How to Choose a KeHE Broker, Retainer or Commission

Getting into KeHE is one thing. Actually selling through KeHE, into the retailers KeHE serves, is another, and it is where a good broker earns their keep. A KeHE broker is your connection to the buyers, the shows, and the category reviews that turn a distributor listing into real velocity. But the KeHE broker landscape confuses founders fast, especially the retainer versus commission question. Pick the wrong model for your stage and you either overpay for effort you are not getting or underpay for a broker who never prioritizes you. This guide covers how brokers work inside the KeHE world and how to choose the fee model that fits your brand.

Being set up with KeHE as a distributor does not sell your product. KeHE moves your cases from their warehouse to a retailer once that retailer orders them, but someone has to get retailers to order in the first place, work the KeHE selling shows, and manage the buyer relationships. That someone is usually a broker, and how you pay them shapes how hard they work for you.

How Brokers Work Inside the KeHE World

A KeHE broker's job is to create pull-through, getting retailers that buy through KeHE to actually order and reorder your product. They work the KeHE selling shows, pitch buyers during category reviews, manage promotional planning, and keep your brand visible inside a distributor catalog that carries tens of thousands of items. Being in the KeHE catalog is passive; a broker is what makes you active.

The KeHE ecosystem runs on specific moments a broker helps you win. KeHE hosts large selling shows where brands and brokers meet retail buyers, and a broker who knows those shows can book meetings and represent you on the floor. Category reviews are scheduled windows when retailers decide what to add and cut, and a broker who knows the timing and the buyers gets you into the conversation. Promotional calendars, new item submissions, and the KeHE programs that spotlight emerging brands all run smoother with someone who works them every day.

This is why a KeHE-experienced broker matters more than a generalist. The natural and specialty channel that KeHE serves has its own rhythm, its own buyers, and its own paperwork. A broker who already lives in that world has the relationships and the process knowledge that would take you a year to build alone. A broker who mostly works conventional or mass accounts, and treats KeHE as a side project, will not.

A strong KeHE broker also knows how to use the data. KeHE CONNECT, the platform retailers order through, and the sales reporting around it tell you which accounts are buying, which are slipping, and where reorders are stalling. A broker who reads that data chases the voids, fixes out-of-stocks before they cost you a listing, and brings you specific opportunities instead of vague updates. That data fluency is part of what separates a broker who actively grows your KeHE business from one who simply collects a check while your cases sit in the warehouse.

Retainer vs Commission for a KeHE Broker

The core choice is how you pay: a flat monthly retainer, a commission on sales, or a hybrid of both. A retainer pays for guaranteed effort regardless of results; commission pays only when product sells but can be expensive at scale; a hybrid splits the difference. The right model depends on your stage, your volume, and how much risk each side is willing to carry.

A retainer means you pay the broker a fixed monthly fee, often somewhere in the range of a few thousand dollars a month depending on scope, whether or not sales materialize. The upside is guaranteed attention and aligned effort during the slow early months when commission alone would earn the broker almost nothing. The downside is that you carry all the risk; you pay even if the broker underperforms, which is why a retainer only makes sense with clear activity milestones attached.

Commission means the broker earns a percentage of the sales they drive, commonly in the range of 5 percent for grocery brokerage, sometimes higher for smaller or more hands-on work. The upside is that you pay for results and the broker's incentive is tied to your sales. The downside is real: in the early days when volume is tiny, the commission is too small to hold a good broker's attention, so you become the account they ignore. And once you scale, a straight commission can cost you more than the work is worth.

A hybrid, a smaller retainer plus a reduced commission, is where many emerging brands land. It gives the broker guaranteed baseline income so they actually work your account early, while keeping their upside tied to the sales they generate. For a brand just getting going in KeHE, a hybrid often aligns incentives better than either pure model.

What counts as a fair commission rate is one of the most common founder questions, and the honest answer is that it depends on the work. Straight grocery brokerage on established accounts often sits around 5 percent, but a broker doing the heavy lifting to open brand-new accounts, or working a small brand with low volume, may fairly command more, sometimes a higher percentage or a retainer to make the effort worthwhile. Rates can also differ between opening a new account and simply servicing an existing one. Do not anchor on a single magic number. Anchor on whether the total cost is fair for the effort involved and the results the broker can actually point to.

Evaluating Broker Fees and Finding the Right Fit

Evaluate a KeHE broker on whether their fee is fair for the work and whether they know the channel, not on price alone. A cheap broker with no KeHE relationships is more expensive than a fair-priced one who books real buyer meetings. Ask about their fee model, their current KeHE brands, and the specific results they can point to before you sign anything.

Judge fairness against scope and stage. For an early brand, a modest retainer or a hybrid that guarantees the broker works your account is usually fairer to both sides than a commission so small it guarantees neglect. As you grow, revisit the model, because a percentage that felt fine at low volume can become a large check once you scale. Build in a review point so the arrangement can flex as your KeHE business grows.

Vet for real KeHE experience the same way you would any specialist. Ask which KeHE brands they currently represent and get references from those brands. Ask which regions and retailers they cover and which buyers they actually know. Ask how they work the KeHE selling shows and category reviews, and what they will need from you (samples, sell sheets, promotional budget) to succeed. A broker who answers those with specifics has a real book; one who speaks only in generalities does not.

Whatever model you choose, put activity milestones in writing. A retainer without deliverables is a blank check, and a commission without expectations invites neglect. Agree on concrete first-90-day targets: meetings booked at the next KeHE selling show, accounts opened, category reviews entered, and a regular reporting cadence so you can actually see the work happening. A good KeHE broker welcomes that structure, because they know what is achievable in the channel and want the same clarity you do. A broker who resists any accountability is telling you their pipeline is thinner than their pitch.

The Bottom Line

The KeHE broker landscape comes down to matching the right person to the right fee model for your stage. A KeHE-experienced broker creates the pull-through that a passive catalog listing never will. Early on, a retainer or hybrid with clear milestones usually beats a thin commission that earns you neglect; as you scale, revisit the model so the math stays fair. Vet hard for real KeHE relationships, tie fees to activity, and you turn your KeHE listing into a channel that actually moves.