How Best Can You Sell Near Expired Products?
Manufacturers, supermarkets and Pharmacies daily face the dilemma of what to do with soon-to-expire products yet there is a solution.
To recover their revenue and salvage their products, they seek appropriate channels outside the traditional channels of reaching buyers before the products actually expire but the problem remains because most people don’t understand how to get these products off the suppliers before they expire.
Achieving the step of getting soon-to-expire products to buyers who are ready to immediately consume them or consume them before their expiry dates is the actual step by the suppliers that puts money in your pockets either when they give their products as freebies for freebies marketing or give irresistible mouth-watering discounts.
Though this post sheds light on freebies on near expired goods, my ultimate desire is to remind you of what you may be missing by paying a lot for products you can get for free and use up before their actual expiry dates!
To be clear – the tips shared in this post are not for soon-to-expire products that are unwholesome i.e spoiled, repackaged, contaminated, but for packed unexposed products whose quality and unit quantity have not been compromised with minimally dented packaging.
The products are close to their expiration date and sold to customers willing to use the soon-to-expire products and finish before their actual expiry dates. Please reject any product that has fallen out of safe coloration, smell, temperature range, exposed to contaminants, or is in any other way unsafe enough for consumption.
What are near expiry products?
Every product comes with an expiry date. This expiry date means the date before which the optimum quality of the product as deemed by the manufacturer, or supplier is guaranteed.
Many products each year end up wasted because people did not consume them before their expiry dates. These products include food, groceries, and much more. Food particularly has a report of a high level of waste.
There are reports that over 10% of gas emissions come from the incineration of expired unconsumed foods. The topic of food wastage has long circulated in the media. Many have argued that the amount of food wasted as expired foods is large enough that they can feed and quench world hunger.
In spite of this grave concern, food is still being wasted. This is where freebies on nearly expired goods come in.
How To Get Freebies Of Near Expired Products.
Rather than allowing a product to expire, many sellers use channels outside the traditional channels to get the products to buyers before the products expire and go to waste. These sellers generally:
-give customers these goods at a discount,
-use for product sampling and sales promo,
-offer for free by donating to orphanages, military etc,
-sell at huge discounts to manufacturers with freezers that can keep the food fresh for longer time and,
-sell to grocery outlets who even sell their own soon-to-expire foods like meant at huge discount, commonly sold at the back of the mall in UK malls .
For many sellers, here are some of the freebie options they make use of
Heavy discount
Sellers can decide to give out these products on discounts up to 90% off. This is practically free and will draw people to buy these goods.
Gift boxes
Many companies sell gift boxes or lunch boxes. Producers and sellers can contact them and give their products at a discount to them. This is a useful option because these gift boxes or lunch boxes sell quickly.
Free trials and survey
Another way near expired products sell for retailers is with this. Survey and free trails allow users to get these products at the cost of a survey. The company, in return, gets these products consumed while getting consumer information.
Buy one get one free
Another way soon to be expired products get sold out is by giving this discount. Many companies give a small discount or sell at the same price and still give one extra free.
What are the causes of near expired products?
Of course, we all know products expire, but many manufacturers give at least six months to a product’s life. If products get such long lives, why are there so many products expiring without usage? Here are some of the top reasons:
Delay in moving from warehouse to retailers
Sometimes, products delay moving out to the public. This may be the result of not enough retailers. The result is they stay longer than their shelf life and end up in dire need of consumption.
Overproduction
Although not a very popular reason, some companies overproduce. This is also a linking issue to limited retailers. When this happens, products sit in the warehouse for too long before moving out.
Poor warehouse management
Typically, when goods enter a warehouse, they are logged in. The logging system differs, but the idea is always to have newer products away from the older ones. Some warehouses use wrong inventory systems for releasing stored goods,for example instead of using “First To Expire,First Out”(FEFO),they use First In First Out’ (FIFO).
This way, when it needs to be sent out, those that have been there for a while go out first. When there is poor warehouse management, goods can be left out for months before moving out.
Poor patronage
This is possibly the biggest reason. When a product is poorly patronized, the produced goods end up not selling. They end up being stored for so long they close in on their expiration date.
Unplanned economic and social change
A popular example is the Covid 19 pandemic. Due to the lockdown, many products closed in on their shelf life. Since people were only buying the essentials, other non-essential goods suffered greatly. The only option retailers, manufacturers, and wholesalers, though, were to offer freebies.
