Courtesy of Wally S., Wally’s Urban Market Garden, Saskatoon SK
One way SPIN farmers make bigger sales is by using a mix and match multiple unit pricing strategy – $3/unit, 2 for $5, 5 for $10. We sell our onions in mesh bags, and this fits this strategy well, with small onions making up about a half pound bag. But what do you do with large size onions that weigh a half pound or more? They can’t be plugged into this strategy.
What works for me is marketing them in braid form. The large onions sell at well at $10 a braid. Each braid has 5 onions and are about 3 lbs. per braid. I also test marketed an upscale version with garlic and dry peppers. Those go for $20. This customer bought one of each, for a nice $30 sale. In addition to capturing more value from certain crops, braids make your stand more inviting and help differentiate you at market.
Some come to SPIN expecting hard and fast rules, like always following a set pricing strategy. But that’s not how farming works. When it comes to pricing strategies an important point to understand is that practice overrules orthodoxy. SPIN farmers are master rule breakers – especially rules of their own devising! So be creative not just with your braiding, bu also in your marketing and pricing strategies.
CONTINUE THIS DISCUSSION OF CAPTURING MORE VALUE FROM YOUR CROPS IN THE FORUM > > >
