Retail Mastery: How to Get Your Product Into Walmart, Costco, and Beyond

In this episode, Jon LaClare interviews Jim DeBetta, a true retail veteran who has spent decades helping inventors and entrepreneurs bring their products into major retailers.

Jim shares his fascinating journey from growing a $20 million retail startup to partnering with Shark Tank’s Kevin Harrington as VP of Commercialization—where he helped take winning products straight into stores like Walmart and Costco. Today, Jim focuses on guiding inventors through the complex world of product development, licensing, and retail launches.

He opens up about the biggest mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make and explains how to decide between licensing your idea versus bringing it to market yourself. Finally, Jim reveals how LinkedIn has transformed the retail game, making it easier than ever to connect with buyers, and why passion and persistence are key to retail success.

In today’s episode of the Harvest Growth Podcast, we cover:

• Why rushing to patent an idea can waste money and kill momentum
• The true costs of bringing a product to market and how to plan for them
• How to decide whether to license your product or launch it yourself
• How LinkedIn has changed the way inventors connect with retail buyers
• Why early market validation is essential before investing heavily in your idea

If you’ve ever dreamed of seeing your product on store shelves, or you’re weighing the risks and rewards of licensing vs. launching on your own, this episode will give you the clarity and insider knowledge you need. To learn more and get personalized guidance, visit www.jimdebetta.com. 

To be a guest on our next podcast, contact us today!

Do you have a brand that you’d like to launch or grow? Do you want help from a partner that has successfully launched hundreds of brands totaling over $2 billion in revenues? Visit HarvestGrowth.com and set up a free consultation with us today! 

Transcript

Jon LaClare [00:00:00]:
Today's guest is a true brick and mortar retail expert. He started his own retail business years ago and grew it to over $20 million in sales and then sold it to focus on helping other inventors get their products onto store shelves. Along the way, he even partnered with a shark from Shark Tank to help commercialize products that were licensed by the shark, giving him a unique insider's perspective on what it takes to succeed. Now he travels the country speaking to inventors and entrepreneurs, sharing the strategies, pitfalls and opportunities that can make or break a product launch. If you've ever dreamed of seeing your product in major retailers or you want to learn from someone who's been there and done it, this is an interview you won't want to miss.

Announcer [00:00:42]:
Are you looking for new ways to make your sales grow? You've tried other podcasts, but they don't seem to know. Harvest the growth potential of your product or service as we share stories and strategies that'll make your competitors nervous. Now here's the host of the Harvest Growth podcast, Jon LaClare.

Jon LaClare [00:01:02]:
Welcome back to the show. I am super excited to be speaking with my good friend Jim debetta today. You're going to be feel like you're his friend by the end of this as well. He is an expert in retail, taking products to market, but really in working with inventors from early stage to late stage, he's a really a trove of knowledge that he's going to share today on the show. He was an early guest on this podcast. You got to go way back, back almost five years to one of our first few episodes. And I'm so excited to have him back today to continue that conversation of how to be successful in retail again, whatever stage you're at. And we'll dive into a lot of details from that. But first of all, welcome to the show, Jim.

Jim DeBetta [00:01:42]:
Jon, thanks. Yeah, I was just thinking a little earlier, like I thought it was only like a year or two ago, but when we figured out it was about five years, I just cannot believe, like, where has the time gone?

Jon LaClare [00:01:53]:
It is crazy. It's amazing how fast time goes, especially these past several years. Maybe we're getting older. I don't know. As you get older, time goes faster. It's certainly part of it.

Jim DeBetta [00:02:01]:
And I think that.

Jon LaClare [00:02:02]:
So I forgot...go ahead.

Jim DeBetta [00:02:04]:
The COVID bump. I think kind of like everyone's like post Covid, pre Covid, like where are things? So it's, it's kind of weird to try to remember certain things.

Jon LaClare [00:02:13]:
It's like a time Warp for everybody, for sure. So let's talk about your background first. Just for those in our audience that may not know you, you're all over the social fees. I see you especially on LinkedIn. I don't know, number one platform is that's where I come across you the most, in content specifically. But for those that may not know, can you talk a little bit about who you are and what's your background?

