WHO WE ARE
The Sampling Store™ is a leading U.S. experiential product sampling agency. Since our founding in 1994, we’ve distributed more than 650 million samples through our own proprietary networks leading wellness, travel, and lifestyle venues/touchpoints with 100% opt-in. Let us be your one stop shop for product sampling.
WHAT WE DO
We offer end-to-end services including printing, overwrapping and tip-on, fulfillment, and two-tier consumer research with conversion in our venue brand projects. We work with our clients as strategic collaborative partners, because we know that when it comes to trial and conversion, one size does not fit all.
TRIAL & CONVERSION
We’ve delivered on trial and conversion objectives for hundreds of CPG companies, including Nestlé, Campbell’s, Kraft/Heinz, Mondelez, P&G, Pepsico, Kellogg’s, General Mills, Pfizer, Unilever, Clorox, Church & Dwight, J&J, Beiersdorf, and many others; plus major retailers including Walmart, Publix, Kroger, CVS/pharmacy, and Walgreens.
Lifestyle Sampling Touchpoints
Yoga Studio Network™
Yoga is now American’s #1 growth sport with more than 48.5 million Americans that have made yoga a part of their health and fitness lifestyle. Our exclusive Yoga Studio Network™ is comprised of 5,100+ independent and chain yoga studios nationwide, developed in partnership with the leading industry magazine and voice, Yoga Journal.
Cross-Training Gym Network™
Reach high-intensity fitness enthusiasts at 14,000+ cross-training “functional fitness” gyms nationwide. These gyms are a social and sometimes competitive workout environments where relationships are forged, including those with brands that members can try and experience first-hand.
Life Time Athletic
Get your brand into the hands of 3+ million affluent, active lifestyle, and endurance sports-minded men and women inside 180+ Life Time Destinations, at Life Time Athletic Events in major markets, and through Life Time’s Athlinks endurance sports network of more than 9,000 sporting events. Life Time, the Healthy Way of Life™ brand.
Barre Studio Network™
Connect with female fitness enthusiasts nationwide at more than 1,000 dance-inspired women-focused barre fitness studios nationwide. Barre has exploded in popularity across the U.S. with more than 3.8 million members, providing the perfect touchpoint for brands to tap into this trend and engage one-on-one with its passionate participants.
Life Time Kids Camps
Sample to 100,000 kids ages 5 – 12 at Life Time Kids Summer Camps, 12 awesome weeks of fitness disguised as fun! Includes branding on camp marketing, website, content in newsletter, dual consumer research for parents (trial core research and follow-up purchase conversion research), digital TV spot, full page magazine ad, and more.
Women’s Fitness Networks™
More than half of America’s approximately 65 million gym-goers are now female. Through our Women’s Fitness Network, you can engage up to 2 million mid-upscale, well educated, socially active, and healthy-lifestyle focused women through 3,000 women’s-only gyms and studios and 9,000+ other multi-gender gyms nationwide.
Campus Sports & Fitness Network™
CoOptions Health & Wellness has created a comprehensive network of more than 2,000 college campuses with sports and fitness facilities, the ideal touchpoint to deliver your brand to influential, health and fitness-minded students at “point-of-sweat.” Ideal for brands forging early adult lifestage consumer relationships.
Ski Resort Network™
Looking to connect with active, affluent, and highly loyal winter sports enthusiasts in experiential critical mass? Let us deliver a powderful trial solution for your brand at up to 70 major ski resorts across the U.S. — from resort lodge check-in or in-room sample distribution, to a fully integrated experiential mountain campaign.
Outdoor Adventure Network™
Engage with up to 1.5 million active, millennial, outdoor adventure enthusiasts at outdoor adventure outfitters —mountain biking, zip lining, white water rafting, horseback riding, jeep tours, and so much more. We will take your brand to where the action is and immerse your product in their experiences at “point-of-passion.” Spring through fall seasons.
Vacation Travel Network™
Connect with vacation travelers at more than 30,000 Airbnb, VRBO, and HomeAway properties. A great way for guests to experience your product in an immersive “home-away-from-home” environment, your brand a part of the guest experience in kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms, and living areas.
