The consumer packaged goods is VERY competitive, and emerging brands face an uphill battle securing the attention of retail buyers. Traditional cold outreach can take months, and buyers are increasingly protective of their time. However, forward-thinking brands are leveraging specialized digital tools to position themselves exactly where buyers are looking. And they are looking on RangeMe.
What’s more, when it comes to RangeMe’s Immediate Opportunities, not only are buyers looking, they are actually inviting you to submit your products for review!
SneakERASERS, a regular on the RangeMe Top Brand in General Merchandise rankings, is a best-in-class example of how to get the most from these Immediate Opportunities. Originally entering the market with a single, unique, dual-layered pre-moistened eraser foam sponge designed for on-the-go shoe cleaning, the company filled an evident white space between inefficient wipes and cumbersome sneaker kits. Today, Sneakerasers has scaled into automotive, golf, marine, and household cleaning categories – growth catalyzed by its proactive approach to RangeMe’s Immediate Opportunities.
Following are some of the best practices recommended by Sneakerasers Co-Founder Kevin Consolo. You’ll find my full interview with him in the video below!
1. Align Your Brand with the Retailer’s Sourcing Mindset
To win at retail, a brand must stop thinking like a seller and start thinking like a buyer. RangeMe’s Immediate Opportunities represent active, time-sensitive sourcing requests from major retailers. When a buyer submits a brief, they are looking for specific solutions to clear
“We use RangeMe to be available for the retailers and their sourcing initiatives,” says Consolo. “Thinking in the mindset of the retailer of, ‘I’m looking for innovation, I’m looking for impulse items, travel/trial, household cleaning,’ whatever it might be. But if they’re looking for something specific, they can’t find you if you’re not there and if you’re not applying for these things.”
Consolo notes that buyers utilize these reviews specifically to capture a competitive edge. “These reviews are really the buyers looking for that innovation to have a leg up on their competition, to have the right products for their customer at the right price points and the right look on their shelves,” he says.
Making your brand discoverable means optimizing your profile beforehand with high-quality imagery, product videos, precise category tags, and proper applications to Immediate Opportunities.
2. Establish a Dedicated Weekly Application Cadence
Winning on RangeMe is not a passive endeavor; it requires an active, disciplined operational routine. Immediate Opportunities come with firm deadlines. Successful brands incorporate application management into their core weekly workflow rather than treating it as an afterthought.
“When the Immediate Opportunities come up in my inbox, I always make it a part of my week of outreach to buyers,” says Consolo. “We’re applying for what’s appropriate for our company in the right categories and making sure we look at the definition of the application to see if we are a good fit. And if we check all the boxes, I make sure that we complete that on time.”
A common friction point for brands is the perceived administrative burden of filling out custom retail questionnaires. However, Consolo dispels this myth, noting that the system is built for speed and efficiency once a foundation is established. Applications generally take only five to ten minutes because foundational business metrics and data points are saved in the system and auto-populate across subsequent requests.
3. Be Meticulously Thorough
When buyers review hundreds of submissions from an Immediate Opportunity brief, they look for operational viability just as much as product innovation. An attractive product will be discarded immediately if crucial backend operational capabilities are missing from the application form.
“Be as thorough as possible,” says Consolo. “Fill out everything that’s obviously mandatory and just make sure that the retailer knows what your freight capabilities are, what your co-packing capabilities, private label, everything that they might want to know to grow their business and to work together and to start the conversation. If you don’t properly fill out those fields and give them all the information, you might not be selected.”
Brands must treat every single field – whether marked mandatory or optional – as a vital piece of real estate. Providing clear data on supply chain logistics, private label flexibility, and regulatory compliance gives retailers the confidence required to transition digital interest into a concrete business conversation.
RangeMe is now also leveraging AI to scan the applications as well as the brand profile to create easy-to-read summaries for the buyers to peruse. Buyers still have access to the full applications as well.
4. Execute the “One-Two Punch” of RangeMe and ECRM
Securing a buyer approval via an Immediate Opportunity is often the opening move in a larger retail strategy. The most successful brands like Sneakerasers compliment these digital interactions with face-to-face meetings at ECRM Sessions to solidify partnerships. In many cases, an approval of an Immediate Opportunity submission leads to an in-person meeting with that retailer at an ECRM Session.
Consolo considers the strategic alignment of RangeMe and ECRM a “one-two punch” for brand growth. Digital approvals frequently culminate in physical or virtual follow-up meetings. For instance, after a RangeMe breakthrough with Midwest grocery giant Hy-Vee, the Sneakerasers team immediately flew to Des Moines to pitch in person.
“Sometimes you can see that buyer at the ECRM sessions and follow up and close the deal,” says Consolo. “In addition, the virtual meetings are fantastic where the buyer’s always present, they’re always on time and you don’t have to leave the comforts of your home and you can present everything and start that conversation, then ship samples.”
By leveraging RangeMe to build initial brand awareness and secure a seat at the table, brands can enter ECRM sessions or retail calls with established credibility, making it significantly easier to bypass gatekeepers and close high-volume deals. (Click here to learn about what the ECRM Session experience is like.)
The Proof in the Performance
The efficacy of this structured approach is validated by Sneakerasers’ commercial footprint. By initiating partnerships through the RangeMe application ecosystem, the brand secured invitations to Walmart’s competitive “Made in America” Open Call. They successfully won the coveted Walmart Golden Ticket twice, directly translating into placement across 3,100 Walmart stores with multiple product items. Similar application-driven pipelines have landed their expanded product lines in Canadian Tire, QVC, and other major grocery chains.
By aligning product positioning with retailer needs, committing to a weekly review cadence , ensuring absolute data completeness , and aggressively following through via ECRM sessions, emerging brands can turn digital opportunities into massive retail realities.
Key Takeaways for RangeMe Immediate Opportunity Success
- Core Strategy: Actively monitor and apply to RangeMe Immediate Opportunities to capture active buyer demand and bypass traditional gatekeepers.
- Thoroughness Matters: Incomplete applications cause immediate disqualification. Brands must submit complete data on freight capabilities, private label capacity, and co-packing from day one.
- Workflow Efficiency: System fields auto-populate after initial configurations, reducing subsequent application times to just 5–10 minutes per brief.
- The “One-Two Punch” Playbook: Maximize digital approvals on RangeMe by aligning them with ECRM sessions to reinforce brand awareness and close retail deals face-to-face.
- Proven Scale: Sneakerasers utilized this framework to scale from a single patented shoe sponge into thousands of retail doors, including Walmart, Canadian Tire, QVC, and Hy-Vee.