Jim DeBetta [00:02:34]:
Yeah, of course. So my background is and always has been in the retail space. I grew up around retail. My parents owned a chain of stores, hardware stores and outdoor furniture stores. So I was sort of born into this Jon. And ever since then I've always been in retail in some capacity. But when I was in my 20s, I got involved in a startup and we manufactured sport optics like binoculars, night vision, spotting scopes, things like that, and handheld magnifiers. So all things optical. And we didn't know what we were doing. We had no idea how to sell to retailers, how to make things. We just had this idea to like, hey, we could sell these things. There are things that the people need, these types of products, we believe because we see them in stores, but we're going to make them better. And 10 years later, we had a $20 million a year business. We were selling, I mean everyone. And back then, if people remember, like retailers like Radio Shack were really big and service merchandise and some of these other people. But we were getting into the Walmarts and Targets and Costcos of the world back then. But we just sort of took it day by day. We learned on the fly, made a lot of mistakes. But the one thing, Jon, is that we were really tenacious. We went after those retailers, we got on planes, we went to trade shows, we set up our booths and we just sort of scratched and crawled our way to being successful over time. And then that led to just doing other things in this industry. I took some time off after the company sold. The company still actually around. I just sold my portion out of the business. And then one day I get a call from this guy named Kevin Harrington. And for those people out there who know who he is, he is one of the original sharks on Shark Tank. And he said, hey, Jim, I see you around and I see you written up in magazines and newspapers and I see you on the Internet. And I'm going to be on this show and I'm not sure how well it's going to do, but if it does really well, I need a guy who can help put products into retail after I do Deals. And so I flew down, met with Kevin down in Florida, and I was like, all right, you know, I'll do this. And sure enough, the rest is history, right? The show blew up and. And I was the VP of commercialization for the show. So anytime something got a deal done, I was the guy selling it into, like, Bed Bath and Beyond or putting it on HSN or any of the retailers. And then from there, I just went on to just continue to help serve inventors, to help them get their products developed, licensed, sold, the whole thing. So it's really been quite a fun journey all the way.

Jon LaClare [00:05:14]:
And as I mentioned in my little intro, you know, you really know your stuff. And I can attest to that. You've worked with several of our clients helping them get into retail. But it not just, not just the pitch. I, you know, say it that way. That's a huge part of it, of course, having the relationships, as you said, the tenacity to get in. But. But knowing people is a big part of the game as well. And you've got that, but also with advice. So having done this for so long, for so many different companies and products, including your own in the early days, you know, you know what to do. And having that core expertise when you work, as I've seen it with our clients on you know, even just packaging changes, right? Realizing that, hey, this is a great product, great technology or great delivery system, whatever it might be, but then realizing, okay, this packaging is not going to work in retail, so we've got to make some tweaks, some strategic shifts, and then that is what makes it successful. Things like that, right? That's where. Where it comes up. What do you see as sort of some mistakes? Maybe that as you are approached by inventors or product marketers looking to get retail, maybe they've been successful in. In online sales before, but now they're looking to get in retail. What are some mistakes you see them make that you can help with?

