The submission portals are the visible part of the process and the least difficult. Coles operates Supplier Central and Woolworths operates Partnerhub, and both publish their range review timings. The portal is rarely what stops a brand. What stops it is whether the commercial case behind the submission holds up once a buyer applies the arithmetic that buyers apply.
The submission is an output, not a starting point
A range review submission is a summary of decisions that were made months earlier: what the product is, who makes it, what it costs to land, how it is packed, and what margin it leaves for the retailer after promotional participation. Founders who begin at the submission are typically documenting decisions they have not tested.
The practical consequence is that a submission fails not because it was written badly but because the underlying numbers were never going to work. Rewriting the submission does not fix that.
Five questions to answer before submitting
- Does your cost price survive the full chain? Ex works cost is the beginning. Freight, warehousing, distributor margin, retailer margin, promotional depth and frequency, and wastage all sit between it and the shelf price. Model the promotional scenario, not the full price scenario.
- Can you supply at the volume the ranging implies? National ranging in a major grocery chain is a supply commitment before it is a revenue event. Establish the minimum order quantity, lead time and production capacity of your manufacturer, and the working capital required to hold the stock.
- Is your packaging hierarchy resolved? Buyers and distribution centres will look at carton quantity, pallet configuration, shelf ready presentation and how the pack physically behaves in a warehouse. All of it follows from decisions that founders usually take on aesthetic grounds.
- What does the shopper stop buying? Buyers assess incrementality. A product that takes sales from an existing line in the same category adds cost without adding category value. Articulate the substitution honestly.
- Can you fund the launch? Listing costs, promotional commitments, distribution centre requirements and payment terms create a cash gap between production and revenue. That gap is where undercapitalised launches fail.
The sequencing error
The most common sequencing error is treating grocery ranging as the first channel rather than a later one. Independent retail, food service and direct to consumer channels impose lower working capital demands and produce the sales data and operational evidence that make a subsequent grocery submission substantially stronger.
Starting in a smaller channel is a sequencing decision rather than a reduction in ambition, and it is what keeps the business solvent long enough to reach the larger one.
Common questions
How long before a range review should preparation begin?
Both major chains publish their category review schedules. Working back from a review date, the commercial preparation, supplier confirmation, costing validation and packaging resolution realistically require six to nine months, and longer where tooling or certification is involved.
Do I need a broker to submit?
Not to submit. Brokers add value in buyer relationships, category argument and negotiation, but they cannot repair a commercial case that does not work. Establish that the numbers hold before paying for representation.
Founder Launchpad assesses launches against five dimensions before capital is committed. Read how the Launch Readiness Model works or book a fit call.