Cash & Carry Management Sept 23

Keynote speaker

Thekeynotespeakeratthe Unitas conferenceinAthens laterthismonthisDave Fishwick(below),theinspirationforthefilm BankofDave.

Internalpromotions

HarlechFoodservice has bolstereditsreputationasan equalopportunitiesemployer withthreekeyappointments goingtowomen.

ThewholesalerhaspromotedLauraHollandtocustomerexperiencemanager, AlanaPritchardtobusiness supportmanager,andUrsula Scurrah-Pricetobusiness developmentmanagerfor healthcare&education.

Fishwickleftschoolaged 16withnoqualificationsand tookontheestablishmentby settingupacommunitybank withhisownmoney.

UnitasMDJohnKinney said:“Hisstorywillresonate withourwholesalermemberswhoarefollowingthe samepathofbuildingbig businesseswithsmallbusinesscommunityvalues.”

Consultancy

HollandjoinedHarlech Foodservicein2019andhas workedinanumberofroles; Pritchardbeganintelesales in2017,becameakey accountadvisor,thenapurchasingassistantandmost recentlyapurchasinganalyst;Scurrah-Pricejoinedthe companyintelesalesin2016 andlaterworkedincustomer support.

opportunitiesemployer whichrewardsability.

“Quitesimply,hereat Harlechifyou’regood enoughitdoesn’tmatterif yourmaleorfemale,and increasinglyyoungwomen aretakingondifferentroles acrossthecompanyatalllevelsanddoingthemverywell.

themtoprogressonmerit, andthat’simportantina largelyruralarealikethis.”

WeAreUnicorn, anLGBTQ+ consultancyfortheUK wholesalesector,hasbeen launchedbyJasonFinch,an AIengineerandformer developerofwholesaler onlinesalesplatforms.

Finchaimstobringa freshapproachtoequality, diversityandinclusionwith tailormadeLGBTQ+strategies.Hismethodencourages andfacilitatesunderstanding fromthegroundup,with ongoingleadercheck-ins.

Finchwillco-chairthe inauguralDiversityin Wholesale(DiW)conference.

DavidCattrall,managing directorofHarlech Foodservice,said:“These appointmentsshowthatasa companyweareanequal LWCDrinks hasannounced changestoitsparentalleave policies,withenhanced maternity,paternityand sharedparentalleavepay.

“Itisimportanttoothat peoplewhojoinHarlech Foodserviceknowthatthere isacareerpathwaywithin thecompanythatcanenable

HarlechFoodservicehas basesatCriccieth,in Gwynedd,andChester. Betweenthetwolocations, thecompanyemploysabout 200staffanddeliversa choiceof5,000productlines tocafés,restaurants,pubs andpublicsectorcustomers inNorthandMid-Wales, Shropshire,theMidlands andtheNorthWest.

Enhancedparentalleavepolicies

“Asaprivately-owned familybusiness,supporting colleaguesintheirownfamilylifeisincrediblyimportant tous,andthisisespecially keywhenitcomestostarting afamilyandthoseearlydays oflifewithanewchild.We arereallyproudofthe changeswearemakingand lookforwardtowelcoming manymorebabiesintothe LWCfamily!”saidmanaging directorEbrahimMukadam.

Aspartofawidercompanyinitiativetosupportbetterinclusivityanddiversity

withinboththebusinessand thesectorasawhole,LWCis intheprocessofreassessing allofitspoliciesandwillseek tomakechangesand improvementsinlinewithits companyvaluesand employeefeedback.

Thewholesalerhasalso createdaWomen’sNetwork andrecentlyhosteditsfirst Women’sNetworkevent, withElitRowland,founderof theWomeninWholesale network,asguestspeaker.

Mukadamcommented: “Asabusinessoperating withinthewholesalesector, weareacutelyawarethatit cansometimesfeellikea male-dominatedindustry, andwewanttobeadriving forcebehindthatchange.

“Wearehopefulthatby creatingthisnetwork,both femaleandmalecolleagues willhaveadedicatedsupport networkandforumtoshare ideas,inspireoneanother, communicateandlearn.”

EbrahimMukadam:‘Weare reallyproudofthechanges wearemaking.’

