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October, 2024

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You like hot sauce, want some for free? Help our business out-

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grown-ninja
Posts: 3031 - Karma: 175

Hey guys coming to NS for some business advice/research.  So I know you guys like hotsauce….I’m currently in the process of starting a hot sauce business, many things are under contract so I can’t talk about specifics but I’ll do what I can.  No were not 14 and starting a NS tall tee company (no hate to the people here who do) we all have degrees in business/finance, marketing, (have been in the profession field) and we’re currently in the process of working with a lawyer working out the contract, logistics and licensing of the name/brand.  We're hoping it all goes well, but you never know, we could be stoped dead in out tracts if things dont go well, then who know.   

That being said, one thing we can’t seem to agree on is the bottle to use…A HUGE DECISCION.  Which bottle would draw your eye, or if you have a better recomendation we'd like to hear it.  The choices we've narrowed it down to so far.

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  We have a 6m target of being in full production shooting from 120 days but it’s better to underestimate. 

Whoever helps and can give us some feedback will get a FREE little vial to taste our goods and spread the word.  Once again it’s still a few months away but we’re good on out word to send it out once production starts.

Here's what well be sending you. + some goodies of course.

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thanks guys, +k like usual

Feb 27 2012 12:05PM
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Casual.
Posts: 1125 - Karma: 28
throw a badass label on the first one and you're golden. i like some of the other shapes to but the first is the most practical i think.
Feb 28 2012 1:11PM
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TheBlueMtSkier
Posts: 909 - Karma: 42
If you want something gimmicky to maybe start it off, create a super-sized version of the hot sauce. For example, Cholula once made a 3 litre bottle of their hot sauce. I looked every where, but could never find it for sale. Would have bought it on the spot.
Feb 28 2012 1:12PM
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BROSEIDON
Posts: 3702 - Karma: 1,495
#1 fer sure
Feb 28 2012 1:17PM
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plaplapla
Posts: 435 - Karma: 70
#2. the cork looks cool and i like the shape of the bottle
Feb 28 2012 1:20PM
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Flying~Squirrel
Posts: 6494 - Karma: 192
flow is really important because if you have a wide open top like you do with a cork, youre going to dumping out way to much sauce onto whatever food your eating. i think it would be awesome to do something similar to how really nice olive oil is sold, where it comes corked but has a separate pour spout that comes with it. like have a top like this attached separately.

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of course keeping that kind of top on all the time would make it ard to keep fresh since the spouts that seal themselves are more complex / expensive, and youd only get one of those for a permanent refillable bottle. so i dont know
Feb 28 2012 1:39PM
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zues
Posts: 6434 - Karma: -5,330
i really like 2.

it attracts me more than 1 or 3 do.

it looks more 'upscale' i guess
Feb 28 2012 1:49PM
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ShredTheGnarnia
Posts: 2544 - Karma: 79
I think 1 would be the most convenient but 2 conveys the most class
Feb 28 2012 1:51PM
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JZ
Posts: 577 - Karma: 15
Cork will require more complex bottling equipment, and likely some sort of tamper evident seal depending on your customer - the grolsch style or some type of a screwcap will probably be easiest for you.

Also don't forget that if you're going for organic only 95% of the ingredients need to be certified organic for you to put "Organic" on the label or 70% for you to put "made with organic ingredients." And definitely do some accelerated shelf life and temperature stability testing to make sure the product doesn't separate before sale. Not sure how unique your product is but if it's a low acid food you may have to be concerned with botulinum.

Should be a great product, there could definitely be room in the market for premium hot sauces. What kind of production scale are you guys starting out on?
Feb 28 2012 1:56PM
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EricaMN.
Posts: 2704 - Karma: 347
#2 with one of those sauce nipples to limit flow. It would be an eye catcher for sure!
Feb 28 2012 2:04PM
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northeast
Posts: 2119 - Karma: 254
I love the look of the corks, but they're simply not practical, as has already been stated. I like number three the best, but the cork just isn't a good way to keep everything sealed. Unless, of course, you had a sweet plastic label to wrap around it.
Feb 28 2012 2:05PM
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grown-ninja
Posts: 3031 - Karma: 175

Great info on the organic stats, i will have to look into it.  Thats just my most recent idea seeing as how the organic market has exploded, and only 10% of all food bought nationwide in organic, giving us huge growth potential in that market.  I havent priced out what an organic product would cost but im under the impression its 25% min more to produce. Im being overly optimistic in shooting for 30 gallons a week or 4.3 gallons a day  if everything shapes out by mid-summer, thats 500-550 finished bottles a week.  Thats my target with a full time job in a non-professional kitchen setting.  Sometimes i feel like I'm allready getting my self in over my head.  Ill have to see exectly where the next few weeks better yet 60days takes me. 

