Building a Profitable Direct-to-Consumer Agribusiness
A monthly call series and in-person seminar designed for farmers and growers in the Plain Community
Kitchen Table Consultants and Taste Profit Marketing are thrilled to invite growers and farmers in the Plain Community to join our monthly Q&A calls — a valuable series designed to enrich your learning experience leading up to our in-person, two-day seminar in fall 2024.
What to Expect
Monthly interactive Q&A call sessions, each focusing on a key topic that will be explored thoroughly during the two-day seminar.
Ted LeBow, Founder and Co-CEO of Kitchen Table Consultants, will share insights, answer your questions, and guide you on the path to building successful, sustainable, and profitable Direct-To-Consumer (DTC) agricultural businesses.
Monthly Call Details:
- Frequency: Every fourth Friday of the month, January through October 2024.
- Time + Duration: Calls start at 1pm ET and will run about one hour.
- Cost: Free to attend.
- Registration: Click here to register
- Or call directly into meetings at (253) 205-0468 (Meeting ID: 865 3140 2244)
Topics:
- Jan 26: Market Assessment for DTC
- Feb 23: Business Structure for DTC
- Mar 22: Chart of Accounts and Farm Vitality
- Apr 26: Profit vs Cash and Cash Flow Management
- May 24: Margin Analysis and Cost by Crop
- Jun 28: Building a Budget for CSA or E-Commerce
- Jul 26: Marketing: Telling your Story
- Aug 23: How to Sell Online
- Sep 27: Logistics: Inventory, Shipping, Cold Storage, etc.
- Oct 25: Building a Team and Managing People
Why Participate?
Community Connection
We have experience working with growers in the Plain Community and want to help foster the connections with fellow growers, share insights, and build a network of support within the community.
Interactive Curriculum Design
By actively participating in the calls leading up to the seminar, you have the chance to shape the curriculum based on your specific needs and interests. Your input during these interactive sessions ensures that the seminar content aligns closely with your goals and expectations.
Expert Guidance
These sessions provide a unique opportunity to learn from both peers in the Plain Community and our consultants, who can provide insights and real-life examples of effective business and marketing strategies.
On A Mission to Make You Profitable For Good
Learn how we helped Dutch Meadows Farm, an organic farm that has been owned by the Stoltzfus family for three generations, successfully transition from wholesale to direct-to-consumer through financial restructuring and sales strategy.
Seminar Details
We anticipate scheduling the two-day seminar in mid-December 2024. The format will be a combination of interactive activities, lectures, case studies, and discussions. Participants will leave the seminar with practical tools and examples for how to successfully grow their business with the support they need.
The final curriculum will be shaped by the interests and needs of the participants leading up to the seminar, and will be developed by industry experts at Kitchen Table Consultants and Taste Profit Marketing, including Co-CEOs Ted LeBow and Noah Munro and Senior Business Consultant Elaine Lemmon.
Example course outline:
Day 1: Market Assessment for Direct to Consumer Sales and Financial Foundations
- Marketing Assessment for the DTC opportunity in PA and surrounding areas
- How to structure your business as you introduce multiple entities outside of farming
- Financial Foundations including Chart of Accounts, Profits vs Cash, Understanding your Balance Sheet, Cash Flow Management, Cost by Crop, Margin Analysis and Budgeting
Day 2: Marketing, Customer Relationships, Best Practices for Distribution, and People Management
- Marketing concepts including building your brand, KPIs, technology solutions and specific focus on how to navigate this in the plain community
- Building a strong relationship with customers and your team through clear communication
- Best Practices for inventory, shipping, cold storage, warehouse, and distribution logistics in the e-commerce industry
- Working with Capital and Debt as your business needs grow to meet the consumer demand
FAQs
Q: Are the call series and seminar exclusively for the Plain Community?
A: To foster connections among growers and address the unique challenges faced within the Plain Community, these opportunities are dedicated to those within the community. If you’re interested in a workshop tailored to your needs or want to learn more about our services, please contact us at [email protected] or by calling (267) 214-6468.
Q: Do I have to register for each individual call?
A: No! Registering for the call series grants you access to all calls. While we hope you find value in each monthly call, they each cover a distinct topic and are self-contained. You should be able to miss a month and jump right into the next call without any issue.
Q: What does the call series and seminar cost?
A: The call series is completely free to attend. We are currently seeking sponsors for the two-day seminar in order to keep the cost accessible to farmers. Our goal is to make the cost under $900 per participant, which would include all meals. We will update this page with registration information once details have been finalized.
Q: When and where will the seminar be held?
A: We are currently determining these details. The two-day seminar will most likely be held in mid-December 2024, and will take place somewhere in Pennsylvania. We will share these updated details on this page and via email as soon as they become available.
Q: Do I have to attend the calls AND the seminar? Or can I pick and choose?
A: You can choose to participate in the call series and not attend the seminar. You are also welcome to attend the seminar without having participated in any of the calls. To get the most value out of this opportunity, we recommend attending the calls to become engaged with the community and help shape the seminar’s curriculum to best suit your needs.