Jim DeBetta [00:06:22]:
There's a long list, but we would need a few shows, unfortunately. But there are a couple of things that always come up, Jon, all the time. And the first thing that, that just stands out regularly is that a lot of inventors feel like they have to file for patents immediately. Like, they will spend, in some cases, tens of thousands of dollars on utility patents, and they don't even understand their worth or the risks and rewards of intellectual property. Now, I'm all for patents and trademarks when applicable, but I also tell a lot of inventors that a lot of products have a Short life cycle. I always use things like fidget spinners and stuff like that as an example of something that comes on strong, gets copied, and then it's over and then it's on to the next thing. If you spend a lot of money on intellectual property, you may spend more defending against infringement when your product becomes successful than you actually made with the product. Now, if you want to license, having intellectual property like a patent is leverage, right? Because what do you approach a company with an idea that's yours that you sort of own, right? And you're just going to lease them that intellectual property and hopefully they do well and you get royalties. But rushing to file for patents without understanding how they actually function or their worth is a huge mistake because a lot of people patent things and then they can't afford to follow through on the rest of the process of getting a product developed. The other mistake, Jon, is people don't, they don't really understand the financial aspect of this. Inventing is a business. I post a lot about that all the time. It's a real business. It's no different than opening up any other business. And so what a lot of people do, and I kind of use this analogy a lot, it's sort of like saying, hey, I want to build a house from scratch. And you have the blueprints, right? And you hire the builders and they put up the framing and you see the structure, but then they run out of money. So they're left with basically a stick structure. And they can't finish the house, they can't put a roof on it, they can't do finish the plumbing, the electrical, they can't decorate it, you know, do the landscaping. And it's because they just don't understand how much it really costs. And Jon, I know, you know, when you bring a product to market, it's not only intellectual property, it's websites, it's assets like videos sell sheets, packaging, all the things, just legal stuff, accounting stuff. There's so many aspects to inventing the product development, the manufacturing. I mean, I can go on and on here, but until you know what you're doing, you shouldn't be spending any money. It's best to get all the quotes up front the best you can, right? And then, okay, it's going to cost me about $80,000. Then, you know, you don't need all that money at once, but at least you have an idea of what you're going to be in for. And then you can decide, can I self fund? Should I crowdfund? Should I look for investors. Or if you really just don't have the money, you look to licensing, which doesn't cost nearly as much, of course, but those are the big things. People rush into this because it's an emotional business. People get really attached to what they're doing. So it's like, step back, get information, learn the risks, the rewards, the cost of doing this, and then we would see a lot less failure.

Jon LaClare [00:09:40]:
Yeah, absolutely. You talked about licensing as an option. I get this question all the time. You know, we work with a lot of inventors on the video marketing side, of course, as well, and launching products direct to consumer as opposed to retail. And that's where you and I intersect a lot. Is okay when we get great. Working well on direct to consumer, you help with the retail side. I'm curious, I don't think I've ever asked you this question. How do you respond when they say, what should I do? So should I license it or should I do it myself and go to market? I've got my own answer for that. I'm curious to hear yours.

Jim DeBetta [00:10:09]:
Well, a lot of it is personal preference, and also a lot of it is the financial side of things. So if you just. People come to me say, jim, I'm broke, I have no money, or I'm retired and I'm living on a fixed income, or I'm young, I'm a student, whatever. I say, look, if you can't afford to know, you're going to spend tens of thousands of dollars. Licensing is the obvious path because armed with a good sell sheet and sometimes a basic prototype, you can get licensing deals. I do it regularly for people that can only cost potentially hundreds of dollars, maybe a couple thousand. Or if you have something that's complex, it might be more involved with prototyping. But today there's 3D prototypes and virtual things that didn't exist when you and I started in this business, that's for sure. And that's a lot less expensive. And you can show a company that. And if you're pitching a product in a category to a company that's in that category, they'll get it if you present it correctly. And that's where video comes in. The types of things that you do, Jon, that you can demonstrate something to somebody quickly and easily and succinctly, and a company executive will get it. But if you also don't want to run a business, you don't want to do that grind, that entrepreneurial grind, then bringing a product to market is not for you because it's a business and you're going, you can't do everything yourself. You're going to have to bring in people, experts, experienced people. I don't know everything. I mean, Jon, video production, things of that nature. Tv, that's you, right? Like, I would not take that on. They know a lot about it, like generally, but I'm not that guy. So I would say, Jon, I need help with this, or Joe, I need help with this, or Jane, I need help with that. So if you're not willing to invest a lot of money into what you're doing, if you're just not the business type, licensing's for you. But real quick, the risk reward ratio is different. Licensing, you usually don't make as much, but the risk financially to you is much lower on the bring it to market yourself. There's a massive risk in that regard, comparatively. Right. But the rewards can also be extremely big. So you just have to sort of weigh those options.

Jon LaClare [00:12:23]:
And licensing has changed, you know, from when you and I started in doing this. We've been, we've been doing this for 20 odd years and it's, it's a different world today than it was years ago. What a couple questions on licensing. One is who are the best types of companies typically to go after? So if you're, I'm an inventor and I call you up and I want to go down the road of licensing, what types of companies are we licensing to?

Jim DeBetta [00:12:47]:
You know, I think it's more, Jon, about categories of products, right? I mean companies come and go. There are some huge companies in every industry that have been around well before we were alive. So you know, you look at like the three M's, the Procter and Gambles, like, you know, those kind of companies, they've been around forever. So I, I look to product categories like what always sells, no matter what. Pet products. Right. No matter what. People will spend more on their pets than they do themselves. That business just never dies. It doesn't matter what's going on. Fitness, health, like personal care, people will take care of themselves. They want that magic bullet. They want the easy way. Whether it's like, like fitness products or it's like lotions, skin care, cosmetics, stuff like that. Always big housewares. Things always change in the houseware industry. Like little gadgets, electronics for your kitchen. Just there's, there's. Those types of categories are always here. Clothing, accessories, they're not going away as long. I don't care. I. All this other stuff, you still got to eat, you still got to take care of yourself. If you have a pet, you got to take care of that pet. You know, all those things aren't going anywhere. So I always look to the categories and say what are the best categories? Because the companies shift and change. Sometimes they're willing to look at outside innovation, sometimes they close it off, sometimes those companies just become more insulated or so it's really product specific categories more than it is, I think company specifics.

Jon LaClare [00:14:21]:
Yeah, that makes sense. And yeah, I would agree. There's what used to work, you know, even 10 years ago, like the as seen on TV companies were licensing warehouses. Right. Unless they still take products on, but they're looking for something that usually has had some success, it's been in market, etc. That world has completely changed. But going directly to the companies that are in your industry, sometimes they're looking, sometimes they're not. And just it's knowing if you don't know what your product is. Talk to Jim. Right. So you know the ones that are licensing right now because some regard, some categories there just might not be a great licensing opportunity and other categories have quite a few. So it's a very complex field, you know, without getting too much into the weeds. Because I would recommend anybody who wants to know directly just call Jim, right? You can go to his website is jimdebetta.com. of course it's in the show notes. It's J I J I M D E B as in boy E T T A Jim debetta dot com.

Jim DeBetta [00:15:14]:
That's exactly how I tell people to say I do like that. B as in boy. Because that third letter always gets skewed. One letter off, you can't find me but I'm out there so people will get it.

Jon LaClare [00:15:25]:
That's right. So all right, so not. Let's get away from just licensing. And if someone is looking to launch a product in, what's the first thing they should do?

Jim DeBetta [00:15:36]:
Well, touching on what we said before, they need to know what they're getting into. So getting knowing the steps. So like on my website for example, you know, not a shameless plug, it's just kind of like a good thing. And I don't stalk anybody after the fact. But on my homepage there's a essential steps to inventing Download, click it, get it. It's a one page number one number two number three, number four. The things you need to do. Obviously the first thing everyone has to do is make sure that their idea is not owned by somebody else. Hence going back to the patent stuff. Right. So you have to do a patent search, I always recommend people hire a patent attorney to do it correctly. But it's getting better and easier for the average person to search. Google patents, the USPTO website, for example, they're making the tools better. But that's the first thing, because Jon, if you bring a product to market and someone else has the intellectual property rights, you're done. Cease and desist, who know. And all that money and time you've spent building that, you're done, you're finished. So that's number one. And then once you, you're free and clear, as we say, then you have these two paths. Should I license? Should I go to market myself? And then you learn, depending on which road you take, which things you need to consider. Right. And again, it goes back to that, do I want to run a business? What's it going to cost? So, you know, getting costs, finding out what you need to do, getting that checklist I offer, you know, everybody, I even put it online a lot like the checklist. Like, if you want to bring a product to market, here are the things you need to consider. If you want a license, here's what you need to do. I think those are the first few steps and then from there it just depends on exactly where you want to take your product.

Jon LaClare [00:17:23]:
And we've talked about patents in a couple of different ways and I think you've mentioned here in a good way. I want to clarify a couple of things because it can be very expensive. So you mentioned early on, it can be tens of thousands of dollars to get full patent protection to go through the entire process. But you can start less expensively with a couple of things. You mentioned a patent search. Even the most, you know, high level patent attorneys, it's not that expensive to do a patent search to get their help. You know, it could be hundreds of dollars or a couple thousand dollars at the most from what I've experienced. But getting that double check, because the worst thing you want to have happen is even if you don't want to pursue a patent, you want to make sure you're clear to operate so you don't get sued by copying somebody else that you don't even know exists out there. The second step is provisional patents. So that can also be much less expensive than a full patent and can get you started even to the point of preparing for a license deal if that's what you want to do. Or hey, maybe I want to do a patent eventually, but I don't want to invest tens of thousands right now, right Again, a couple of thousand dollars kind of thing can get you a long ways. Those simple steps, as you mentioned on your checklist, can get you started and doesn't have to be as expensive as you know, the full process. So take it slowly, do it in the right order, the right steps along the way, and you can be much more successful. I want to jump over to brick and mortar retail a little bit. So that's of course, a lot of your expertise in the retail side. What has changed? You know, how, how is the process different today in retail versus when you first got started with your original business? As you mentioned previously, so what? Obviously the landscape of what stores are out there has changed. Some have come, some others have gone. Right, but in your view, what has changed in the process of selling to retail?

Jim DeBetta [00:19:03]:
You know, at the heart of it, Jon, it really hasn't. That part hasn't changed in that I have a widget, I want to sell it to Target. I got to locate who the buyer is for that category. So if I have a pet product, I got to find the pet product buyer or merchant and I have to approach them. The difference is, back when I was doing this, you had to sit at a trade show, you would mail. I would mail letters, like write a letter, put it in an envelope, stamp it and mail it. Or fax, I mean, like fax machines. Right? Like that was our lifeblood, right. And. Or you would call, you'd get on the phone and you'd call a buyer, try to get them on the phone, or if you're lucky enough and you actually get one or an assistant to make an appointment and go to their headquarters. A lot of work, a lot of time. Expensive to do all those things today. And just funny you were saying about LinkedIn being a platform. That is my biggest platform. That's my, like, I live there, but that's where I meet a lot of buyers. And I always tell inventors, they say, jim, how do you find all these buyers? LinkedIn is a treasure trove. They're all there. Every retailer is on LinkedIn. They list all the people. Sometimes they hide their last names. And a lot of times if you try to connect, they won't connect with you, you, but they're there. And you're better off taking a shot at trying to reach out to a bunch and getting a few than zero. So the ease of reaching people, just click little type a little message. Hey, Jon, I have this new pet product. I see that you have a lot of pet products in your stores. I think this would Be a great compliment or supplement to what you already sell. I'd love to send you some more information. Can I get your email address or can I send it here in a message? How easy is that? That was like unthinkable 20, 30 years ago. So being able to connect with them and communicate digitally has changed everything. You could. You don't have to get on a plane all the time. You don't have to sit at a trade show. Those things are still valuable to a degree, but they're not necessary today. There's that way to reach them. But presenting the product other than the assets, which you know a lot about, back then it was like, okay, you could make up a crude cell sheet and try to email it to them with aol, AOL dial up and it wouldn't get there and all that stuff. Today you could make 3D prototypes. You can upload things to a Dropbox, you can email things with attachments. You know, you could. People use their phones, can take pretty decent pictures of the product that they're trying to sell. They can come to you for things like video and other assets. People and buyers love video. Short 30, 40 second videos showing the product up close. Here's, here's what it looks like, turn it, here's how it works, you know, demonstrating it. It's the old like TV thing. If you can do that, all you do is you do that video and you email it to somebody. You just couldn't do that back then. So I think people have it. I don't want to, like, people will get mad a little bit. Like I'm like inventors. You have it easy today in terms of being able to reach. We did it old school, like we were in the trenches, like digging and digging. Now it's like, it's just easier. But selling a widget is still the same. Like, Jon, you're the buyer. I'm trying to sell you something that has not changed. You're. We're still people. You have a need or don't have a need and you're either going to be interested in my product or not. And yes, the pitch is important in all those assets that you can show that you have something for them that can make them. Money is important, but really it's the, the selling thing is still pretty similar.

