When most consumer packaged goods (CPG) founders think about selling their product, they picture a shopper pulling it from the shelf. That moment of truth matters, but before consumers ever see your product, another audience decides whether it makes it to the shelf in the first place: the retail buyer.
To succeed in CPG, you must win over both buyers and consumers. Each has unique motivations and expectations, and focusing on one without the other creates blind spots that can stall growth.
Buyers vs. Consumers: Two Different Worlds
According to Articulate Marketing, consumers and business buyers make decisions in fundamentally different ways:
- Consumers buy emotionally — guided by taste, packaging, price, or brand values.
- Retail buyers buy rationally — guided by data, category performance, margins, and logistics.
This explains why a snack that thrives at a farmer’s market may struggle in a national grocery chain. Market shoppers buy with their senses and emotions. A retail buyer wants proof that the product will turn fast enough to earn its shelf space and deliver profitable margins.
What Retail Buyers Care About
Retail buyers act as gatekeepers. Their job is not to fall in love with your brand — it is to maximize the performance of their category. They evaluate hundreds of pitches every year, and most do not make the cut.
Here is what typically matters most to them:
- Category performance: Does your product expand the category or cannibalize existing sales?
- Velocity: Will the product sell quickly enough to justify the slot?
- Margins: After discounts, promotions, and retailer fees, is the product profitable?
- Operational reliability: Can you deliver consistently at the volume they need?
- Brand support: Will you invest in marketing to drive traffic into their stores?
Buyers are analytical. They want to see numbers, not just passion. At Come Sell or High Water, we prepare founders to present detailed unit economics, show how the product strengthens the category, and back up claims with real-world data.
If you cannot show a buyer how your brand improves their numbers, the meeting is unlikely to go far.
What Consumers Care About
Consumers, on the other hand, operate on an entirely different level. Their decisions are emotional, habitual, and often unconscious.
Loop Returns identifies four key consumer behaviors that are especially relevant in CPG:
- Complex buying: High involvement and research, often for health or premium products
- Variety-seeking: Frequent switching just to try something new
- Dissonance-reducing: Needing reassurance after making a purchase
- Habitual buying: Grabbing the same brand out of routine and loyalty
For example:
- A variety-seeking snack shopper may try your chips once but will need compelling packaging or flavor innovation to come back.
- A habitual beverage shopper will only switch if you offer clear differentiation.
- A dissonance-reducing buyer may rely on third-party certifications, strong branding, or reviews to feel confident.
Consumers are not thinking about category profit or slotting fees. They are asking simple questions: Does this taste good? Does it solve my problem? Does it align with my values?
The Danger of Favoring One Over the Other
Many founders fail because they lean too heavily toward one audience.
- Consumer-only focus: A brand invests heavily in Instagram ads and influencer campaigns. Consumers are intrigued, but in-store velocity is weak. Buyers see poor numbers and delist the product.
- Buyer-only focus: A brand secures distribution by offering strong margins. But the packaging confuses consumers, the story fails to connect, and sales remain slow. Retailers eventually pull it from shelves.
The lesson: The buyer opens the door, but the consumer keeps you in the room.
Common Pitfalls Founders Face
- Assuming digital buzz translates to retail sales: Online excitement does not guarantee in-store pull.
- Underestimating slotting and promotional fees: Buyers expect support, and these costs can drain cash quickly.
- Overpromising in buyer meetings: Missing delivery deadlines or failing to hit projections damages credibility fast.
- Neglecting consumer experience: Attractive margins do not matter if consumers do not repurchase.
Balancing these realities is where many founders stumble — and where strategic planning makes the difference.
Building a Strategy That Wins Both
The strongest CPG brands build strategies that address both buyers and consumers simultaneously:
- Data-driven buyer pitches
Show exactly how your product strengthens category performance, improves margins, and meets velocity benchmarks.
- Consumer-centric branding
Use packaging, messaging, and storytelling that connect emotionally. A buyer may get you on the shelf, but consumers decide if you stay.
- Retail activation support
Back up your placement with demos, promotions, and digital marketing that push consumers to retail partners.
- Feedback loops
Listen to both buyers and consumers. Buyers give insight into category performance. Consumers tell you what resonates. Together, this feedback helps you pivot intelligently.
At Come Sell or High Water, we teach founders to view these audiences as interconnected rather than separate. Ignoring either one is not an option.
Case Example 1: The Snack Brand That Misread Consumers
A startup snack company poured money into influencer campaigns and built strong online buzz. Buyers gave them a chance at a regional grocery chain. But in-store velocity was weak. Consumers saw the product, but the packaging failed to stand out, and trial-to-repeat conversion was poor. Within six months, the product was dropped.
Lesson: Consumer enthusiasm online is not the same as in-store sales. Packaging, placement, and value proposition must connect in retail.
Case Example 2: The Beverage Brand That Overrelied on Buyers
Another brand secured placement by offering strong margins to a major retailer. Buyers were happy at first, but consumers found the product confusing. The branding was unclear, the benefits were not obvious, and the story was missing. Sales lagged, and the retailer scaled back orders.
Lesson: Strong buyer support cannot compensate for weak consumer adoption.
Case Example 3: The Personal Care Brand That Got It Right
A personal care brand carefully balanced both audiences. They came to buyers with strong unit economics, proof of consumer demand from smaller markets, and a disciplined marketing plan. Once on shelves, they invested in sampling, packaging refreshes, and digital campaigns that reinforced in-store performance. Velocity exceeded benchmarks, and the brand expanded regionally.
Lesson: When you serve both buyers and consumers, you create momentum that feeds itself.
A Founder’s Checklist
Before you pitch a buyer or launch in a new channel, ask yourself:
- Can I prove how my product improves the retailer’s category?
- Do I know which consumer behavior type I am targeting most?
- Am I supporting buyers with data and consumers with emotional connection?
- Do I have a marketing plan to drive both trial and repeat purchases?
- How will I measure performance across both audiences?
If the answer to any of these is unclear, pause and refine your approach before taking the next step.
Closing Thoughts
In CPG, you are always selling to two audiences. Buyers decide whether your product makes it to the shelf. Consumers decide whether it stays there.
Founders who respect both perspectives are the ones who thrive. They bring discipline and data to buyers, while offering authenticity and emotional resonance to consumers. When you strike this balance, you not only secure placement but also build lasting loyalty.
Growth in CPG is not about choosing one audience over the other. It is about mastering the art of serving both.