Remember all of the gourmet food gifts ideas and basics we discussed a few months ago? Now is the time to take those gourmet food ideas and implement a way to increase your sales.

While gourmet food encompasses a wide variety of niche markets, you can hone in on which ones will work best for you. To do this, you must take stock of your current customer base. With this knowledge, you will be able to determine which gourmet food niches will convert to an increase in sales.

Determining Your Market:

It is all about matching the gourmet food with the right customer niche. Categorize your customers. Are they young professionals or college students (Generation Y)? Are they established professionals, empty-nesters or retirees (Generation X or Baby Boomers)? Are they active singles, busy families or environmental activists?

Defining the lifestyles and interests of your customers will help determine which gourmet niche should be your focus. Categorization of your customers is the foundation for your gourmet food strategy.

Strategies For Gourmet Food Niches

Below are examples of categorized customers and the products each prefers.  Your customer base may include one or more of these customer types.  How do you determine what gourmet food items you need to sell to satisfy their buying needs?

By using the following guide, you should be able to determine what niche gourmet items will satisfy their buying needs.  Then you can formulate a strategy from the ideas and suggestions.

Young Professionals (Generation Y): This group tends to be into trendy, healthy and organic items. They buy these items for themselves as well as friends family and business acquaintances. Formulate a plan that incorporateshealthy snacking items (popcorn, jams, jellies, and organic-labeled gourmet foods).

Empty-Nesters/Retirees (Baby Bommers): This group often enjoys family and friend-centric activities like barbequing and cooking. They buy gourmet items with a more traditional nature for family, friends and as gifts for service providers (hairdressers, lawnboys, etc.).  Spices, cheese, meats, barbeque sauces and pre-made gourmet gift baskets are the delights of this demographic.

Established Professionals (Generation X): These are the customers who are in between the young professional and empty-nesters.  They tend to share buying habits of both groups.

They are the ultimate customers who will try trendy products and rely on traditional ones. Although eclectic in their purchases, gourmet chocolates and coffees are their gifts of choice when in a pinch.

These are just a few customer types and a few basic ideas to use when formulating your gourmet food strategy.  Focusing on a specific niche market is the key to successful gourmet foods sales. An active approach to selling gourmet foods, coupled with a knowledge of your customer base is the best formula for successful gourmet food sales.

Blending  Gourmet Foods Niches

Just as with cooking, gourmet food requires a little blending.  Start with a basic gourmet food niche that appeals to the majority of your customers, and then blend in a few products outside of that category.  Think complimentary, not contrasting.

For example, adding snack foods to your line of gourmet chocolates creates a complimentary gourmet food mix.  Selling salsa? Add in a line of other items that you can cook with, like jams, spices, specialty condiments and barbeque items. The principle idea is to add items that appeal to your main customers, but will bring in new customers.

Ordering And Working with Vendors

Once you’ve gotten a firm grasp on your market, your next strategy is to find the product and develop a working relationship with vendors. Look for vendors who can provide you with timely shipments, good pricing and great selections.  Don’t be afraid to ask them for help in how to display or market their product.  Vendors understand that you’re a partner and will work with you to get the right products into your store, so you both can make money.

Now that you have the strategies, ideas and the nitty gritty of gourmet foods, success is just a taste away.

By utilizing the great wholesale gourmet food vendors at FGmarket, you will be able to find the right products to help you create the ultimate gourmet food mix. To jump start your search, check out the FGmarket  wholesale gourmet food vendors highlighted below.

Have people rushing to your store like a five alarm fire when you offer barbecue sauces from 5-0 BBQ LLC. Yeah, they’re every bit that good.

Don’t try too hard to figure out why these indescribably delicious barbecue sauces taste so good. It’ll drive you crazy. Instead, share the story with your consumers as they sample the sauces and watch their eyes light up for TWO reasons.

The irresistible flavor of wholesale barbecue sauces from 5-0 BBQ LLC is due in no small part to the extensive background of their creator, Steve Rogers.

Who could expect less than the finest from someone with experience as a meat cutter, a passion for barbecue, a large travel resume thanks to military experience, a current position as a police officer, and much time in the retail food industry.

