GETTING STARTED A Step-by-Step Process Guide INCLUDES: 1. Tell Us About Your Product 2. New Customer Forms 3. How To Prep for R&D 4. Costing 5. Label Finalization 6. Scheduling Production Frequently Asked Questions 7. It's Show Time! STEP 1. Tell Us About Your Product The first step in getting started is making sure that IPAC is the right fit for you and your products. Each product will need to be evaluated by our team to ensure that we have the capabilities necessary to reproduce and package your products. Please contact us to send us a sample and discuss your product. You can also schedule a meeting where you can bring us a sample and get a tour of our facility. Give us a call at (407)699-7507 Or Email us at info@copack.com scroll New Customer Forms STEP 2. Download and fill out each of the following forms. When you're finished, email them to us at info@copack.com. Customer Info Form The Customer Information Form is where you'll give us all the info that we'll need to get your company entered into our system. Non-Disclosure Agreement Our Non-Disclosure Agreement is standard for all of our customers. It ensures that your recipes are protected and gives you the peace of mind to further discuss your products with us. STEP 3. how to prepare for r&d Properly preparing your recipe is key to a quick and easy R&D experience. Recipe Form Before coming in for your first R&D session, make a sample batch of your product at home. Get a scale and weigh each of the ingredients before you add them, writing down the weights as you go (preferably in ounces or grams). If the brand of an ingredient is key to the flavor, make sure to make note of that on your recipe form. If you have a cooked product, it is important that you heat it to 190 degrees in order to best replicate our process. Once you've completed your recipe form, email it to jtarach@copack.com All of the necessary ingredients must be procurred by our R&D team prior to your session. Thus, it is very important that we receive this form from you a minimum of 1 week before your scheduled meeting. Visit our R&D page for more info STEP 4. COSTING Once you've completed the R&D process, approved your formulations, and selected your packaging, your product will then move into the costing phase. At this point, our purchasing team will source your ingredients & packaging to verify the pricing, lead times, & related shipping fees. Upon completion of this process, we will then be able to give you accurate pricing at various case quantities. If you would like us to ship your product to you, please tell us and the price will be included in your quote. This will also help to expedite the shipping process. STEP 5. LABEL FINALIZATION Although you can start the design of your label at any time, it is at this point that you will receive the ingredient statement, the net weight statement, and the nutritional panel.Note: It is ultimately your responsibility to make sure your label is in compliance. Our team will also give you all the technical specifications that you'll need to pass on to your label printer, such as the wind, label dimensions, and the max label roll diameter. If you need help finding a graphic artist or a printing company, please contact us. We've built up a talented, reliable network of people over the years that we can refer you to. For your convenience, we've added links below to some of the people that we use most frequently. Phoenix Graphics: Label Design PHOENIX GRAPHICS Labels USA: Label Printing LABELS USA GS1 US: Unique UPC / Barcodes GS1 US STEP 6. SCHEDULING PRODUCTION After we've completed your costing, you will be sent a pricing confirmation form that you will need to sign and send back to us. We will also need to receive your payment in full in order to begin scheduling your production run. Our lead time is typically 2-3 weeks from the date that we receive your payment. This allows us the necessary time to order all of your ingredients and packaging, receive them, and prep them for production. STEP 7. IT'S SHOW TIME! You've reached the finish line! You made it through the entire process and the only thing left to do is pack your product. We ask that all of our customers be present for the first run of their product. This gives you the opportunity to taste test the product before it goes into the containers. We can make any minor last minute alterations if necessary. If you cannot be present, we will ask that you sign a form approving the product in advance.