Cover -- Title -- Copyright -- Contents -- Introduction -- STEP 1 BONE UP ON THE SPECIALTY FOOD BUSINESS -- CHAPTER 1 Learn About the Food Industry -- BURNING QUESTION: Am I Ready for Entrepreneurship? -- About the Good in Good Food -- 12 Good Reasons to Start a Food Business -- 3 Reasons Not to Get into Food -- 5 Perils and Paradoxes of Specialty Food -- Learn the "5 Staples" for a Good Food Marketing Mix -- Inside Scoop: BOLA Granola Uses the 5 Staples to Grow by Small Batches -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 2 Prepare for Greatness -- BURNING QUESTION: What if I Only Want to Run a Part-Time Business? -- The Art of Connecting the Dots -- Set S.M.A.R.T. Goals -- Prioritize Your Goals -- Combine Goals and Set Your Life on Fire -- Investigate Your Options -- A Little Research Can Answer "What Should I Make?" -- Make Good Decisions -- Understand the 80-20 Rule (The Quick Way to Make the Right Decisions) -- Take Action to Connect the Dots -- Inside Scoop: Mama Baretta Reaches Out for Success -- Mind Your Mind, Squash Your Fears -- Inside Scoop: Punk Rawk Labs Connects the Dots for Success -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- STEP 2 COOK UP YOUR BUSINESS IDEA -- CHAPTER 3 Create Your Mission, Realize Your Vision -- BURNING QUESTION: Must My Food Really Serve a Lofty Goal? (It's Just Food!) -- State Your Mission: Why Are You Doing This? -- Compare and Contrast: Transforming Business Ideas into Dream Lifestyles -- Learn the ABCs of How You Can Make Food -- A Is for Artisaneurs -- B Is for Business Builders -- C Is for Community Builders -- So What's Your Food Business Personality? -- Inside Scoop: Tessemae's All Natural Becomes an Accidental Manufacturer -- Write Your Vision Statement: Where Do You Want to Go with This? -- Vision Shortcuts.

Inside Scoop: Askinosie Chocolate, Stone-Buhr Flour, and Lotus Foods Draw Inspiration from What's Right in Front of Them -- Outline Your Guiding Principles: Your Rules of the Road -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 4 Find Your Niche -- BURNING QUESTION: Do I Really Need a Business Plan Before I Start? -- 3 Little Big Questions: Who, What, How? -- Picture Your Customers -- How to Fulfill Your Customers' Deepest Needs -- There's a Business for Every Customer Need -- Discover Your Competition -- Plot Your Company and Product Strategies -- Step 1: Set Your Big Picture Strategy-Go Broad or Go Deep -- Step 2: State Your Value Proposition-What's In It for the Customer? -- Step 3: Define Your Product Line -- Inside Scoop: Justin's Nut Butter Connects the Dots Between Craving and Business -- Inside Scoop: Ocho Candy Grows on Four Key Pillars -- Prove Your Idea: Your Tasting-Party Shoot-Out -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 5 Brand Your Business -- BURNING QUESTION: I've Got a Computer. Can I DIY My Brand? -- What Branding Is and Why It's Important -- Inside Scoop: Droga Confections Brands Strategically for Great Food Gifts -- Draft a Branding Strategy -- Name and Tagline Your Company and Products -- Brand and Naming Hierarchy -- Cheap and Fun Exercises for Names and Taglines -- Test Your Name, Logo, and Tagline -- Design Your Logo and Look -- Verify Availability and Own It -- Write Your Authentic Story -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- STEP 3 MAKE YOUR FOOD PRODUCTS REAL -- CHAPTER 6 Package Your Product -- BURNING QUESTION: When Do I Start Working on Packaging? -- The Point of Packaging -- Inside Scoop: Sweet Revolution Makes a Big Impact with a Small Footprint -- Define Your Packaging Elements -- Packaging and Filling Go Hand in Hand -- The Packaging for Your Packaging.

Inside Scoop: Poco Dolce Packs for the Occasion -- Balance Packaging Sustainability and Function -- Evaluate Sustainable Packaging Trade-offs -- Plan and Write Your Packaging Information -- What the FDA Requires -- Consider Optional Label Elements and Logos -- Test Your Packaging -- Produce Your Packaging -- Pricing and Pricing and Pricing, Oh My -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 7 Find the Best Ingredients -- BURNING QUESTION: When Do I Finalize My Ingredient Sources? -- The Goals: Traceability, Trust, and Transparency -- Identify Product Certifications That Support Your Promise -- Certified Organic -- Gluten-Free (GFCO.org) -- Fair Trade (FairTradeUSA.org) -- Kosher (OUKosher.org, OK.org, and more) -- Non-GMO Project Verified (NonGMOProject.org) -- How to Source Good Ingredients -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 8 Get into Production -- BURNING QUESTION: Where Is the Best Place to Start My Food Business? -- Things All Food Entrepreneurs Go Through -- You Need to Scale Your Recipe for Production -- You Need to Practice Licensed, Safe, and Sanitary Production -- Inside Scoop: Neo Cocoa Envisions Local Chocolaty Goodness -- Choose Your Production Method and Reality Check the Plan -- The Joys of Making Food Yourself (for Artisaneurs and Community Builders) -- The Joys of Good Co-Packers Making Your Food (for Business Builders) -- Inside Scoop: Rustic Bakery Evolves Organically -- Inside Scoop: Peas of Mind Realizes Its Vision for Healthful Kids' Meals -- Test Your Products -- Analyze Nutrient Profiles and Shelf Stability -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- STEP 4 GET YOUR FOOD PRODUCTS TO MARKET -- CHAPTER 9 Where Will You Sell? -- BURNING QUESTION: Do I Really Need to Sell in Stores? -- Plot Your Sales and Distribution Phases -- Inside Scoop: Maitelates Alfajores Mixes the Perfect Cookie Business.