Ltor:LauraHolland,AlanaPritchard,UrsulaScurrah-Price.

BookerlaunchesChefCentralandnewRDC

Booker haslaunchedChef Central,anorderingservice formulti-sitecaterers describedasa‘lowcost, highservice’option.

ChefCentralwilldeliverthe orderedgoodstothecustomer’sdoor.

Customerscanordera pre-agreedrangeofproductscentrallywithBooker, andfullaccountmanagementisonoffer,withEDI (electronicdatainterchange) integrationavailableaswell asallergensupport.

Frozen,chilledandambientfoods;beers,wines& spirits;disposables;cleaning chemicals;andnon-foodcan allbedeliveredonthesame vehicle.

UsingBookerandthe BestFoodLogisticsnetwork,

JohnDolan,salesdirector ofChefCentral,said:“Larger customershavebeenasking ustohelpthem.Theyhave seenBookersupportingthe independentsectorstrongly byhelpingthemtooffsetrisingcostsacrosstheirbusinesswithaconstantneedfor value,quality,availability, consistencyandcustomer service.

“Webelievethatourscale willgiveusauniqueadvantagetodeliverallofthis.We believeChefCentralwilloffer auniquepropositionthat deliversrealcostpricevalue forthem[largercustomers] withoutanycompromisein service.”

Inothernews,theMakro cash&carryinFarehamis beingturnedintoaBooker distributioncentre.

Thecompanyishiring morethan200additional employeesforthe117,000 sqftdepot.Vacancies includegeneralmanager, transportoperationsmanager,health&safetyadvisor, HGVClass1and2drivers andwarehouseoperations clerks.

DylanCrooks,recruitment &attractionpartnerat Booker,said:“Ournew locationwillenablefaster

Own-brandwinnerschosen

Thejudgingforthe CCM Chefs’Own-BrandAwards 2023hasbeencompleted.

Runinassociationwith theCraftGuildofChefs–the leadingchefs’associationin theUK–thisyear’sawards attractedarecordnumberof entries,whichwereblind tastedbythreeexpert judges.

ThejudgingpanelconsistedofAndrewGreen, chiefexecutiveoftheCraft GuildofChefs;MattOwens, chairmanoftheCraftGuild ofChefsandheadofculinary forAllianceGroup;and JasonGordon,cateringmanagerfortheGeneralMedical Council.

Overall,thestandardof thefoodserviceown-brand productswasveryhigh,and

severaloftheitemswere judgedtobeexceptionaland fullydeservingofthehighest accolade–a‘Bestofthe Best’award.

Cash&CarryManagement’s managingdirector MartinLovellcommented: “Theseawardshighlightthe

qualityandimportanceof wholesalers’foodservice own-brandsandwelookforwardtoannouncingthewinnersatanexclusiveawards lunchlaterintheyear.”

Feedbackfromthejudges willbegivenoneachproductaftertheawardslunch.

deliveriesacrosstheSouth EastofEngland.Thisproject continuesourongoing expansion,asitseeksto enhanceaccessibilityand convenienceforallofour customers.

“AtfullcapacityFareham willbeabletodelivercirca 220,000casesofstockper weektoourgroupcustomerssuchasLondis, BudgensandPremieracross theSouthEast.”

Pricesfrozen on85lines

OneStop –asubsidiaryof Tesco–hasannounced anotherpricelockonover 85products.Thepromotion runsuntil18September.

Theconvenienceretailer’s‘LowEverydayPrices’ campaignfirsthitstoresin July2022andhasbeenwell receivedbycustomers.

HeadofproductMarianne Aitkensaid:“Wewantto helpcustomers’moneygo furtherandwedon’twant themtohavetohuntfor greatvalue–theycanfind everythingtheyneedattheir localOneStopatfantastic locked-inprices.

“We’refocusingonlines thatmattermostandwe’re continuingtobroadenthe range.”

Judges(ltor):AndrewGreen,JasonGordon,MattOwens.

Own-label launches

CountryRangeGroup has addedLemonDrizzleCaketo itsrange.Itcomesfrozen, provides14portions,and justneedstobethawed beforeserving.

RachelPorter,marketing manager,said:“Elegantand delicious,it’saclassiconany cakeboard,notjustinsummerbutallyearround.”

£3millioninvestedinAylesford

Aylesford-based kff(Kent FrozenFoods) hasinvested morethan£3millioninits operationsoverthelast18 months,andthisinvestment hascontributedtoa50% post-pandemicboominsales.

Around£2millionhas beenspentonthefleet,with afurther£1millionon upgradingrefrigeration.The wholesalerhasalsoinvested initsdigitalplatforms,updatingitswebsitewithafresh design,increasingcustomer orderingfunctionalityand showcasingitsrefreshed brandidentity.

Thefirmhasincreased thesizeofitssite,takinga satellitewarehousenextto itsexistingpremises,sothat itcancarryabiggerrange.

Thegrouphasalsoadded SlicedPickledGherkinstoits own-brandrange.Theycome in2.3kgjarsincasesoftwo.

Inaddition,kffhasmade improvementsaroundthe Aylesfordsite,including upgradingthekitchenand facilitiesforemployees.

PhillipWhite,kffmanagingdirector,commented:“As partofSysco,wehavethe backingoftheworld’sleadingfoodservicecompany, whichhasallowedusto investinthebusinesstohelp usgrow.

“Overthepastcoupleof yearswehaverefocusedthe companytoincreaseour localprovenance,growing

DunnssponsorsQueen’sParkFC

Queen’sParkFC,whichwas foundedin1867,hasnamed DunnsFoodandDrinks, whichwasfoundedlessthan adecadelaterandjustafew milesaway,asitsofficial hospitalitypartner.

Thewholesaler’soperationsdirectorJulieDunn said:“Asweprepareforour 150thanniversary,we’re veryexcitedtoenterapartnershipwithafootballclub thatwaswellestablished evenbeforeourinception.

“Theclubhasarichheritageandwe’vebeenproud tohavebeentheirsupplier foranumberofyears.Itfelt rightonmultiplefrontsforus totakethenextstepand becomeanofficialpartner.

“Likeus,Queen’sPark believesinhavingapositive

impactonthecommunity andsupportingthelocal workforce.Wearelooking forwardtobuildingavery successfulpartnershipwhich willcreatealotofgoodfor communitiesandcharitiesin Glasgowandbeyond.”

Oneorganisationsetto

benefitisAwareScotland,a charityhelpingyoungpeople toachievetheirfullpotential.

Together,thefootballclub andthewholesalerwillinvite peoplesupportedbythe charitytoattendtraining sessions,games,andpress conferences.

thenumberofKentand SouthEastproducersthat weworkwith.

“We’vealsospent£1millionupgradingourrefrigeration,sothatwecanlauncha muchbigger‘fresh’range, addingmorethan250products.Andwe’vemadeiteasierforcustomerstoaccess therangewithnewappsand anupgradedwebsite.”

JJFoodservice hasadded beerkegstoitsrange.They areavailableforcollection onlyfromitsDagenham, EnfieldandSidcupbranches.

Pricesstartat£94.99fora 50-litrekegofCarlsberg,and therangealsoincludes Foster’s,Peroni,SanMiguel, Heineken,andCobra.The wholesalerisoffering£10off ordersplacedonline.

Thewholesalerhasalso expandeditsrangeforconsumersby30%tooffera widerselectionoffamilyfriendlyproducts.

Firstlaunchedin2020to supporthouseholdsduring theCOVIDpandemic,theJJ Homerangehasnowbeen rebrandedasJJHome Essentialsandanewdedicatedwebpagehasbeen launched.

Queen’sParkplayersWillTizzard(left)andJackTurner(right) withDavidRowan,salesmanageratDunnsFoodandDrinks.

4.7%increaseinlike-for-likesales

Parfetts sawsalesrisefrom £605millionto£634million intheyearendedJune2023. Profitfigureswillbe announcedlaterthismonth.

The4.7%increaseinlikefor-likesalescomesaftera yearofinvestmentinprotectingretailermarginsthrough anexpandedpromotional programme,includingmajor eventsliketheannualParfest, whichsawrecordsalesof over£21millionintheweek to14July.

Inthelastfinancialyear, theeight-depotwholesaler alsoexpandeditsGoLocal fasciatomorethan1,100 stores.