In terms of shelf life testing ive been thinking of the logistics the past few weeks trying to figure out the best ways to go about it.  I bought some test bottles, figuring im gonna make a test batch, let it sit for a while and send it out for analysis to make sure its safe to eat, than purposely age a bottle by exposing it to heat, sunlight, change in temperatures, and sending that one out as well to see what it can withstand.  Still trying to think of other ways to go about it. No better PR than getting everyone sick once they eat it for the first time ha ha. 

Feb 28 2012 2:20PM
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rewand0
Posts: 315 - Karma: 14
I'm gonna go with number three it seems the most practical.
Feb 28 2012 2:25PM
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Yeezus
Posts: 3350 - Karma: 469
this.
Feb 28 2012 2:27PM
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thenightman
Posts: 766 - Karma: 132
this is exactly what I was going to say
Feb 28 2012 2:31PM
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japanada
Posts: 13784 - Karma: 1,957
Number one, with all the hot sauces out there, you NEED to stand out, not only with your flavor, but with you bottle and label.
Feb 28 2012 2:32PM
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grown-ninja
Posts: 3031 - Karma: 175
of course +k to all you dude, hopefully it can hold everyone over until the free samples and swag start flowing (T-MINUS one month hopefully)
Feb 28 2012 9:40PM
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SketchyMike
Posts: 539 - Karma: 71
number one is my favorite
Feb 28 2012 9:44PM
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penguiin
Posts: 1444 - Karma: 561
I like number one for sure, and I'm sure NS wouldn't mind doing some flavor testing for you
Feb 28 2012 9:49PM
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zzzzzzzzzzzz
Posts: 391 - Karma: 159
I personally think 2 is the most classy, but i could imagine it being a mess, if you could get around that part then you're golden.
Feb 28 2012 10:02PM
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EthanH*
Posts: 375 - Karma: 129
Number 1. Will hold the hot sauce the best, wont tip easy, and the cap is much better than the others.
Feb 28 2012 10:05PM
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Stan_Darsh
Posts: 3057 - Karma: 185
number one. just because of the cap system
Feb 28 2012 10:05PM
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Larry.Lawnmower.
Posts: 194 - Karma: 25
#1 or #3
Feb 28 2012 10:13PM
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~~~~~~~~
Posts: 2345 - Karma: 2,104
I would be more inclined to remember bottle one, could a cork be incorporated into that design?
Feb 28 2012 10:18PM
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-=---=-=-=-
Posts: 424 - Karma: 7
The short, stocky bottle would different. I feel like most hot sauces come in a tall, skinny bottle, so it would be cool to see something new. The cork is interesting, but not too practical, I would think. I bet it's cheap though. NS seems to have reached a consensus, number one. The top is way cool, and has my vote for sure! You sound like you know what your doing and are aimed towards success. Good luck!
Feb 28 2012 10:19PM
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Simon.k
Posts: 918 - Karma: 1,053
If i saw all 3 of those on the shelf i would definitely chose #2. I dont know why, it just has the best look IMO.
Feb 28 2012 11:19PM
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s.parker
Posts: 1041 - Karma: 259
i was thinking this, if possible, i really like the body style of numero two. but the cap is sick on number uno
Feb 28 2012 11:23PM
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djdiggidydave
Posts: 1216 - Karma: 555
#1 for sure
Feb 28 2012 11:30PM
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chickenonabun
Posts: 461 - Karma: 285
I think the cap thingy for 1 looks weird, I like one of the cork ones better.
Feb 28 2012 11:35PM
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steep
Posts: 6063 - Karma: 298
number 1 for sure, especially if your logo/name/etc "matches the style" of the bottle, but all in all, 1 is the coolest and most appealing.
Feb 28 2012 11:37PM
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HeyImPeter
Posts: 190 - Karma: 12
Number one is the most unique, cork doesn't seem practical for hot sauce. Will this be avalable iin Michigan? I'd give it a buy
Feb 29 2012 9:18AM
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B.Aussie
Posts: 5852 - Karma: 4,531
If you're going purely for looks, I would say bottle number 2 or 5.
But the practicality of number 1's top is probably best.
Feb 29 2012 10:02AM
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SolMi
Posts: 337 - Karma: 14
sounds awesome do all that but age like ten bottles so you get sample data you can actually use with confidence.




also bottle 1 is super fresh i would be stoked to have hot auce in something like that.
Feb 29 2012 10:07AM
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elemeno89
Posts: 1582 - Karma: 79
honestly it could depend on your product story and how you want to deliver it. i would say number one or two based on the similar shape of the bottle.

when i look at bottle one and two, i see a 'rough' type of hot sauce. something that gets served in a bbq joint or a country bar. the bottles convey a kind of hot sauce people use in abundance because they like how it spices up their food on a meal to meal basis.

