I am now the proud owner of a snake plant for which feeding is a piece of cake. And it\u2019s thriving \u2013 much like Instant Biologics, which has landed business from a half-dozen large retail chains including Target and 1-800 Flowers (and is currently onboarding another half-dozen). This soaring growth can be credited to their RangeMe Premium membership, participation in several RangeMe summits and ECRM\u2019s Lawn & Garden<\/a> and Sustainable Products: General Merchandise<\/a> sessions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The idea for the company sprouted when Robbins and Tenenbaum decided to shift their focus from outdoor plants \u2013 via a landscaping business they ran together for 15 years \u2013 to indoor plants. \u201cWe saw an opportunity with fertilizer because the products on the market were hard to use,\u201d says Robbins. \u201cThey came with complicated instructions for measuring and mixing and tend to be messy. Plus, many of the products are liquid, which are heavy to ship and as a result have a large carbon footprint.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instant Biologics\u2019 Instant Plant Food addresses all of these challenges. Its fertilizer consists of effervescent tablets that are easy to use, don\u2019t take up much space (on retail shelves or consumers\u2019 cupboards) and have a low carbon footprint in their delivery to retailers and consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Timing couldn\u2019t have been better for the brand. Two-thirds of U.S. households already had at least one house plant before the pandemic, and the shift to remote work accelerated demand, particularly among apartment-dwellers in more metropolitan areas that were looking to spruce up their remote offices, according to Tenenbaum. Along with this came the need for plant food that\u2019s easy to use. \u201cPeople living in apartments don\u2019t have much space,\u201d says Tenenbaum. \u201cThey want something that\u2019s small and convenient and can be kept in the pantry, so our product has applications for a large audience.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Instant Plant Food can be found in all retail channels as an add-on item at stores that sell house plants or as a standalone product in stores that don\u2019t, and can be displayed on a shelf or pegged on a clip strip for cross merchandising. And as Instant Biologics sources all its ingredients and materials from U.S.-based vendors, it hasn\u2019t faced the supply chain issues<\/a> that can come with overseas shipping, which is a key factor for many buyers these days.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the ways in which Instant Biologics is driving exposure and engagement with buyers is through its RangeMe Premium membership. \u201cIf you have an innovative product and are looking to grow your brand, RangeMe is a great platform for getting exposure to buyers from large retailers that are difficult to break into without any kind of prior relationship,\u201d says Robbins. \u201cIt gives us a ton of exposure on the front end that we would not have otherwise had.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n For additional reach, Instant Biologics submitted its products in RangeMe summits, including Hy-Vee\u2019s Best of Local Brands Summit, the Amazon Sustainability Summit in 2021, and two previous Global Markets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Robbins notes that RangeMe delivers benefits for retailers too, as it enables them to keep a finger on the pulse of what\u2019s next in product innovation. \u201cThis is especially important now after the pandemic and inflation that have shaken things up and led to changing customer needs,\u201d he says. \u201cIt helps buyers to rapidly respond to these shopper needs. It\u2019s amazing for both parties.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n When meeting with buyers virtually during a RangeMe summit or ECRM session, Robbins and Tenenbaum aim for what they call the \u201cTriple Win,\u201d demonstrating how they deliver value so that all parties benefit: the retailer, consumer, and the brand. However, in our conversation, we realized that there was a fourth winner that is also discussed in their meetings: the environment. The sustainability aspects of the brand\u2019s products are what the company says has gained traction with younger consumers, who like the lower carbon emissions involved with not having to transport liquids.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And it\u2019s the younger generation of buyers making their way through the retail industry that are making digital platforms like RangeMe and ECRM the ideal way of connecting, according to Robbins and Tenenbaum, who see digital playing a major role in the future or product discovery and sourcing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere\u2019s something important about that in-person meeting,\u201d says Robbins. \u201cBut all of the work you need to do to get to that point can now be done digitally. It makes it so that we can get all of the front-end stuff done with a larger volume of buyers in a shorter time frame so that when we finally get to that in-person meeting, it\u2019s not a chore anymore; you actually look forward to it. Both Ari and I met our wives online, so we know digital works in that realm. Why shouldn\u2019t it work for business? The younger generation lives on digital, and they are now making their way through the ranks of buyers.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moving forward, Instant Biologics plans to launch various products that leverage its effervescent tablet technology and create a portfolio of brands that will make the company even more enticing for buyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt\u2019s an investment to onboard a new brand, and the feedback we\u2019re getting is they would like more SKUs of similar-type products,\u201d says Robbins. \u201cAnd so we\u2019re listening to them, and what we have in immediate development are related products, such as a biopesticide product for eco-friendly indoor pest control, microbial products for plants, and some pet-related products. There are many applications for our waterless concentrated effervescent tablet technology.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Overall, their goal is simple. They want consumers to be more connected to the environment, whether it\u2019s inside or outside, and their mission is to develop the technology to help make those connections easier.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Are you interested in growing your product assortment? Learn more about Instant Biologics by finding them here<\/a> on RangeMe!<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Instant](\"https:\/\/rangeme-blog-images.imgix.net\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/20220705_182554000_iOS.jpg?auto=format%2Ccompress&w=1024&h=1024&fit=crop\")
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<\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/a><\/a><\/a>A growing market<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Going Premium<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Going for the \u2018Triple Win\u2019 in buyer meetings<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Digital dealing<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What\u2019s next<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n