GROW Vine Newsletter
June 2012
Proudly Serving 353 Members
GROW Buy Local Store at the State Fair
This year GROW Nebraska will once again have a store at the Nebraska State Fair from August 24-September 3 in Grand Island.
Our Buy Local Store is a must visit for anyone coming to the State Fair. Last year over 100 Nebraska vendors of all ages and product type were featured, including food, clothing, personal care products, candles, art, jewelry, books, and more.
We want to thank everyone who has volunteered and worked at the store in the past. This store would be impossible without you! If you are interested in carrying your products at this year's store or can volunteer, please fill out the form below.
Sell Your Product or Volunteer >>
GROW Nebraska UPC Cooperative Program
GROW Nebraska members have a unique opportunity when setting up their products with UPCs.
The Nebraska Department of Economic Development administered by the
Nebraska Rural Development Commission has given GROW Nebraska a value added grant to help our members buy UPC codes for their products at a discount.
The UPC is the only barcode allowed for scanning trade items at the point of sale. Many times these barcodes must be bought in blocks which make it harder and more expensive for small companies who have one or two products to market.
GROW is excited about this program because it can help small businesses keep the cost of the UPC to a minimum, helping them increase their sales. The UPC code is a key element of being able to sell by the pallet instead of by the case, a tremendous step in growth for a small company. GROW businesses that have used this program are now in Nebraska retail establishments including GROW Buy Local stores, Russ’s, Super Saver, Hy-Vee, Whole Foods, Allen's, Bosselman's, Scheels and many more.
If you would like more information on this program, please contact us at
info@grownebraska.org.
A MarkeTECH Success Story
Now that MarkeTECH is over, we are hearing back from our members about the connections that were made during the conference.
One such story is Jim Frager with
Polaris Products. Jim invented the rain rocket rain gauge - a rain gauge that always faces and tilts into the wind. His product is an odd size and has been a challenge to package. Previously he has rubber banded information to the product and has also used a large Ziploc bag with information in the forefront.
During MarkeTECH he met Sally Cohen, founder of
eGrowth Marketing in Omaha. Sally has been working with Jim on his packaging and marketing, and he now has a prototype of an attractive box featuring information about his product.
"You meet people that have solutions to your problems and who meet your needs. Sally supplied the ideas for the packaging and marketing," Frager said.
Keep your eyes peeled for information about our next upcoming conference so you can make connections with great Nebraska businesses just like Jim!
View Video About MarkeTECH 2012 >>
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The Nebraska Lottery, Another Great Nebraska Product
The GROW Nebraska stores in Kearney and Grand Island now carry Nebraska Lottery scratch and Powerball tickets. While the Nebraska Lottery is typically found in locations such as gas stations or supermarkets, they are partnering with GROW Nebraska to explore marketing their product to mall shoppers.
Since 1993, the Nebraska Lottery has raised $439 million for its beneficiary funds. Projects in each of Nebraska's 93 counties have benefited from Lottery proceeds. A few of the programs supported by the Nebraska Lottery include the Environmental Trust Fund, the Education Innovation Fund, the Nebraska Opportunity Grant Fund, and the Nebraska State Fair.
Stop by our stores and check out what the Nebraska Lottery has to offer. You have a chance at winning the big jackpot while also supporting the environment, education, and the Nebraska State Fair.
The Nebraska Lottery is a proud sponsor of GROW Nebraska.
Nebraska Passport Success Story
Susie Wissmann of
Master's Hands Candle Company applied for and was approved to be a stop on the Nebraska Passport Tour this year. She expected more business through the summer but she did not expect the large amount of traffic nor the publicity that she received as soon as the program started. Below is her testimonial.
"Just a QUICK e-mail update as it is CRAZY BUSY here!!!! Thanks so much for helping us be a part of the Nebraska Tour deal!!! We have been SO busy here because of it! If we keep this up, we will have OVER doubled our May from our 2011 May! Incredible! AND..... we hired 2 new people! How cool is that?!?!?! Because of being a part of the Nebraska tour we were also picked to be interviewed by KETV Omaha! WAHOO!!! ..... AND we were selected as one of the top 100 places to visit in Nebraska by the Omaha World Herald! WHAT!?!?!?! I’m overwhelmed with gratitude to you all!!! We will keep serving folks and making sure they have a great time! We want to make you proud of us!! Just wanted to let you know and tell you THANKS for helping us GROW! Susie for everyone here at Master’s Hand. Gotta RUN! I have a BIG tour group coming in tomorrow!"
GROWing with Sam's Club
GROW Nebraska works hard to help small businesses in Nebraska to make the right connections. We strive to educate, mentor, encourage and support small businesses in many ways; sometimes their greatest success comes from the connections we help them make.
In the past we have connected our Food members to markets here in Nebraska like Hy-Vee, Russ’s, Super Saver, Whole Foods, Scheels, Allen’s and many more. We have connected our product members to local entities across the state. We have taken our member’s products to the world through our
online market.
We are now helping members to connect with
Sam’s Club through an opportunity to sample their products at locations across Nebraska and the country. Sam's Club is owned and operated by Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., founded in 1983 and named after founder Sam Walton. Sam's Club currently has more than 580 locations worldwide.
We look forward to helping our members grow their businesses throughout Nebraska and beyond.