It’s no wonder that Steve’s sauces are renowned in many states for being the most delicious barbecue sauces and dry rubs around. Expect flavors that should be outlawed for their pure deliciousness. Imagine how great barbecue sauces and rubs taste with names like:

• BBQ’rs Delight Killa BBQ Rub 6 oz
• Outlaw BBQ Sauce Honey 18 oz Bottle
• Amodios Olde Quebec Style Chicken Seasoning 6 oz Bottle
• Amodios Lemon Pepper Seasoning 6 oz Bottle

Don’t forget about the male gourmet foods lovers or the women who shop for them. 5-0 BBQ LLC also offers barbecue gift baskets with “Eat Me Now!” practically written in bold letters on them. There is a huge variety of different gift baskets available which makes it easy to select the ones that your consumers will favor the most.

And of course you can’t have barbecue sauces, rubs and salsas without the bbq cooking products as well. 5-0 BBQ LLC also has …click here to read It’s Almost Against The Law To Refuse 5-0 BBQ Sauces…

Popcorn is a great American treat. It has roots in many of our favorite activities. Baseball fans are seen munching it at games. Movie goers order it in droves. People who like fine cinema in their homes fill a bowl with delicious popcorn before settling in for the movie. Where do they buy popcorn? Simple answer–from you. At least, they will when they discover that you carry Amish Country Popcorn.

Amish Country Popcorn is unbeatable gourmet popcorn. You can practically smell the familiar scent of popcorn as it heats and fluffs inside a popcorn popper. By the by, Amish Country Popcorn has those too. The popcorn and popcorn machines? One-stop-popcorn-popping-shopping. Fun!

Popcorn is a delicious gourmet food that appeals to everyone. If you can dream of a favorite popcorn treat, Amish Country Popcorn has it. They carry popcorn oils, popcorn bowls, popcorn seasonings in delicious flavors, popcorn machines, hulless popcorn, microwave popcorn and more. The popcorn gourmet is satisfied. The ones who want a quick snack are happy as well. It’s a win-win for all involved.

Even people with dentures or digestive problems love the taste but have to seek out places to get corn tolerant of their system. Amish Country Popcorn has it. Their hulless popcorn is delicious and beneficial for the tastes of those with otherwise non-popcorn-tolerant health.

Don’t get stuck on just one size. Want a normal sized bag? Want a burlap bag filled with seven varieties of gourmet popcorn? …click here to read Love Popcorn? You’ll Adore Amish Country Popcorn…

Faerie’s Finest is not kidding when they say that their unique wholesale sugars and seasonings “enchant your life with flavor.” These wholesale gourmet seasonings take normal foods to extraordinarily delicious, mouthwatering morsels of pure heaven.

Flavored sugars are not easy to locate for the average consumer. Offering any of the 57 flavors of flavored sugars from Faerie’s Finest provides you with a clever way to reach the gourmet food niche. Flavored sugars infuse foods with extra taste. Wholesale flavored sugars from Fairie’s Finest are the pivotal ingredient that stands between a blase meal and ambrosia.

Faerie’s Finest offers other wholesale gourmet seasonings and spices for your store. Imagine the smiles on your consumers faces when they see cocktail rimmers, sugar and spice blends, flavor extracts, flavor powders, essential oils for cooking, gourmet cocoas, premium loose teas, mocha and latte mixes, sea salts, peppercorns, flavored salts and more. The selection is astounding.

All of these delicious gourmet foods come together for the retailer in an awesome way. That’s right. Faerie’s Finest offers gourmet gift baskets! Your consumers can now purchase gourmet gift baskets featuring their favorite flavored sugars, gourmet cocoas, loose teas, sea salts, flavor extracts, seasoning blends, and flavored salts from Faerie’s Finest. It’s a gourmet’s dream!

When simply one of these gourmet spices, salts, sugars and seasonings will not do, try …click here to read Faerie’s Finest — The Easy Way To Enchant Your Life With Flavor…

Wholesale gourmet chocolates are a retailer’s dream. They appeal to every ounce of a “small indulgence” impulse buyer. From the creamiest fillings to the most angelic chocolate shells, there isn’t a gourmet chocolate in existence that the average consumer can easily resist. Now multiply this appeal by 20 and you’ve scraped the surface of the appeal of wholesale gourmet chocolates from Bacci Chocolate Design.

One look at these chocolates lets you know that your taste buds will work themselves into a frenzy; eagerly antipating the first bite and dangerously loathing the last.

A large selection of quality gourmet chocolates is what Bacci Chocolate Design is known for but you’ll quickly know them as much more. When your consumers look to you as their perfect angel of chocolate mercy, you’ll be thankful that you contacted Bacci Chocolate Design.