Jon LaClare [00:22:45]:
And I think that kind of summarize all that. It is about getting in the trenches. You got to do the work right, you got to reach out. The nice thing is technology makes it easier to find them and to reach them, but it is Just about getting your. Getting your name out there, getting your product out there, and realizing that not everyone's going to respond. It's not about going to that man. There's that one retailer I want to hit and, you know, put all my eggs in one basket, and it doesn't happen. As opposed to spread the net wide in the beginning. And if you've got that dream retailer, great, you can end there. But it's going to be easier to get to them if you show some success at smaller retailers along the way. So just getting the numbers out there, getting your product as widely distributed as possible, and realizing it's okay that not all of them respond to beginning. Once you have success, your response rates will also go up as well. So you'll. You'll be able to share some stories, etc. Like, hey, these 10 stores or these hundred stores or whatever have taken it on and seen great results along the way, and it makes that. That process much easier. Well, Jim, this has been a lot of fun. Is there anything I didn't ask you that you think could be helpful for our audience?

Jim DeBetta [00:23:47]:
I think, you know, Jon, there's a lot of things that I think about. Like, I say we can do shows for days, but I think that when it comes to this process, I know there's a. There's a big mention about mindset, and you see, it's sort of like, I don't want to call it a fad or trendy, but, you know, this whole mindset thing has become a thing over the past few years, and people sort of wanting to will themselves into persevering and look again. Inventing is very emotional. People get attached to their baby. They think it's going to do billions, it's going to sell, and they want to sort of think they can skip the work. And it's like, hey, just be positive and, you know, just put it out there and it's going to come. And look, you need passion. Passion is different than emotion, right? Like, completely different things. Like, you want to exude confidence and ability and passion for your product, but you have to remember that the person that you're selling to has a job to do. I always tell people that buyers get hired and fired based on performance. So, Jon, if I sell you a product, you put it on the shelves at your retail chain and it flops. Who's on the hook? You are. I'm just another person selling you something. So I think it's important for people to remember that. Separate your emotions from your desires and your passion and remember it's a business and if you can think that way. And like you said Jon, put in the work and make the effort and understand you're going to hear no and not now or maybe later. Just keep going. The mindset really is about putting in the work and when you do, you put yourself in position for success.

Jon LaClare [00:25:34]:
Such good advice. I do encourage our audience if you want to learn more from Jim and his content a you can follow him on LinkedIn but go to his website to start JimDeBetta.com if you're driving. As always, it's in the show notes. Go check out his site. You can contact him directly from there if you'd like to speak or answer, ask specific questions on your business, your product, whatever stage you're at. There is no better expert that I've met in the retail space that he knows his stuff. If you've got questions, I'm sure Jim's got answers for you and the ability to really help you be successful moving from direct to consumer, possibly to retail. Or if you're just starting out and wondering where to go as an inventor, he's got some great content and great strategic advice to be able to share with you as well. Well, thanks for tuning in today's episode where we uncover the stories and strategies beyond some of the most successful product marketers out there. If you're looking to take your own business to the next level, be sure to visit perfectlaunch.com you can grab a free copy of my book the Perfect Launch System. It's packed with proven principles that we've developed over the past 20 years of helping hundreds of businesses launch and grow successfully. Plus you'll also get exclusive one page summaries of some of our most popular podcast interviews. Real world insights you can apply right away. Head to perfectlaunch.com and start building your perfect launch today.