Asaresultofitsperformance,alleligibleParfettscolleagueswereawardeda4% tax-freesalesbonusinJuly.

Commentingonthe results,GuySwindell,joint

managingdirectorofParfetts, said:“We’veplacedour retailersattheheartofour business.Asanemployeeownedcompany,wecan investincreatinggreatmarginsandprovidingagreat experience,whetheryou comeintothedepotororder online.

“Aswecontinueto expand,weareseekingto aggressivelygrowourGo

NBCdeclaresdividend

NationalBuyingConsortium (NBC) hasannouncedthat NBCandNDNrevenuerose to£27.3millionandprofits rosebyover60%in2022.

Inaddition,membership continuestogrowwiththe additionsthisyearofCandy Hero,MarionTrading,One ForthePeople,andPrecision Wholesale.NBChasalso reportedthatrebates returnedtomembersinfull andontimehavereached

over£6.1millionsince2019.

ManagingdirectorDavid Luntcommented:“Wehave averystrongsetofresults forthegroupcompaniesin 2022.Asaresultofthehard workandpersistencefrom everyoneinvolved,weare abletodeclareadividend toallshareholders,which ensureswedeliveruponour promiseofNBCmembership beinganinvestment,nota managementfee.”

Local,GoLocalExtraand TheLocalfascias,whileour newdepotinBirmingham hasraisedthebarforthe industryandgivesusabase toservicetheMidlandsand M40corridor.”

Thecompanyisalso investinginreducingitscarbonfootprintbyrollingout LEDlightingandsolarpanels atitsdepotsacrosstheUK. Themovewillalsogenerate

costsavingsthathelpdrive valueacrossthebusiness.

NoelRobinson,jointmanagingdirectorofParfetts, said:“It’sessentialthatour retailersenjoyabest-in-class experience,howeverthey choosetodobusinesswith us.Parfettshasincreased investmentinitsdigitalplatformsandlogisticstoensure ourdeliveryofferisreliable andscaleable.

“Parfettsisseeingonline ordersgrow,andtheynow accountfor40%ofourtotal sales.Thishasbeen achievedwithoutadropin cash&carrysales.Online allowsustoextendourgeographicalreachandsupport moreretailers.”

Parfettsopeneditseighth depotinBirminghamin Marchandhasseenitperformaheadofexpectations.

Festivehighlights

QCatering haslaunchedits 2023Christmasbrochure, highlightingfestivefavouriteswhilealsosuggesting waystogiveatwisttononseasonalproductswiththe aimofreducingfoodwaste.

Thewholesaler’s2023 festiveofferingincludesa rangeofveganandvegetarianproducts,aswellas exclusiverangesfromThe FinestCakeCompany.

Alsoavailableexclusively fromtheSittingbournebasedwholesalerarethe Kent&SussexCheeseboard andBritishCheeseboard.

SteveClarke,managing directorofQCatering,said: “It’snevertooearlytoprepareforChristmasandwe aredelightedtohave releasedourfirstever Christmasbrochuresoearly intheyear.

“Ourwarehouseexpansionundertakenlastyearwill comeintogreatuseduring thistime,asitallowsusto offerevenmoreofacomprehensiverangeofcoreproducts–andtokeepstocking newproductsinlinewith demandandtrendsaswe movethroughthefestive season.”

DavidLunt(centre)withsomeofthemembershareholders.

Sponsorshipextended

SPARScotland’s four-year partnershipwiththeScottish FootballAssociationhas beenextendedbyafurther fouryears.

SPARScotlandpartnered withtheScottishFAin2019 withthesponsorshipof ScotlandWomen’sNational Teamandhassincecontinuedtoraisetheprofileofthe team,aswellascommitting investmentintogirls’and women’sgrassrootsfootball

Blakemoresigning

acrossthecountry.

Akeyelementofthepartnershipwastheintroduction oftheSPARFutureStars ChallengeCup–agirls’footballcompetitionstretching toallpartsofScotland.

SPAR’spartnershipextensionwiththeScottishFA untilAugust2027features newrights–itssponsorship includestheWomen’s ScottishCupdomesticgames overthenextfouryears.

MealTrak,thefood-to-goand out-of-hometrackingprogramme,hassignedup AF Blakemore&Son asanew client.

AFBlakemoreowns263 SPARstoresacrossEngland andWales,aswellassupportingitsindependent SPARestatethrough BlakemoreTradePartners.

MealTraksurveys36,500 consumersayearabouttheir food-to-go/out-of-homeeatingoccasionsfromthepreviousday.Thisenablessubscriberstotheserviceto quantifytheout-of-home

market,trackperformance overtime,andunderstand theconsumerandthereasonsformarketchanges.

DavidCook,groupcommercialdirectoratAF Blakemore&Son,said:“Our partnershipwithMealTrak willhelpusaccelerateour journeytoblurthelinesof conveniencestoreandfoodto-goretailing.Wearenow betterservicingourcustomerswithdelicious‘food fornow’and‘foodforlater’ solutions,andseeingasignificantupliftinourlike-forlikesalessincego-live.”

Recordentries Makingadifference

Entriesforthe2024 SWA

AchieversAwards are20% uponthepreviousevent, withmanywholesalerswho havepreviouslynotentered thecompetitiontakingpart.

Achieversaretheonly awardsinScotlanddedicatedtothewholesalefood anddrinksector,withthe galadinnerattendedbyover 500peoplefromacrossthe wholesaleindustryandits supplychaineachyear.

ReturningtotheO2 AcademyEdinburghfora secondyear(22February 2024),thiseventhighlights bestpracticeandinnovation andalsorecognisesthededicatedpeoplewhokeepthe industry’swheelsmoving.

Thereare13wholesale categoryawardsandsixsupplierawards.Suppliersponsorsjudgethewholesalecategoriessupervisedbyan independentpanelofjudges withcross-sectorexperience.

ColinSmith,chiefexecutiveoftheSWA,said: “Achievershasmaintained itspositionasoneofthe UK’spremierwholesale eventsovertwodecades.”

Kellogg’shasmadea£4,000 donationto Nisa’s Makinga DifferenceLocally(MADL) charitytosupportbreakfast clubsinschools.

ThepartnershipwithNisa isanextensionofKellogg’s ‘25YearsofBreakfastClubs’ campaign.

Thedonationwillbe madeavailableaseight£500 donations,whichNisaretailerscanapplyfor.

Nisa’sheadofcharity KateCarrollsaid:“Weare extremelygratefulto Kellogg’sforthedonationto MADLandtheimpactitwill haveonsupportingbreakfast clubsinschools.Wealways looktoworktogetherwith ourpartnersandsuppliersto

createfundingopportunities inthecommunity.”

Inothernews,Nisahas reportedthatitssaleswith forecourtstoresroseby29% between2019and2022. Averageweeklysales improvedbyover23%.

Overthesameperiod, 237forecourtstoresjoined Nisa’sestate,and73have joinedsofarin2023.This hastakenthetotalNisaforecourtstorenumbersto almost400acrosstheUK.

ColinMcLean(centre),CEOofSPARScotland,withScottish FACEOIanMaxwellandScotlandplayerRachelMcLouglin.

Festival food fills pockets

it is, they are fried to order to ensure they keep their freshness in taste and crunch,” says Oppong. “ They are made with love and unique flavours that are hard to recreate.”

When customers are prepared to queue for more than an hour to get their hands on a portion of Wingerz Wingz gourmet chicken wings, it ’s clear that the company has a recipe for success.

Wingerz Wingz is a mobile caterer that sells its speciality chicken wings and other American-inspired food at 25-30 events per year. Some are one-day festivals, others last for a few days. The caterer covers the whole of England from Manchester and the Isle of Wight to its local fairs in Chingford, London.

Owner Naomi Oppong founded Wingerz Wingz while in university accommodation. “I started making food and selling wings to my uni friends. My friends started telling their friends, and then I started selling to people around the university campus,” she explains.

When Covid struck, Oppong used the time to perfect the wings and wing sauce recipe, and officially registered Wingerz Wingz as a company in 2021. “Covid actually helped us to flourish: it gave me time to perfect a lot of recipes and not rush into things,” she says.

