Coffee Sales Person??

[JavaNights]

I'm still in the process of building my shop. The strange thing is I've had 2 people approach me and told me that they want to sell my coffee.
The main thing is that they only want to work part-time, so they are not your very serious salesperson.

My queston is: What is the industry norm for salespersons? Pay??, etc.

I was thinking on a commission rate of $2.00 for Kona sold per pound, $1.00 per pound for all other coffee sold.

Thanks in advance for the feedback.

 

[freshroast]

I have never been down the road with sales people and the figures you mentioned sounds reasonable. Will be curious to hear what others have to say/expirence in this area

 

[Coffee Guy]

Hey J.N.:

I wouldn't trust just anybody to sell our coffee until they have spent some time in the industry and know coffee. Someone without the knowledge is very dangerous, especially if they try to go out and try to slam dunk sales! What I have done in some situations is to reward existing customers both commercial and non commercial by offering either discounts or other incentives to assist me. It is difficult enough to compete in an already competitive industry with new roasters popping up all of the time. So I would suggest that if you are looking for a good sales person, bring in a few prospects, interview them and see who is willing to come on board full time. Maybe offer them a small base and a small commission to get them motivated. After a brief probation period then remove the base and increase their commission based on what they sell. Just do me a favor, don't send them into my neck of the woods :wink: