You have a brand, you have ambition to market your custom dietary supplement product successfully. The setback is you have worked with some not-so-great manufacturers, or you have yet to choose a vitamin manufacturer at all. It can be a difficult task but run with these ten tips and you will be much more equipped to choose a trustworthy contract supplement manufacturer that is right for you.
1. Anybody Home?
Have you tried calling the manufacturer? Does anyone answer? Or do you get stuck leaving a voicemail? Some illegitimate companies do not pick up the phone at all. Unless you hear a live person on the other end, the manufacturer is most likely not staffed with full-time staff.
The Makers way
We answer the phones 24/7 because no client should have to wait days before hearing back from a prospective vitamin manufacturer. Our team is ready to take your call and address any questions you may have regarding our capabilities, capacity, and credibility. While some supplement manufacturers try to avoid speaking face to face with prospective business owners, Makers Nutrition’s product specialists are eager to speak whichever way you request. When COVID hit, we adapted and made video conferencing an easy option for all potential and current clients. Whether your brand’s headquarters are in New York, Texas, California, or Asia, it makes no difference to us. Anyone can access our vitamin manufacturing services from anywhere in the world.
2. Google the vitamin manufacturer
Type in the company’s name and hit enter! What comes up? A website speaks volumes. From user compatibility to the company’s display of services it provides. It does not have to be the hippest site with all the cool nuances of a social network, but the manufacturer’s site should definitely appear professional and comprehensive. Something like this.
The Makers way
Our website conveys everything we want you to know upfront. We do not withhold vital information about the types of dietary supplements we can help manufacture, package, fulfill, and deliver. You can easily request a FREE quote at the click of a button. Visitors are not troubled by the layout or confused about where to find information. And if there is something they’d like more detail on, they can simply call us at 1-844-625-3771, our phone number which is listed at the top of our home page for all to see.
3. A well-established supplement facility
With age comes great wisdom. Check the birthday of the supplement manufacturing service provider to see how long it has been in business. Is it established? Has it been around long enough, staffed with vitamin and supplement experts whose skills produce the best possible outcomes? Age matters when putting all your faith in one provider. You don’t wan to give all your money to a facility that may not be qualified, which we will get to shortly, or one that may not be around long enough to bring your project to completion.
The Makers way
Now in our ninth year of business, leading the dietary supplement industry, Makers Nutrition is not going anywhere. We are propelling the success of startups and seasoned companies alike, and we are here to stay. Along the way we have garnered so much knowledge about industry trends and what works well for health brands on a highly competitive market. We know that our clients have enjoyed steady growth by launching their first product, be it a probiotic capsule, prenatal gummy, or green superfood powder, and then gradually expanding their line to include other vitamins or supplements that consumers want and need. The easiest way to do so is by utilizing our private label program, which allows you to invest less money than you would for a custom formula, and profit more.
4. Who Owns the Vitamin Manufacturer?
If a supplement manufacturer is a subsidiary of a larger business entity, there might be a lurking conflict of interest. Be completely sure your manufacturer is not your competitor. Sales data will indicate if your formula is successful, while your fulfillment data will show them how you distribute. This is private information that should never be shared with a parent entity that also sells supplements directly to consumers. Linking to a competitor puts your business in jeopardy, especially since the manufacturer has total access to your formula(s).
The Makers way
Makers Nutrition was founded and is run by business trailblazer Jason Provenzano. He started our company with the initiative of wanting to provide budding entrepreneurs the chance they don’t typically get with a provider that only manufactures. That is why Makers Nutrition handles not only manufacturing, but also graphic design, packaging, freight and fulfillment. With us, you don’t have to locate separate providers, and while we carry white label formulas for you, we do not have a brand of our own. We DO NOT compete with our clients.
5. Certification and Awards
Now about those qualifications. Contract manufacturers typically display their registrations and certifications on their websites. NSF International is the oldest leading, tried-and-true global provider of public health and safety risk management solutions. NSF International is also the only independent, third-party organization that enables companies to become registered as meeting GMP (Good Manufacturing Practices) requirements through regular NSF International independent auditing. If the website does not clearly specify the company’s certifications, ask over the phone—that is of course, if someone answers.
The Makers way
Consistency proves credibility. A simple search online can also lead you to the many, or absence of, awards the manufacturer has to its name. Press releases, discussion boards, and blogs can prove the impressive, or not-so-impressive reputability of the company. We have worked hard to build and maintain a reputation that makes us proud to call ourselves the #1 choice provider for the dietary supplement industry.
6. Presentation is Everything
How visible is the vitamin manufacturing company? Nearly all major contract manufacturers are often found at trade shows, exhibiting their specialties and expertise. If they have never attended a trade show, chances are they are not a legitimate operation to entrust with your business.
The Makers way
We attend trade shows regularly. From Supply Side to Natural Products Expo East and West, you can find Makers Nutrition’s booth manned with our expert team members prepared to hear about your startup supplement business or what next project you plan on encapsulating.
7. Can They Provide?
Countless manufacturers talk the talk, but can they walk the walk? Make sure the company can do everything they claim to be experts on. Powder manufacturing? What’s the process? Packaging solutions? What kind? What about fulfillment? This information will become more crucial in making the right decision on a vitamin manufacturer because it is a big decision.
The Makers way
The benefits of using our services include an unmatchable level of customer service, upfront answers, and transparency. We tell you what we can do, and then we show you what we can do. Our capabilities range in delivery format, from tablets to powders, and our packaging designs can be virtually anything you want them to be. Choose white label, choose custom formulas—with a department of determined manufacturing technicians and a team of talented graphic artists, we can produce boxes, bags, and bottles containing that exact formula, meeting all of your specifications. Once that is done, we will warehouse and ship your products anywhere within the continental United States at reduced rates. That is due to our high-volume discount pricing on freight, as we cut costs for clients, without cutting corners.
8. Timing
What is the manufacturer’s lead time? You do want production fulfilled quickly, but beware that haste makes waste. You are putting a lot of your own time and money into this project, and you wouldn’t want all of it to be for nothing. Get things done right the first time so as not to create bigger problems such as delays and unnecessary errors.
The Makers way
With lead times as few as four weeks, Makers Nutrition works methodically and efficiently to get your product on the shelves or online as quickly and as safely as possible. We do not associate ourselves with rushed jobs because we know that haste makes waste. Don’t fall into the trap of an uncredentialed, speeding supplement manufacturer that simply wants to make money off of your business regardless of the quality and value they provide. We have heard the horror stories from clients. Don’t throw away your innovative and beneficial vitamin ideas that could help countless individuals because you trusted the wrong provider.
9. Ask for samples
Don’t sign on blindly. Ask if the vitamin manufacturer offers samples. If they offer stock products but do not offer you the opportunity to try them out before offering them yourself, then that is a red flag. The provider should have confidence in their supplements and not try to hide them.
The Makers way
We have plenty of samples on hand so you can determine if you will take the private label or the custom formula route. If you like the flavor of our vitamins but want to change some of their ingredients, then it becomes a custom order. Here, you can tell us exactly the kind of flavor you want, and we can send you flavor profiles to narrow down the one you would like manufactured. Makers Nutrition’s advanced flavor systems have won us numerous awards and catapulted sales for thousands of health brand CEOs, doctors, gym chains, and others!
10. Gear Up and Get Going
These tips are key to not only choosing the best contract manufacturer, but to avoiding the many problems that discourage so many brands who have untapped potential. Foster your upward trajectory by partnering with Makers Nutrition, a reliable, one-stop shop supplement manufacturing service provider that walks you up the ladder of success.