, the quantity and the destination. We come back with what it involves before anyone talks about money.