No Nielsen data? No problem.

What really matters to retail buyers (beyond sales & velocities).

At DC Startup & Tech Week (Formerly DC Startup Week), someone asked a Whole Foods Category Manager:
👉 “What should a brand do if they don’t have access to big data when pitching a buyer?”

The panel said: “Tell your story. Get the buyer to believe in you (the founder), your story and your brand.”

True. And here’s what I’d add — throwing it back to my sales planning days at Clorox, when I had to get creative without perfect data.

Buyers are measured on a handful of metrics you can actually influence 👇

🧩 INCREMENTALITY: Bring new shoppers or occasions into the category — not just steal share.
💥TRAFFIC: Who does your brand attract? High-income, loyal, or fast-growing demographics or segments like Gen Z are gold.
📈 CATEGORY GROWTH: Riding a tailwind? Highlight it. Buyers win when the total category grows.
💰 MARGIN: Better than the category average? That’s leverage.
🛒 OPERATIONS: Turnover and shelf orderliness matter. Easy restocking = faster turns, lower costs, happier buyers.
🚚 RELIABILITY: Strong fill rates and smooth logistics make you a lower-risk add.
🏁 COMPETITION: Buyers watch each other. Show how your brand rides a growing trend and sparks FOMO.
🌱 SUSTAINABILITY: Still on some buyer scorecards — if your product ladders up, call it out.
📣 CONSUMER PULL: PR, influencer buzz, or social proof — prove people will look for you.

📊 You don’t need big data.
Scrappy, believable signals work: repeat rate, sampling feedback, small purchase-intent tests.

Ultimately, buyers are betting on the brands that help them hit their KPIs (and make them look good to their boss).