Today, Wingerz Wingz trades from a 3m x 6m gazebo, and in addition to its gourmet wings, it sells seafood such as lobster tail and bang bang prawns, plus chicken, vegetarian and vegan wraps, gourmet chicken burgers, and fluffy honey cornbread.

“ What makes our wings so special is that no matter where the event or what

She continues: “ We’ve had hundreds of positive reviews about our wings to the point that people have waited more than an hour for the wings and still came back! Although the wait can be tedious, our wings are unique and we’re never afraid to push the boundaries when it comes to exploring flavours.

“Our best- selling item to date is probably our Wingerz special, which got us a mention from the biggest wing festival in the UK. However, as we do more events, we see that our Jack Daniel’s, honey sesame…in fact all our wings are a killer! We introduced never- donebefore apple crumble buffalo wings exclusively at Wing Fest and that was probably our best seller. We sold 5,000+ wings of our Wingerz special and apple crumble buffalo wings at that one event alone.”

Wingerz Wingz uses JJ Foodservice as its wholesaler. Oppong explains: “ We have used JJ Foodservice since the day we did our first- ever event in August 2021. They have never failed and are probably one of the reasons why our wings are so good! They are reliable and we like to know exactly where our food is coming from – especially poultry foods, which help us track in the unlikely event of a complaint.

“In addition, JJ Foodservice’s prices are consistent and competitive.”

Wingerz Wingz operates mainly during the summer period. The first event it has ever done in the calendar year was the Black Eats event in London‘ s Hackney market in April and its last event of the year has been AMA Fest in Hertfordshire in September. “ We can sometimes be booked at the last minute, so it ’s hard to say when the final date of the year will be,” she points out.

Understandably, sales are weather dependent: “ When the sun is out, people are definitely more willing to spend more. I guess it gives that happy feeling that goes with eating street food,” she remarks.

Mobile caterers can be a valuable customer category for wholesalers. Naomi Oppong, owner of Wingerz Wingz, talks about her business and the support she gets from JJ Foodservice.

Naomi Oppong: ‘ We always appreciate price cuts from our wholesaler.’

Wingerz Wingz attends 25-30 events per year across England.

“So far, the business is going really well as we are constantly learning new things and meeting great people,” she adds. “ We are constantly trying to improve as we are still very, very young.”

Like most businesses, Wingerz Wingz has been hit by a variety of market factors: “Unfortunately, the high cost of living and the higher fuel and food prices have affected us all,” says Oppong. “It is not something anyone can hide from.

“As a business, we need to balance if eating out is a necessity during these hard times. How we can assist this is ensuring that our prices are not too low to undercut the business, but not too high that the average person cannot still experience the enjoyment of eating out. Our prices still have to reflect the quality of our food – luckily, I think all of our customers understand that quality food is not cheap.”

Oppong is grateful for the support offered by her wholesaler: “ The amount of money we spend on food means we always appreciate cut prices most definitely. That said, having unexpected promotions is always a joy as we get a chance to save and cut our food prices for that period, which definitely has a positive impact on the business. It helps support us during financially difficult times.” CCM

Word- of-mouth recommendations bring mobile caterers to JJ Foodservice

“Mobile caterers are an incredibly important customer group to JJ Foodservice – this allows vendors like Wingerz Wingz to delight their customers with great- quality food at whatever event they may be at, ” says digital communications manager Leyla Motisi.

“Many of the mobile caterers we have spoken to this year say that they always have the same faces returning to enjoy their food, and JJ Foodservice is the very starting point for that. It ’s also great that our products are shared up and down the country at these events, for a wide audience to enjoy.”

JJ Foodservice currently has over 1,200 customers in the category of events/mobile caterers. “ We’re lucky to have a loyal customer base, many of whom have used JJ Foodservice for over 10 years,” Motisi reports. “Mobile caterers at events get talking to each other, and a lot of our mobile catering customers have found JJ through word- of-mouth recommendations from other vendors.”

JJ Foodservice targets mobile caterers through its sales team, who work closely with event organisers. In addition, JJ produced a Festival Food

guide earlier this year to raise awareness that it serves these types of customers, and it recently released a video after visiting Download and Latitude festivals to showcase a few of its customers and reinforce the message that JJ can cater to mobile caterers’ needs.