when i see number three i see a sauce that serves as a flavor adder. something that you use to add a little zest to a soup, sauce, or salsa. not necessarily something you use to spice up your morning eggs, etc.

in all honesty though, it depends on what you think. going from a pure i love hot sauce on everything standpoint, i would go for one or two. the bottle share many similarities and you price can be adjusted by size.

if you want, strike up a business model and i can help you out and advise (for some sauce of course, haha :-) ), i too am a business guy, just graduated in 11.
Feb 29 2012 10:13AM
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Evilchris
Posts: 2090 - Karma: 44
word
Feb 29 2012 11:07AM
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JZ
Posts: 577 - Karma: 15
With that kind of scale you might look around for an FDA pilot kitchen/culinary incubator for your production - they're set up around the country to help startups with all the paperwork, food safety, etc and provide a commercial kitchen environment for you to work in. Not sure if it's fee based or they take a percentage of your sales but it might be worth looking into.

And for the shelf life your biggest concern will be keeping the pH below 4.6, do that and FDA regs are looser since botulinum will not grow. Your quality shelf life test plan seems pretty good though - there are also private labs that will do it for you if you'd rather just send samples.

feel free to pm me if you have any technical questions - I'm in my fourth year of a Food Science PhD and definitely hope to start my own business someday so it's pretty cool to watch other people getting into it. Good luck to you guys
Feb 29 2012 11:18AM
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hundreds
Posts: 775 - Karma: 341
first thing that came to mind...the second body is so classy but the cork would be a pain in the ass
Feb 29 2012 11:20AM
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Ryguy920
Posts: 898 - Karma: 207
this, plus in my experience with hot sauce the cork would cause a mess with dripping and running down the sides. i vote number 1
Feb 29 2012 12:16PM
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TBigCat
Posts: 629 - Karma: 4
number 1
Feb 29 2012 1:33PM
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ChadThundercock
Posts: 3071 - Karma: 830
#1 without the weird latch thing, otherwise 2
Feb 29 2012 3:04PM
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TBigCat
Posts: 629 - Karma: 4
nicee
Feb 29 2012 3:32PM
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Master_Debater
Posts: 1211 - Karma: 225
#1 looks like it has the most functionality to it. Im presuming that metal casing keeps the cork on. The other bottles are really simple, just go with number one.
Feb 29 2012 3:59PM
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grown-ninja
Posts: 3031 - Karma: 175

Thanks man I'm definitely going to shoot you a pm, sounds like an interesting field of study.  I lined up fda nutritional labeling, shelf life testing, and ingredient listing...est. was $1,065.  Not sure if im getting ripped off.  Sounds really expensive but i have no baseline.  Also most states have weird food cooking rules. To sell you need to cook in a professional kitchen,  ive been looking around they all run around $200 a shift between 4-8 hours depending on time of day.  One I cook up the first real test back I'll test the PH and that should allow me to figure things out a little better.  

 

Things add up so fast, my estimate is around $7000 to make my first 500 bottles if that give any people out there thinking about doing a start up the costs involved---even when doing something small.  

Feb 29 2012 3:59PM
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CarrotSteeze
Posts: 147 - Karma: 105
speaking novelty you should do the bottle number one for the first few years of business, you know seem classy and make it a collectors hotsauce thing, then when production gets big make people remember the old sweet bottle, when you change it like coke, so when things get down change the bottle types and boom people are buying again.
Mar 9 2012 12:07AM
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pissbutt
Posts: 127 - Karma: 11
this. Im like a black person. I love hot sauce.
Mar 9 2012 1:23AM
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itsthenorthwest
Posts: 41 - Karma: 10
If its going to be super artisan (and freakin expensive) go with the long cork bottle.  If it is going to be a more affordable, yet still quality product, go with the first one.  Those seem to have been all the rage these last few years.  Best of luck!
Mar 9 2012 1:31AM
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SickJib_Brit
Posts: 824 - Karma: 151
# 1

The corks like what #1 has are amazing! There is no cap to get messy, or cork to lose and it keeps it fresh!
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Satans blood (My hottest hot sauce in my collection) has this kind of lid and its always clean and easy to use!

GO WITH #1!!!! You won't be disappointed!!!!

From my experiences with collecting hot sauces, go with #1.
Mar 9 2012 1:42AM
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SterlingArcher
Posts: 2200 - Karma: 2,456

your not selling milk out of your dairy truck,,  so #2 for sure

Mar 9 2012 1:43AM
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Errl
Posts: 2082 - Karma: 451
number one caught my eye the most (if that makes sense). i think you should go with that
Mar 9 2012 7:36AM
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PopsicleStand
Posts: 6890 - Karma: 147
number 1, hot sauce addict here if you make some good shit I absolutely would spread the word to a lot of people...
Mar 9 2012 7:44AM
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