The Good, the Bad, and the Misunderstood: What is it About Brokers?
For many emerging brands, foodservice brokers can seem like a necessary evil—or a complete mystery. You’re told they’re the key to scaling, but you’re also told they won’t “sell for you.” You're told they want leads—but then they don’t follow up. You're told you’re too small—but no one can define what “big enough” means.
So what’s the truth? And how should founders actually think about brokers today?
Julie Swift, a former national broker executive turned advisor, has helped hundreds of food brands navigate this very problem. We’re distilling her expertise—alongside insights from Reed McCord’s recent interview with her—into actionable takeaways.
1. Not All Brokers Are Created Equal (And That’s a Good Thing)
Today’s broker landscape is more nuanced than ever. Yes, there are still a few giant national brokers (Affinity Group, CORE, Action). But there’s also been a quiet rise of non-traditional, fractional, and regional players:
National non-traditional: Co-ops like Sales One stitch together regional brokers for national coverage.
Fractional sellers: Firms like Rooted or Green Nature Marketing work in very specific niches and take on fewer lines.
Strong regional independents: Not part of national groups but winning big in their markets through deep relationships and nimbleness.
Founders often assume failure with one broker means the whole model is broken. It’s not. It means you didn’t have the right fit.
2. You're Probably Not "Big Enough" for a National Broker
Let’s say it plainly: most national brokers today are looking for lines that generate $500K+ in commissions, which means you likely need $10M+ in sales in that region to make the math work. In 2018, $250K in commissions might have done it. Not anymore.
If you’re paying a retainer to get in the door? That’s usually a red flag. As Julie notes, those deals often disappoint both sides.
Better path: Go where you’re the big fish. Explore fractional or regional partners who can give your brand real mindshare and route density.
3. Broker Math Isn’t Just About Commission %—It’s About “Cost to Serve”
Brokers don’t just care about your revenue—they care about how well your product fits their existing call patterns. That’s the real margin story.
A broker with strong cheese and specialty accounts can seamlessly add your jam or chutney line. But if you make plant-based ice cream and they don't have freezer stops, that’s a high "cost to serve"—even if your volume is strong.
Your job: Ask where your product fits in their bag. If they can't name 3 current clients or routes where you're a natural add-on, think twice.
4. Brokers Aren’t Closer Reps. Stop Expecting Them to Be.
This is one of the most common misconceptions. You think: We’ll send leads, and the broker will follow up and close them. Wrong.
Brokers focus on accounts they already call on. Why? Because they have leverage there. They know the buyer. They influence the distributor. Cold outreach? That’s outside their economic model—and usually not worth their time.
Smart strategy: Don’t send random leads. Instead, align your marketing and lead gen to the broker’s core accounts and verticals. Better yet, ask what they need help influencing, and support their targets.
5. Digital Selling Is Now Part of the Playbook (But Rarely Tracked)
Face-to-face isn’t everything anymore. Top brokers use email, text, CRM-driven follow-ups—even Instagram—to move product. But manufacturers rarely have visibility into that.
Ask your broker:
Do you use geomapping to optimize routes?
What % of outreach is digital vs. in-person?
How do you prioritize new product intros?
Tools like First Bite (CRM + lead gen for foodservice) are increasingly being used to close the visibility gap between manufacturers and brokers.
6. The Emerging Model: Three Funnels, Not Two
Most brands think in two go-to-market channels:
Direct reps
Brokers
Julie argues for a third: fractional selling, fueled by clean data and high-quality leads. This model plugs gaps between rep-led accounts and broker targets, allowing faster test-and-learn cycles—and better ROI on digital campaigns.
Advanced strategy: Use CRM-driven tools to identify the 10-20% of accounts that fall between funnels—and close them with fractional talent or inside sales.
Final Thought: Stop Forcing the Fit
Too often, founders approach brokers like they’re interchangeable vendors. They're not.
They’re people with portfolios, limitations, and territory realities. If you can collaborate—define success together, co-develop call points, and align incentives—you’ll win.
If you treat them like field closers for leads you don’t want to chase yourself? Expect friction. Or worse—silence.
Takeaway: The broker model isn’t broken. It’s just misunderstood. The brands that win are the ones that stop trying to force a “unicorn” national broker and start building a modular, strategic sales ecosystem—with brokers, reps, digital, and data all working together.
