Stop Selling and Start Leading

8Experiment and Take Risks

MADDIE FLETCHER KNOWS EXACTLY HOW LONG it took for one beverage company to give her a chance: 198 days. During that time, Maddie doggedly emailed, called, dropped by, and texted regularly. She knew her company could succeed where multiple suppliers had failed. She just needed a chance to prove it.

Her prospect had only been in business a year, offering fresh, full-flavored craft beverages with all-natural ingredients and no GMOs. The founders' vision was to support nonprofit and community events to uplift and unite people. But first they needed a package design that would get them into retail outlets and consumers' hands. They had a great design concept. They just couldn't find a supplier who could bring their vision to life.

After working with several packaging, labeling, and printing companies, they turned to Maddie and were interested in seeing what her family-owned company could do to create expressive package decoration leading to meaningful consumer brand awareness. After six months of frustrating trial and error with other suppliers, this buyer was relieved to find a seller like Maddie.

The hurdle for other suppliers was applying the label the way they wanted. It was to be thin, form-fitting to their uniquely shaped bottle, vibrant, tamper proof, and providing 360-degree coverage with a seam that was precisely positioned and barely visible. These custom specifications were usually for high-volume orders, but this company was selling just 30,000 ...