Publix® A1A Marathon, Health Expo, & In-Store Campaign
Celebrating its 20th year, the Publix® A1A Marathon, Health Expo, and Integrated Shopper Marketing program gives brands a fully turn-key platform to connect with amateur athletes and families with live events, product sampling, in-store merchandising, and digital support.
Tanger Outlets
Tanger Factory Outlets, a leading operator of 35 upscale open-air outlet centers with more than 120 million annual shoppers, has partnered with The Sampling Store to deliver low-cost, turn-key, live-staffed tented events throughout the year to our clients during key holiday events (up to 60 million samples/yr).
Hair & Nail Salon Networks™
Encompass Media Group has partnered with The Sampling Store to deliver samples to 100,000 hair and nail salons and barbershops nationwide (36,000 in the Top 10 DMAs), where your brand is hand-delivered to receptive, aesthetically-motivated consumers (up to 20MM samples per week, media wall board overlay options).
Airport Store Network™
Engage up to 65MM business and personal airline passengers per month in more than 1,000 Paradies brand travel essentials stores (e.g. TripAdvisor, CNBC, Today, Relay, 7 Eleven, and Univision airport chains) in 103 major U.S. airports, NY Metro train station stores, and 4 Canadian airports (up to 65MM samples per month nationally).
Metro Commuter Network™
In partnership with Encompass Media group, engage with busy commuters during rush hour outside of New York City’s Grand Central Station and 26 other commuter rail market cities nationally through hand-delivered samples delivered by dedicated brand ambassadors (up to 900,000+ samples per day).
Seniors Network™
Sample to older adults ages 55+ (with a focus on Baby Boomers ages 58 to 76, the wealthiest U.S. generation leading 96% of consumer categories nationally) at more than 3,500 Senior Centers, where they congregate for social activities, arts and fitness classes, nutrition services, community programs and volunteerism, and special events.
DIY Network™
Sample to homeowners and DIY enthusiasts through more than 20,000 independent hardware stores (ACE Hardware, True Value, and Do It Best!), attracting men and women shoppers interested in home improvement, including including gardening and planting, outdoor decorating and furniture, grilling, lawn care, and much more.
Dry Cleaning Network™
Sample to millions of professionals and fashion-conscious consumers in up to 40,000 dry cleaning stores nationwide. Dry cleaners attract affluent households with HHI of $100K+. For brands that relate to apparel and fashion, while targeting more affluent working households, this is an ideal network through which to drive trial and conversion.
END-TO-END SOLUTIONS
We are a full-service sampling agency, meaning that once you engage us for a project, we work with you and/or your agency to provide end-to-end solutions from conception through execution that are included in almost every program we run: sampling planning and strategy; in-house creative services; geo-mapping capability for shopper sampling activation around key account locations; and consumer / shopper and venue depth research. We also offer production services including printing, overwrapping, card-tipping, and custom packaging (estimated by request).
UPCOMING PROJECT?
HOW WE DO IT
BRAND NEEDS ANALYSIS
PROJECT PLANNING
EXECUTION & COMPLIANCE
RESEARCH & REPORTING
“We’re consistently impressed by the quality of the content provided by CoOptions. They approach media with the mindset of a CPG marketer, which means they seek out every opportunity to turn impressions into retail sales growth.”
“We were so excited when we learned CoOptions has the ability to sample through pediatricians’ offices. It was a great environment to hand out samples, build trust with consumers, and educate them on the importance of hydration in children, which is a top priority for our new brand,”
“CoOptions is the gold standard in product sampling. We ran several campaigns, all of which greatly exceeded goals and expectations.”
“Working with CoOptions has been a great experience from beginning to end. They over-delivered on all fronts and communicated so well throughout the entire process.”
“Our recent sampling trial with American Airlines and their VIP lounges taught us that upscale travelers are seeking out better-for-you snacking options while on the go. To be able to reach these individuals and create buzz for our brand in such a controlled environment, was also key to popchips learning more about their snacking needs and choices. Also, working with CoOptions made the program a seamless experience, making it a great success.”