Free resources / Slotting Fee & Retail Launch Cost Estimator
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See the cash commitments behind a new retail listing. Turn your quote, free-fill requirement, opening stock, and trade plan into a clear launch budget.
Example scenario · Prepared
Live scenario
Defaults are illustrative USD assumptions. Replace them with your product costs, actual quote, and commercial plan.
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Scenario inputs stay in this browser page. They are not sent to analytics. Select Save scenario to store a snapshot in your account. Export before closing to keep your work. Print opens your browser’s print dialog; choose Save as PDF.
All amounts are USD. Fees follow the quote basis you select. Free-fill and sellable opening stock are separate and valued at unit COGS. Year-1 units = SKUs × stores × weekly velocity × 52; gross sales = those units × wholesale price. Trade reserve = gross sales × reserve rate. Contingency applies to upfront costs plus the full year-1 reserve. This is a planning budget, not accounting expense, profit, a retailer requirement, or a peak working-capital estimate. It excludes payment timing, receivables, replenishment inventory, returns, general overhead, taxes, and costs you have not entered. The same average price and cost apply to all entered SKUs.
Start with the fee basis in the written offer. Then add free-fill inventory, sellable opening stock, launch freight, other quoted costs, and a trade-spend reserve based on your year-1 sales plan.
Planning budget = slotting + free fill + opening inventory + freight + other costs + year-1 trade reserve + contingency.
At an illustrative $5,000 per-SKU account fee, slotting is $10,000. One free case per SKU per store, 12 units per case, and $2 COGS costs $9,600. Two sellable opening cases cost another $19,200. At five units per SKU per store per week and $5 wholesale, gross year-1 sales are $520,000; a 15% trade reserve is $78,000. Add $2,000 freight, $1,000 other costs, and 10% contingency for a $131,780 planning budget. These are editable examples, not retailer benchmarks.
The FTC’s historical slotting case studies found substantial variation by product category and cautioned that the small sample might not represent all U.S. retailers. Read the FTC report summary (2003). It explains the cost category, but does not establish current fees for any chain. For Kroger, Target, Whole Foods, Publix, or another buyer, enter your actual category and launch-scope terms.
Multiply the quoted fee by the number of SKUs and by the scope in the agreement: account, store, or division. A $5,000 per-SKU account quote for two SKUs is $10,000. A $25 per-SKU per-store quote for two SKUs and 200 stores is also $10,000.
This tool does not publish chain-wide fee estimates. Use a written quote for your category, SKU count, division, and launch scope. Selecting a retailer only labels your scenario; it does not change the fee assumptions.
Free-fill cost = free cases per SKU per store × units per case × SKUs × stores × COGS per unit. Free units create a cash outlay without invoice revenue. Enter sellable opening inventory separately.
Enter the reserve rate from your commercial plan. The calculator multiplies expected year-1 gross wholesale sales by that rate. Include expected promotion funding once; do not add the same allowance again as another launch cost.
No. It includes upfront costs, a full year-1 trade reserve, and contingency. Peak cash need depends on manufacturing, replenishment, payment terms, collection delays, and reserve timing. Review those separately with your operating plan.
Yes. The printable summary and CSV preserve your assumptions and cost breakdown. Label the figures as a planning scenario and verify quotes, sales expectations, and cash timing before using them in a financing decision.
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