CB stuffer peanut butter cups take the cake…er…the peanut butter cups on the gourmet chocolates market. These little slices of heaven are not your average peanut butter cups. They are filled with peanut butter and candy coated chocolates. And that’s just one version of these treats.

CB stuffer brownies are a brownie lover’s dream come true. They are delicious, moist brownies topped with chocolate then covered in chocolate and drizzle icing. They look great and taste even better. Nothing from Bacci Chocolate Design looks less than chocolatey perfection; nothing tastes less than fantastic.

Wholesale gourmet chocolate cookies, gourmet chocolate bars and chocolate pizzas also grace the menu at Bacci Chocolate Design. For the holiday lovers in all of us, …click here to read Don’t Settle For Any Gourmet Chocolates — Enjoy These…

Keiko has set the bar high for anyone who creates gourmet foods using green tea. Their delicious wholesale green tea candy and green tea chocolates are far and away the most unique, delicious green tea treats available.

Green tea has been around for many years. It has been touted for its health benefits and characteristic flavor. What has nearly escaped the eye of retailers everywhere is wholesale green tea candy. Delicious with many of the same benefits, wholesale green tea candy from Keiko is a rare treat for the gourmet foods connoisseur.

There is no getting around the appeal of green tea candy. Even those who do not care for green tea are curious to taste it because of the accompanying sweet flavors of chocolate or candy. Green tea candies pique interest which is why they are the perfect fit for your gourmet foods section.

Another benefit of wholesale green tea candy and green tea chocolate from Keiko is that all of Keiko’s products are organically cultivated and USDA certified. To put that into perspective, green tea candy from Keiko gives your store the ability to reach three different key niches:  eco-friendly buyers, gourmet foods connoisseurs, and general snackers.

Gourmet candies are always a hit with consumers. They are delicious breaks from the cycle of healthy eating. They provide a fast fix to a sweet tooth craving or a hunger pang. When you want to curb these urges with a variety of consumer groups that frequent your store, your best bet are wholesale green tea candies from Keiko.

It’s true what they say–Women love chocolates. We do. But gourmet chocolates are also a man’s treat, a children’s treat, and something craved by the masses at a special event. It’s part of what makes the evening seem luxurious, elegant, exotic and gourmet. No one knows this better than Colebrook Chocolate Co.

When planning a celebration for a special occasion, everyone turns to gourmet chocolates. It’s half of the standard gift idea for Valentine’s Day, but Colebrook Chocolate Co. takes gourmet chocolates to a whole new level.

Year round for any occasion or no occasion at all, their delicious chocolates are found around the country making people smile for what seems like no reason. Oh but there’s a reason. It’s a smooth, pure chocolate indulgence that can only be delivered from Colebrook Chocolate Co.’s gourmet chocolates. Mmm.

Speaking of Valentines Day and other chocolate-worthy holidays, Colebrook Chocolate Co. goes above and beyond with their holiday gourmet chocolates. The same great taste that is enjoyed all year but with the unmistakable look and feel of the holiday, well, that’s just delightful.

There are three major chocolate holidays where it’s simply unheard of to not have fine gourmet chocolates on the shelves. Valentine’s Day, Easter and Christmas are THE holidays for a nice chocolate rush. When it’s time to stock up for those holidays, don’t just go to anyone. Get the best of the best in gourmet chocolates. Get the finest taste with all the incredible feeling of the holidays. The Christmas joy. The …click here to read The Gourmet Chocolates For Special Occasions, Happy People…

It takes more than a half gallon of ice cream to bring cheer to some people. The perfect comfort food varies from person to person, but one thing they can all agree on is the taste for certain southern gourmet foods. Well when your customers arrive with a hankerin’ for country-style goodness and asking what “ya’ll” carry, point them in the direction of country gourmet foods from Comfort Foods, Inc.

Texas Style Chili. Enough said. Well, for a southern girl it’s more than plenty. For your customers, those are three golden words that drip off of their tongues like liquid sunshine. Oddly enough, this hearty and spicy chili has the same affect on the mouth. Yum!

If gourmet sauces, chilis, and wing sauces are what gets local mouths watering, you’ll be thrilled with the selection at Comfort Foods, Inc. Imagine the flavors of Five Chile Salsa, Five Chile Verde, Garlic Parmesan Wing Sauce, New Mexico Style Chile Sauce, Roasted Garlic & Olive Salsa, Peach Salsa and the many other flavors available. Better still, don’t imagine it. Try it. A fair warning though–one taste and you’re hooked.