Consumers Poor Purchase Choices
Some consumers buy more than what they need and because they lack storage capability to increase shelf life, the products eventually go to waste.
Expensive preservative technology
There are new technology for preserving foods, fruits and vegetables. These technologies are expensive and currently being used by big corporations like Nature’s Pride but beyond the price small businesses can afford.
Are near expired goods bad?
Food experts and authorities around the world have stated that best before goods are not bad. Best before or buy before is a sign that the product is better consumed before that day. Many foods and products are consumable long after the best before date.
The major factor depends on the product and the storage method. Many products can last another six months after the best before date.
However, many consumers’ mentality has put a letter ‘x’ over any product that is past the BB date. Some experts agree with consumers to reject these products. Some other ways to differentiate based on the producer’s statement.
If a product reads best before or best buy, it is okay to use it a week after the date. But if a product reads expires, then you should instantly discard it.
Businesses that offer freebies on nearly expired goods.
Many businesses had to offer freebies on products because of the pandemic. Here are some of them.
Indian liquor businesses
Generally, Indian businesses suffered greatly during the heat of covid-19. That of the liquor companies was the worst. Many bars and restaurants were shut down for weeks. With no patronage and not sales, many drinks closed in on their shelf life.
These products are mostly imported drinks and those of high demands. Before the pandemic, many retailers stocked up their shops for regular business. When the pandemic escalated, there was nothing they could do.
As of October, businesses, wholesalers, and brand owners are resulting in freebies. The goal is to clear off the goods unsold and edging on to expired. The present sell on these high demand beers in India has dropped to Rs 500. This is apparently over half the regular price. Apart from the price discount, some manufacturers have sought to use “buy one and get one for free.” This is to attract more customers.
Some manufacturers confirmed that consumers refused to buy liquor over the Rs 500. This is due to the loss of jobs and other distress. India’s prevailing situation might soon force liquor traders out of the market if care is not taken.
This is because most of them now sell below 5% daily and one of the best ways to help themselves is by doing freebies.
This is because most of them now sell below 5% daily and one of the best ways to help themselves is by doing freebies.Indian food businesses
Another aspect of the economy that is badly hit is the food items. The crashing economy and the pandemic has crippled the finances of ordinary people. This has made so many people eat what is available and not what they want to eat. The result is a low turn-out on food patronage.
This is especially on perishable food items. The result of these are producers selling off stock through discounts. According to Meijer, in a bid to stop the wastage, the Flashfood app has been asked to cut down the in-store cost. One of the situations that leads to this is to avoid food wastage. The more the wastage, the more bad effects it has on the world economy at large.
Best Before Date Policy In New Delhi.
In a bid to see the food wastage menace, packed food in New Delhi might soon resort to other methods. This will include giving stated discounts on products that are close to expiring. This is one of the labeling regulations and good food retail policies by the Food Standards Authority of India.
As a result of this, consumers will be able to negotiate for products close to expiring. This is another way to curb food wastage. In such an instance, a consumer is told of its expiry date and how safe it is to consume. One of the advantages of the policy is also to help companies to reduce losses.
Some retailers return stock to companies when they are about to cross the ‘ best before date. These companies are left with no options than to destroy these goods.
Happy Hour Sales Discount In Finland
Like in India, the people of Finland have also seen a lot of waste in food. Theirs is not only a result of the pandemic, although that was an escalating factor. This situation has been a great concern for the supermarkets. This is because they end up discarding many products. After all, they have gone beyond their BB dates.
In Finland, to avoid food wastage, the supermarkets started a freebie option. Tagged “happy hour” these supermarkets now sell products with close best before dates at a discount. These items include pork tenderloin or shrimp and beer. This has increased the demand for these food items, and consumers are ecstatic. These supermarkets have also seen massive patronage and sales since they began.
The freebie option is open only when the supermarkets record a high amount of goods that are soon to expire. They invite the public, and many store managers have testified that they sell them off in no time.
Conclusion
Products left to expire without being sold is clear wastage and an indictment on us all that we have permitted for too long.
Many businesses around the world have found a way around it and this post brings it to your attention once again.
What I recommend in this post are beneficial to the consumers and the producers.
Since we all win by reducing wastage caused by products left to expire unused, why not join the campaign today and take them off as freebies or great deals of near expiry products.
