Are You Swimming With Sharks?

Posted by Royal Chemical - 16 June, 2021

Mr. Wonderful Is In, and He Wants to See Your Business Plan

Your formula has been developed, tested, improved, retested, and after its successful introduction, it TOOK OFF. Orders are increasing as fast as you can deliver; you need to scale up production, now. If you could double or triple capacity, yesterday, that would be great.

Business growth problems are good problems to have – but they’re still problems that can derail the success you’ve worked so hard to achieve.

You notice fulfillment issues are taxing your warehouse. ­­You need to hire more drivers, or deliveries will suffer. And your customer list is growing fast - to the point that you need more salespeople. Pretty soon, you’ll need a more robust CSM to take care of those customers…

Sounds like you could be a contestant on Shark Tank!  

Challenge: Meet Increased Demand with Limited Manufacturing & Warehouse Space

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Not this kind of shark tank! We’re talking about ABC’s hit TV show Shark Tank.

Viewers know the drill: contestants make a pitch to elicit offers from the Sharks, successful business investors like Mark Cuban, Lori Greiner, and Kevin O’Leary (AKA Mr. Wonderful). The Sharks are looking for pitches that feature a great idea and entrepreneurs with tenacity, a track record of success, and commitment – in other words, that they have some skin in the game. You’ve got it all.

If the investors heard your pitch, what would they say?

Your Pitch: Help My Growing Chemical Company Keep Growing

You explain to the Sharks that you’ve dedicated all of your resources to perfecting your formula and building relationships with customers.

“Sharks, business is good. Great, actually,” you say. “Year over year sales are way up, and we’re working at capacity, 24/7, to fill orders. I need to double or triple our manufacturing production as soon as possible.”

The Sharks are interested. They’re ready with good advice and probably an offer or two. But remember, they’re sharks. They’re interested in making money too.

The Best, Fastest Way to Increase Chemical Manufacturing Production

The Sharks understand your problem: You need to scale up production and support sales with a reliable fulfillment and delivery system. You need an investment to cover real estate, equipment, hiring and training workers, and all of the necessary certifications and insurance.  

The Sharks are interested.

But in the process of scaling up, they point out, you’ll put your business at risk. Taking on debt (or a greedy investment partner) can cost you the business. And yet, time is money – how long will your customers wait for your product while you ramp up?

Utilizing a contract manufacturer is the fastest way to increase production, they say, with far less investment. But there are some financial concerns to address, in the short- and long term. They’re willing to help you expand your production facilities and/or to identify a partner to move into the big leagues fast.

Your Shark Tank advisors give you three choices:

$hark 1 will fund you to go for it! If sales are so strong, you should own the whole operation, Shark 1 says. His investment will cover expanding your production facilities, purchasing new equipment, hiring and training employees, and the related insurance and liability coverage. Shark 1 acknowledges it may not be the fastest option, and it means incurring considerable liability and debt, since this is a loan, not a gift. But remember the upside: you’ll own the whole operation! 

Thanks, you say, but like the Sharks always say, time is money. My opportunity is here NOW. And, that’s a lot of overhead, and liability…not to mention the debt. I want to hear what the others have to say.

$hark 2 says the obvious solution is to contract with a manufacturer in the industry that has excess capacity. No investment necessary! In fact, says Shark 2, with a gleam in his eye, “They’re ready and waiting. Their product lines are similar to yours, and their staff is fully trained. They’re ready to manufacture as soon as you provide the formula.”

Hmmmmm, you say. I’ve poured all my time and money into perfecting this formula and building customer relationships. Isn’t this contractor in the same space I’m in? Won’t I have to give them my customer list? What’s to stop them from making my formula themselves? I’ll think about that – while I look for other options with less risk.

$hark 3 suggests partnering with a full-service contract chemical manufacturer that does not create or sell its own products – one whose entire business model is built on growing their customers’ business. They have experienced chemists and staff, multiple facilities, and they manage warehousing and fulfillment for their clients. Oh, and they also have excellent relationships with a robust supply chain, so you don’t have to worry about shortages and price fluctuations.

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While it would probably make short-term economic sense for them to make their own products, they refuse to do it. Instead, they focus on being the strong, silent, behind-the-scenes manufacturing partner to companies like yours.

This sounds good, you think, but as the Sharks themselves say, it pays to know as much as you can about a deal before you accept. Take a detour and learn how exactly a contract manufacturer makes sales expansion easier.

And Now a Word from Our Sponsor

Thanks for appearing in the Royal version of Shark Tank. As in most episodes of the show, the Sharks brought up some pretty good points – starting with safeguarding your Intellectual Property.

As you probably guessed, Shark #3 recommends Royal Chemical Company, and not “just” because Royal will never compete with its customers. Although, it’s worth repeating that is pretty important.

Your formula is your business, and it is the probably most valuable asset you have today, and will have five, 10, 20, or even 30 years down the road.

For more than 80 years, we have developed and maintained the strictest protocols to ensure the confidentiality of our customers’ intellectual property, customer lists, and other information.

Royal Chemical owns and operates five facilities, strategically situated around the country. Thanks to economies of scale, Royal can negotiate for the best prices on raw ingredients, and those same economies help manage overhead and logistics prices, like warehousing and shipping.  

As a full-service contract chemical manufacturer, Royal Chemical has partnered with thousands of chemical-makers in industrial and institutional cleaning, oil & gas, agrochemical, and metal cleaning industries.

What can we do for you? Schedule a free, no-obligation consultation and find out.

Topics: Logistics, Outsourcing