Phase 1: Selling Direct-Higher Profits, Closer Connections -- Learn Your Online Selling Options -- Selling at Markets -- Weddings, Parties, and Corporate Gifts -- Seasonal Gift Fairs, Festivals, and Craft Shows -- Inside Scoop: Terra Verde Farms Builds a Business Around a Lifestyle -- Pick Your Places: Distribution Options at a Glance -- Phase 2: Selling Wholesale-Higher Volume, Lower Profits, Greater Impact -- Selling to Local Stores Yourself (a.k.a. Pounding the Pavement) -- Inside Scoop: Lusty Monk Spreads Itself -- Engage Food Brokers as Your Sales Team -- Inside Scoop: Red Boat Fish Sauce Targets Several Channels for Sales Success -- Good Food and Chains Can Mix -- Strategize to Sell through Distributors -- Phase 3: Going International-Massive Reach and Volume -- Is Exporting Right for You? -- Get Export Support and Offset Your Costs -- Quiz International Buyers -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 10 Price Your Products -- BURNING QUESTION: Can't I Just Make Up Good Prices? -- Don Your Pointy-Headed Accounting Hat -- How to Project Sales Without Any Sales History -- Determine How Much You Can Charge -- Understand How Your Price Communicates Your Value -- What Goes into Your Pricing -- Account for Your Donations -- Take into Account How Retailers Really Price -- How to Quote All-Inclusive Prices for Direct Wholesaling -- A Few More Pricing Tips and Costing Tricks -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 11 Promote Your Products -- BURNING QUESTION: How Do I Get the Buzz Started? -- Understand Marketing: Learn Your AIDAEs -- Plan Your Marketing Strategy -- Phase 1: Get Online-Plan. Shoot. Build -- Set Up Your Domain and Social Media Accounts -- Define Your Digital Marketing Strategy -- Bring Your Online Presence to Life -- Inside Scoop: Back to the Roots Sprouts DIY Success.

Phase 2: Launch and Ride the Word-of-Mouth Wave -- Create Good Old-Fashioned Printed Materials -- Feed Bloggers and the Press -- Write Your Introductory Press Release -- What to Expect From Your National Press Mentions -- Phase 3: Keep the Buzz Alive with Promotions and Marketing Support -- Master the Social-Media Ecosystem -- E-mail Your Updates -- Increase E-mail and Ad Success with Landing Pages -- Promotions and Deals, Deals, Deals! -- Pros -- Cons -- Paid Advertising -- Inside Scoop: Amella Caramels Remixes for Marketing Success -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- STEP 5 MAKE IT REAL! -- CHAPTER 12 Now You're Cookin': Sell and Engage Post-Launch -- BURNING QUESTION: What Is "Engagement" Anyway? -- Cultivate a Service Culture -- Your Number-One Selling Tool: Samples -- Master Order Fulfillment -- Sell Wholesale and Get Repeat Orders -- Stash Some Cash Before Selling Wholesale -- Meet Wholesale Buyers at Trade Shows -- Win Awards -- Manage Your Time and Measure Your Results -- Takeaways -- Great Business Action Plan -- CHAPTER 13 Set Up Your Business -- BURNING QUESTION: How Much Money Do I Need? -- Understand the Importance of Structure -- Set Up Your Back-Office Systems -- Build Your Support System: Commune, Contract, and Hire -- Share and Bond with Fellow Food Entrepreneurs -- Tap In to Experts -- Explore Consultants and Coaches -- Attract a Great Team: Who and How -- Pick the Right Vendors -- Attract the Right Hires -- Inside Scoop: Rooibee Red Tea Builds on Connections -- Decide on Your Business Structure -- Inside Scoop: Runa Guayusa Organizes to Maximize Good -- Fund Your Food Company -- Personal Funding: Chipping In (Yourself, Friends, Family, Crowdfunding) -- Loans: Payback Time -- Investors: Giving a Piece of the Pie (Angels, Venture Capital) -- Inside Scoop: SchoolHouse Kitchen Learns the Hard Way about Structuring a Business.

Takeaways.