“Food trucks and mobile caterers have risen in popularity over the years, with events from UK summer music and sports events to Christmas markets and Winter Wonderland. These vendors need a supplier they can rely on, with a wide product range and top - quality service as standard. The production of the

brochure allows us to share our successes through the real-life testimonials of our customers and show other festival caterers that we can support their businesses,” she says.

According to Motisi, the guide generated a significant number of new customer enquiries. Meanwhile, the festivals video has been shared on all of JJ’s social platforms, and many of its mobile catering customers are beginning to tag JJ in their social media posts, which the wholesaler then reshares with the aim of attracting new customers.

JJ offers a range of products that cater for many different types of cuisines that mobile caterers serve. Customers can collect what they need from a local branch or take advantage of JJ’s delivery service direct to festival sites, dependent on the festival location and accessibility.

“ This means they don’t have to think ahead about how much stock they have to take with them, and also ensures the products we deliver are as fresh as can be,” Motisi points out.

Ideal for Ice Cream, Hot Chocolate and the decoration of desserts and cakes.

Serving suggestion

Dual-branded model delivers

concept into areas of the UK where Bargain Booze hasn’t historically operated.

Bestway Retail, which introduced its ‘store within a store’ model last year, bringing together Bargain Booze and Costcutter, has increased sales in its Bolton dual-branded store by 48% since its relaunch in March this year.

Customer footfall has risen by 40%, chilled sales have doubled, and profitability has increased by 3% margin points, driven by a new hot food-to -go offer.

As a result, the store anticipates recouping the initial £250,000 investment within two -and-a-half years.

The Bargain Booze section of the store now boasts over 750 SKUs of beers, wines and spirits – up from 500 –and includes a new range of ales and a low/no alcohol section. This has led to a 24% increase in alcohol sales, which now average £7,000 per week.

Shop owner Kersheaup Vagadia says: “ The hybrid implementation of the new Bargain Booze concept has yielded remarkable results for our store. With two prominent brands displayed above our door, we’ve witnessed a significant increase in footfall, gaining not only substantial numbers of customers but also an average basket spend increase of £2.20 per customer.”

Before the relaunch, the store conducted extensive research and analysis, working closely with the store development, retail and commercial teams at

Bestway Retail to identify areas of strength and weaknesses. This involved breaking down sales by category and examining the shopping habits and preferences of customers. This process highlighted that the store had only tapped into a small portion of its local customer base.

“ We leveraged this valuable insight to design our ideal store,” says Vagadia. “Planning encompassed the inclusion of a dedicated fresh bakery, a well- curated hot food section, a convenient drinks -

to -go area, a wide range of fresh produce and chilled products, and an expanded product selection throughout the store to exceed our competitors’ offers. It has really opened our eyes to what our customers want and given us a new perspective of how to run our business.”

The hot food section has emerged as the most profitable department, consistently achieving an average margin of 38%. This success is reflected in weekly sales of £1,300 – up from £150.

The expansion of Co - op own-brand products has also led to increased sales. In particular, chilled and fresh produce sales have tripled, with fresh meat and ready meals showing a 270% rise.

Despite the store ’ s unchanged square footage, the product range has been expanded by 18%, and this, coupled with the influx of customers, has brought growth to the store.

Bestway Retail has completed the relaunch of 10 shops to its Costcutter/ Bargain Booze ‘store within a store’ model and it has 20 more in the pipeline. Due to interest received, the company is planning to expand the concept into areas of the UK where Bargain Booze hasn’t historically operated. CCM

Following substantial sales rises, Bestway Retail is planning to expand its ‘store within a store’

Alcohol sales are up by 24% and now average £7,000 per week.

Kersheaup Vagadia and his mum Vaita in the store that has seen a 48% sales boost.

Surplus happens

What you do with it matters now more than ever.

FareShare

fights hunger and food waste by redistributing surplus food to 9,500 frontline charities and community groups in the UK.

“ When you have a full belly, it makes a huge difference to your overall wellbeing. We have really brought the community closer together, and we literally wouldn’t be able to do any of it without FareShare.

We believe that good food should go to people, not waste.

