It takes time to be “first to market”

Over saturation and keen competition in the end consumer market for dietary supplements and complementary medicines drives constant sourcing demands and a perceived need for “first to market” claims.

With a seemingly limitless array of raw materials and nutraceutical product ingredients available globally, quality brands and manufacturers rely on meticulous filtering processes to reveal reliable, innovative and approved elements.

Why is “first to market” so important?

For manufacturers and brands, achieving “first to market” is a key factor for product success; it’s a great selling point, it demonstrates to consumers that the brand is on trend, and it enables a brand owner to claim that marketing advantage. Brand owners are constantly seeking product range extensions or new products to launch. New or improved ingredients are critical to brand growth and development, and making new claims for an ingredient provides the opportunity for product line extension.

For quality brands and manufacturers, attaining “first to market” status is not a race. By forming strategic partnerships with suppliers, such as TransChem, to identify credible, unique, high quality, innovative and traceable ingredients for their products, claiming “first to market” comes at the end of an extensive investigation process.

TransChem’s CEO Andrew Klapka will attend Vitafoods Asia in Singapore, 11-12 September 2018. With a full book of appointments with suppliers, Mr Klapka will be looking for particular ingredients of interest to TransChem clients and canvasing exhibitors for ingredients of interest, beginning an estimated one to three month process of culling and filtering which aims to verify between five and 10 well qualified ingredients from the hundreds of raw materials and ingredients on offer.

It’s a painstaking process that has earned TransChem an enviable reputation as the leading independent importer and distributor of quality raw materials across Australia and New Zealand; TransChem provides “first to market” branded ingredients to create new products and clients can be confident of the quality, differentiating appeal and innovation of their ingredients.

TransChem works with a brand, sponsors and manufacturers to identify and source new to market and market leading ingredients based on industry insight, brand and consumer feedback. Specialist supplier partnerships are helpful for brands to maintain this constant capability and exhibit a point of difference; they enable brands to focus on product development, thus supporting brands to make the “first to market claim”. It’s like fitting a Research & Development booster into the manufacturing process.

By partnering with TransChem, brands and manufacturers have the line of extension option; TransChem assists with product Research and Development and the client benefits from TransChem’s established industry experience and inside knowledge of the ingredient industry.

These symbiotic relationships assist brands or manufacturers with the time-consuming process of searching for innovative ingredients and evaluating reliability of supply and costing. By being involved in early-stage New Product Development, TransChem guarantees not only ingredient traceability and quality assurance but, crucially, ingredient relevance and reliability.