TSTE™ combines
traditional and exotic gourmet spices, cooking herbs and seasonings from around
the globe in the preparation of their 60+ hand-mixed signature blends and rubs.
Packaging by the ounce allows their customers to experiment as they journey
through the vast selection of spices and seasonings.
With over 300 products in each of
their 28+ stores, TSTE™ had some challenges with product labeling, especially
their custom blends. According to Jesse
Hanson, Graphic Designer for TSTE™, “For our
custom blend products, we use 8.5” x 11” sheets of preprinted labels. When selling a custom blended product, we
would take one of the labels off the sheet in our inventory and hand-write the
number of ounces. This process was
difficult, created wasted labels, and did not produce the quality of label we
wanted on our products.”
“I wanted to find a solution that fit the
requirements of TSTE™; and wanted to see for myself that the
solution I propose would work for my customer,” says J.D. After speaking with Jesse, J.D. contacted me.
Initially, I provided printed
label samples for J.D. to present to Jesse.
After the samples were reviewed, I
provided Pattco a demonstration printer, media and training. After this training, J.D. demonstrated the
TM-C3400 printer to Jesse and the team at TSTE™. After the demonstration, TSTE™ purchased a printer to test in their St. Augustine location.
During testing, Jesse found the
printer worked well. Jesse says “The
TM-C3400 produces a high quality label fast.
I designed new labels as PDF’s.
Using these formats, the sales people in the store can input the number
of ounces, making the finished labels look professional. Also, it makes distributing new product
labels easy. For our locations in Portland
and San Francisco, which now have a TM-C3400 printer, I simply sent a zip file
with all of the new labels formats.”
According to Jesse, one part of
the solution that was a bit complicated was media. “It took time to find the best media for our
labels. Plus, we had to purchase a
special die to produce the label shape we wanted; an oval with the squared-off
sides” says Jesse.
Keeping a large inventory of
labels at each location, costs money and creates additional waste. I suggest you do what The Spice & Tea
Exchange® is doing; move to on-demand color labels.
Guy Mikel
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