CoPackConnect is a free AI-powered marketplace launched in late 2024 that connects brands with contract manufacturers and packaging providers by matching their specific production needs with qualified external manufacturing partners.
- Free platform for both brands and manufacturers, with no cost barriers to entry
- AI-powered matching connects brands with contract manufacturers based on specific production criteria like food type and capabilities
- Launched in late 2024 by CPA (Association for Contract Packagers and Manufacturers) and The Melville Group
- Includes Emerging Brands Resource Center offering guidance for new brands navigating external manufacturing relationships
- Solves core sourcing friction at a fraction of the cost of competing platforms
CPA, The Association for Contract Packagers and Manufacturers and The Melville Group (TMG) have launched a new, AI-driven RFQ tool called CoPackConnect, designed to help brands and private labels find external manufacturing solutions more efficiently.
CoPackConnect.com is an AI-enabled online marketplace designed to connect brands with external manufacturing resources such as contract manufacturing and contract packaging. When a brand's search criteria align with a registered external manufacturing provider's capabilities, a match occurs, connecting the brand with expert contractors. Criteria can be based on specific factors, such as the type of food item a brand wants to outsource to an external manufacturing partner.
The platform is completely free for brands and private labels and also has a free level for manufacturers.
The new RFQ tool, launched in late 2024, fills a much-needed void, the developers say.
“A huge list of products and providers is not the hard part, nor does it address the core frictions,” said Carl Melville, managing partner of TMG and owner of CoPackConnect.com. “CoPack Connect, powered by AI-RFQ, is based on decades of brand and manufacturer input and solves these problems at a fraction of the cost of other platforms.”
The developers expect that the new tool will be a game changer for brands, private labels, and external manufacturers.
"Brands are more reliant on external manufacturing than ever before," said Ron Puvak, Executive Director of the CPA. "CoPack Connect represents a robust and focused solution for brands and manufacturers, enabling superior sourcing alternatives, improved speed-to-market, greater innovation, and more efficient production capacity utilization."
The site also hosts The Emerging Brands Resource Center, offering emerging brands a wealth of resources to help them establish and navigate external manufacturing relationships.
According to TMG and CPA, the product released today is just the beginning. They plan to continue adding value to the platform for brands, private labels, and external manufacturers. Brands, private labels, and manufacturers can begin registering today at CoPackConnect.com.
