Supporting Small Businesses
Kowalski’s has a unique an intentional relationship with emerging small businesses.
Kowalski’s endeavors to help brands prepare themselves for the retail environment by working with them upfront, sharing industry-specific informational and experiential resources that give them a better shot at long-term success. Such business owners need help in all aspects of their businesses: legal, regulatory, production, financial, staffing, general business strategy, operations, administration and more. Kowalski’s works with several incubator-style programs that provide a comprehensive suite of services tailored to meet the diverse needs of food entrepreneurs. Among other things, these programs help new business owners to gain access to affordable, shared commercial kitchen space, business development resources, and mentorship. Kowalski’s provides resources pertaining specifically to the retail grocery industry. We educate and provide critical insight in areas like pricing, competition, logistics/distribution, marketing, merchandising, packaging, labeling and assortment, even sourcing and formulation.
Working within the context of our partner organizations’ programming scheme, Kowalski’s team members lead organized training, offer tailored group and 1-on-1 mentoring and coaching, host cohort tours, evaluate practice pitches, judge entrepreneurial competitions, sit in on panel discussions, and host and teach workshops and seminars. We also test products in limited release to give brands a chance to “play in our sandbox” to work out any potential kinks in their operations before they attempt to enter the broader market.
Supporting these brands not only facilitates their successful entry into retail, but it can prepare them for regional or national expansion. Numerous Minnesota-based CPG brands have achieved regional and national success, often beginning with a partnership at Kowalski's Markets. One of Minnesota's most well-known success stories, So Good So You, maker of probiotic juices and wellness shots, made its major retail debut at Kowalski's and is now distributed at more than 5,000 stores across the country. Another Kowalski’s partner, JonnyPops, which began as a dorm room project at St. Olaf College in 2011 has also grown into an established national brand with a global presence. Newbie Huxley, which took the energy drink market by storm just last year at Expo West and won the Naturally Rising National Pitch Slam just a few months ago has been working with Kowalski’s since before anyone had ever tasted a single drop of their product.
By investing in people, ideas, and partnerships, Kowalski’s continues to shape a more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient food ecosystem—one brand at a time.
