Evive frozen smoothies were appeared at Costco last week. This is a whole victory for the Sherbrooke company, which has been trying to carve out a place on the Canadian shelves of the American giant for 8 years now.
“It’s a dream we had. The Costco model allows you to offer a really cheap product. They take very little margin, so our goal was always to go there so that people can have a lunch smoothie at $ 2, “said Dominic Dubé, co -founder and general manager of Evive.
Each Evive Smoothie washer actually returns to this price if it is purchased in the eight package sold from Costco. As a comparison, in a supermarket, it can return to $ 3.50 or $ 3.75.
Being able to offer a price at Costco much lower than in competition, it is a prerequisite for doing business with the chain, underlines Dominic Dubé. And you have to arrive with a well -known presentation.
When you present your price in Costco, they want to be sure that they will be at least 20 % cheaper than everywhere else for the same product, or roughly.
Dominic Dubé, co -founder and managing director of Evive
How do they succeed in selling so inexpensive in Costco? First, the packages make it possible to amortize the cost of the packaging on eight casters rather than in three, the format sold in grocery store. Transport and delivery costs are optimized with the Costco model. “Costco takes less margin than the other retailers of their volume, because they have income with their member cards,” said Dominic Dubé.
However, this model comes with a sales target, which Costco shares with entrepreneurs. “Each space at Costco is super precious, so it must absolutely make their sale goal. If what they put does not sell, they will put something else that will work, ”explains the entrepreneur.
Costco bought three Evive smoothies containers. If the objectives are not achieved, there will not necessarily be an next order.
Learn from American adventure
This is the first time that Evive has been in Costco in Canada, but she had managed a place in Costco stores in the United States a few years ago.
Once the first order has passed, there had been no second. Dominic Dubé assures that the strategy has been adjusted for Canada.
First, the brand is already well known here: Evive has been in business in Quebec since 2015. Also, the product offered in Costco Canada is very different, and the generally public.
In the United States, Evive had gone forward with its Sapphire smoothie, which is bright blue due to the presence of blue spirulina extract. A product probably too daring to unravel a new market, recognizes today the entrepreneur.
This time, the team went there with a more classic product: pre -lined cubes of strawberries and bananas containing 15 grams of protein.
It remains to be hoped that they are selling in the 44 Costco stores in Quebec, Ontario and the Maritimes where they are.
A family adventure
Evive was founded by Dominic Dubé and Claudia Poulin, at the time a very young couple. Today, they are waiting for their third child and are still at the head of the company, respectively as managing director and president.
The company employs 20 people and produces its smoothies in subcontracting, mainly in Lachute, as well as in the large region of Toronto.
The entry to Costco is not the only big project of the year for Evive, which has also just delivered its first order to the American Kroger supermarket chain, which it won the production contract of the Maison de Cubes de Smoothies. Its annual turnover is around 20 million.
Half a million for Siboire productivity
Photo Ninon Pednault, the press archives
The Siboire microbrewery leads a project to increase its productivity.
The Siboire microbrewery carries out a project of almost $ 528,000 to be able to increase its speed of cans and ferment its beer in larger tanks. The Quebec government supports the Sherbrooke company project, with a contribution representing $ 310,000. “These improvements will support its growth, while it has recently opened two branches, one in Montreal and one in Quebec,” read a press release. About half of the sum provided by the government is a loan, and the other is a financial aid granted by the MAPAQ food transformation program.
Fitzgibbon President of CA
Photo provided by Polykar
The former Minister Pierre Fitzgibbon (right) becomes chairman of the Polykar Board of Directors. We see him here with Amir Karim, president and chief executive officer of Polykar.
The former minister of the economy and businessman Pierre Fitzgibbon has just joined the Polykar board of directors as president. “I am convinced that he will play a key role in our growth and that he will be a precious mentor for me at this major turning point in our development,” said Amir Karim, president and chief executive officer of the flexible packaging manufacturer established in Montreal, who also holds a factory in Edmonton. This appointment follows an investment by Montclerc Capital in Polykar aimed at accelerating its growth. The magnitude of it has not been revealed.