Don’t settle for just gourmet sauces though! Everyone deserves something special to go with it. Ever tried beer bread? Whether made with the real deal or a carbonated substitute, Classic Beer Bread and other bread mixes are delicious. Plus, don’t forget the dip mixes, soups, spices and seasonings, and desserts available from Comfort Foods, Inc. Not that you could forget if you’ve ever tried these. Just a reminder. …click here to read Looking For Gourmet Comfort Foods? The Search Ends Here…

Why Eat Sugar Free Foods?

Need to know why your customers are choosing sugar free foods over regular options? Sugar free is the way to go for many dieters and health-conscious eaters these days. Obesity and the threat of diseases it causes is one motivating factor for eating sugar free foods. Many also eat sugar free foods to slow or entirely prevent the onset of diabetes.

More than just the underlying health benefits of sugar free foods is the weight loss appeal that these foods bring. Sugar free foods are often made using sweeteners/sugar substitutes that break down quicker than natural sugar. Because of this, the sugars are not stored as starches and do not stay in the body as fat. Eating sugar free foods is a great way to enjoy the foods that you love without the guilt!

Are Sugar Free Foods Really Free of Sugar?

Oddly, not always. Usually sugar free foods contain a sugar substitute that has better effects than normal sugar (sucrose or saccharose) but still has the same sweet taste. Sugar substitutes used in wholesale sugar free foods can include any of the following sweeteners among others:

• Sucralose (Splenda or SucraPlus brand)
• Aspartame (Equal or Nutrasweet brand)
• Alitame (Aclame brand)
• Acesulfame potassium (Sunett brand)
• Saccharin (Sweet ‘n’ Low brand)
• Stevioside
• Agave syrup (a sugar alternative and natural sweetener)

Though these sweeteners may be in the food, they do not have the same effects of sugar (sucrose) and are therefore considered sugar free foods. Many natural and organic foods also claim to be sugar free or have no sugar added.

What Sugar Free Foods Are Popular With Customers?

Your customers will be amazed by the variety of sugar free foods available to them. When shopping for wholesale sugar free foods, consider some of these options:

• Sugar free chili peppers
• Sugar free desserts (cookies, puddings, etc)
• Sugar free jellies and jams
• Sugar free marmalades and preserves
• Sugar free teas
• Sugar free candy
• Sugar free gum (dentist recommended)

Each of these foods plus the assortment of other sugar-free options keeps your customers happy and their taste buds satisfied. Offering sugar-free gourmet foods is a win-win for you when you choose sugar-free foods from these wholesale gourmet foods suppliers!

People with celiac disease (an autoimmune disease that rejects gluten) or dermatitis herpetiformis (a skin disorder linked to gluten) are often ordered to follow a strict gluten-free diet.

What Are Some Acceptable Gluten-Free Foods?

It’s very important that gluten-free foods contain less than 5 parts per million of gluten (the smallest detectable amount). It is also important that your customers like as well as trust the gluten free gourmet foods that they find in your store. To keep your reputation high, here are some gluten free gourmet foods that you can trust:

Gluten free cookies are available from many different vendors. These, like gluten free mixes, are made with gluten free flour.

Gluten free flour is derived from several plants, wheat almost never being a source. Gram flour and buckwheat flour are examples of gluten-free flours.

Though gluten is often used as a thickening agent, you will not find gluten in gluten-free jams, jellies, preserves or marmalades. Other thickening agents such as gelatin are used instead.

Gluten free bread mixes, gluten free pancake mixes, and gluten free muffin mixes keep the table happy in a gluten-free household. Your customers do not want to sacrifice flavor for their gluten-free diet so satisfy their taste buds with gluten free mixes in these flavors: Apple, Blueberry, Cinnamon, Corn, Cranberry, Raisin, Sweet Potato, Zucchini, Raspberry, Cherry, Banana, Flax.

How Can I Get Truly Gluten-Free Foods for My Customers?

Gluten and products containing gluten are numerous, therefore finding gluten-free products can be difficult unless these people know where to go for gluten-free products from a vendor that they trust. Certainly not wishing to harm this relationship between you and your customers, these gluten-free gourmet foods vendors will guide you through finding the gluten free foods that are right for you.