Everybody loves chocolate! This simple fact is what makes chocolate fundraisers such successful and popular means of fundraising.
Running A Chocolate Fundraiser
Chocolate fundraisers can be either cash-and-carry sales or brochure and catalog order taking events. They may consist of quick and easy candy bar sales or more complex catalog sales offering customers a wide variety of chocolate and gourmet items.
If your chocolate fundraiser is to be a cash-and-carry sale, such as a candy bar sale, your group will have to invest some cash into purchasing the candy bars or chocolates upfront. This may be difficult for a fledgling or cash-poor organization, but the convenience of limited distribution and fast profits may make a cash-and-carry sale worth the investment.
This is especially true if your organization has access to selling opportunities during events and shows where large numbers of buyers will be reached quickly. Some chocolate supply companies may extend credit for the candy bars and/or chocolate as well. On-hand selling usually equates to increased sales and profits. One additional advantage of cash-and-carry sales is that they can be run continuously by simply restocking as long as consumer interest will support the sale.
Select from a variety of chocolate fundraisers at eFundraising. (Sponsor link)
Catalog based chocolate fundraisers negate the need to invest money upfront, but the trade-off is usually limited sales. Catalog offerings are more expensive as they are really gourmet chocolates and so appeal to a smaller group, and are often only appealing when a need is present, such as during the holiday seasons (Christmas, Easter) when customers will purchase them for gifts.
On the other hand, there is less of a need for storage of ordered items, and they are paid for by sellers prior to ordering, so your group will not need to worry about product being taken and not sold or paid for by the seller; you won’t have to spend time chasing people for either returned unsold chocolate or the equivalent cash value.
Storage, particularly during a cash-and-carry pre-buy event, is a primary concern. Not only will your group need space enough to store the chocolate, but that space will need to be safe and cool. In addition, before buying chocolate for a cash-and-carry event, you will want to know about some important company policies.
Find out what the company’s policy is for returned chocolate; some may be willing to accept unopened cases of chocolate, while others may have a strict ‘no-return’ policy, which means your group could be buying chocolate you can’t sell.
Find out if the company will replace or allow you to return poor quality, broken, or melted chocolate should the product arrive damaged.
Likewise, make sure the company will stand behind their product quality for catalog and brochure sales.
Finally, find out what your ability to restock chocolate and candy bars is if you should find sales booming. By dealing with a company with a generous re-supply policy and low minimum orders, you can order in quantities you are reasonably assured you can sell and reorder as needed. This also helps you order just the popular flavors and best sellers.
(More chocolate fundraisers…)
Chocolate sales are well received, making them a great resource for fast and easy fundraising. Cashing in on the chocolate craze is a good idea for any organization in need.