"You might have seen Screamin' Mimi's Salsa at Liquor Barn, Slone's Signature Market or perhaps Critchfield Meats. What you don't know is the fascinating story of how it got there from a kitchen in Wichita, Kansas. Many years ago, Donna Madden's great grandmother in Kansas found that some years she had a bumper crop of tomatoes and peppers. She came up with a way to use those by whipping up a sauce she called Hot Sauce. In actuality, she had reinvented a salsa with a new taste twist.
As the years went by, the recipe stayed in the family and was passed down to Donna's grandmother and mother, Mimi. For years, this remained a family favorite and was also popular as Christmas presents to friends and neighbors. This all changed in 1992.
Having moved around the country with her husband, Bill, Donna Madden now resided in Lexington. On perhaps somewhat of a whim, Donna decided to test the commercial waters with the recipe and named the product after her mother, Mimi. Finding an appropriate packer, she launched it within the Kroger deli section. Now it can be found in not just the outlets mentioned before, but in places as unique as Joseph-Beth Booksellers, Shakertown and at Kentucky's state parks. With well over 200 retail accounts, it can be found as far away as Maine, Massachusetts and upstate New York. It can also be purchased direct, and Screamin' Mimi's has been shipped to Japan, Ireland, Paris (the French one) and to our troops in Iraq.
One of the most successful ventures, though, has been the use of the product as it was originally — a gift. A variety of options are available, ranging from just the salsa itself to baskets that also include their newer tortilla chips in red Indian corn, blue Indian corn and garbanzo bean varieties. More recently, sauces such as Wine and Pepper Sauce have been added to the mix, and the newest product is a unique salsa con queso — obviously using the original recipe sauce.
Now salsa products have been around for many years and heavily marketed by some of the country's leading snack marketers. So what is it about this product that allowed it to compete successfully in the marketplace? Remember the reference to the new taste twist? That's the real secret. Most salsas simply have varying levels of heat. Screamin' Mimi's has that as well, but adds another taste sensation. Initially you get the taste of a quality salsa, but it ends with a hint of sweetness that balances the heat of the peppers.
So you have an additional "flavor" that sets it apart from the salsa we've generally been used to.
Annual retail sales of "Mexican sauces," which include salsa, is close to a billion-dollar industry, but compared to other food categories, that is relatively small. So what Screamin' Mimi's had been able to do is carve out a niche within a niche by offering a product unique in what it delivers. When asked about future plans, Donna and Bill Madden want to simply build broader awareness, attend more regional shows and events and build the brand as it is now.
If you're the leader in your category, you may have no interest in developing a niche product. But if you aren't, look at your product in terms of what it delivers to the customer that is unique and different from your competition. If you can't find a strong difference — real or perceived — you might want to strongly consider how you can differentiate yourself and your product from competition. That might come in the form of a new product, a unique aspect of service, or a program that adds value to doing business with you or buying your product. The marketplace is not kind to commodity offerings.
Set yourself apart by creating your own niche. The results might be like Screamin' Mimi's Salsa — some strong heat with a sweet ending.
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