We take edible surplus from right across the food and drink industry and get it to people in need.

Ellie Phillips, Matthew’s House

Give us food and make a real difference to people in need.

” Or visit: fareshareuk.com/FDM

Sean Scrimger, buying director, Star Pacific

Boyhood goalie dream

What have been your biggest achievements in work and outside work?

My biggest achievement in work was supporting the Star Pacific team through the global pandemic, having only been in the business for a few months. It was a small business with a small team, and it was all hands on deck trying new and innovative ways of working. It was a quick learning curve trying to understand all aspects of the business and the areas where it operates. We have had four years of consecutive growth and have been awarded both a Queen’ s Award and King ’ s Award for International Trade.

Who has been the biggest inspiration to you?

My work inspiration began with George McLachlan (formerly store manager at Safeway Arbroath) who saw something in me and pushed me to get started within retail at Safeway. Having gained 12 years of retail experience, David Lamb (then trading director at CJ Lang & Son) gave me my first opportunity in a buying role. He guided me throughout my CJ Lang career and helped me find my passion in the trading team. Without the guidance and support from George and David, I would never have progressed so far in my career.

What were your ambitions when you were growing up?

Like a lot of young boys, I wanted to be a professional football player – a goalkeeper. I always loved being part of the team, training and playing matches. [Scrimger is pictured second on right, back row, aged around 13.] When I grew older, I realised that this dream wouldn’t come true. As I moved through secondary school, I enjoyed learning accounting and thought that my career would lie in that direction.

What are your interests outside work?

As I have got older my interest has turned from playing football to watching it. I can often be found standing in the

terraces of my local clubs Arbroath and Dundee United. I’ve also found a new interest – watching my son who now plays for my local cricket club. Working from home has helped me maintain a better home/work life balance – this is due to the flexibility that Star Pacific allows the team.

How would you describe your personality and what approach do you take in business (and in life)?

From a business perspective I am driven to do my best; I am also very passionate about my job as it ’s something I enjoy immensely. I like the interaction with suppliers and building relationships. In life I have a very easygoing approach and enjoy spending time with my wife and two children.

What is your favourite film, book and song/piece of music?

I like watching the Star Wars trilogies with the kids and reading a John Grisham book, and I enjoy a wide genre of music.

What would people be surprised to know about you?

I’m a keen collector of match-worn football shirts and limited- edition whisky.

If you won a holiday, where would you go and who would you take with you?

I enjoy family holidays, so I would choose a trip to California where we could have a good mix of theme parks, beaches, shopping, eating and some celebrity spotting.

12 years in retail, 21 years in wholesale

After school, Sean Scrimger joined Safeway at the age of 16 and completed a number of training programmes. He held positions ranging from in- store management posts to area team roles and was latterly a regional sourcing manager for Scotland. Scrimger left Safeway in 2002 to begin working in the trading team at CJ Lang & Son. He progressed

CCM

through various roles, including trading controller for grocery and nonfoods, before leaving the Dundeebased wholesaler in 2015 to join United Wholesale Scotland as trading director – grocery. Scrimger was appointed to his current role of buying director at Star Pacific in 2019. A Sugro member, Star Pacific is based in West London.

’Tistheseasonforsales

Festiveopportunitiesarestillplentifulforthetrade,whetherit’slow-valuebuthighmarginproductsthatshoppersseekovertheHalloweenperiodorpremiumChristmas treatsandsocialoccasionsthatshouldproveresilientthroughthecost-of-livingcrisis.

TheUS-basedenthusiasmforHalloweencontinues togaintractionintheUKandisahugeopportunity fortheconveniencechannel.Whilethecost-of-livingcrisiscontinuestoeatintoconsumerspend,this isaprimeopportunityforlow-cost,feel-goodcelebration.

Swizzels recommendsmixingestablishedbrand favouriteswithNPD,andcreatingattention-grabbingdisplays,tomakethemostofthesalesopportunities.

“Halloweenhascementeditselfasoneofthebiggest shoppingeventsforretailers,alongsideChristmasand Easter,”saysClareNewton,trademarketingmanager. “Overall,HalloweenspendingintheUKwasestimatedto total£687millionlastyear(Forbes),andtheseasonalsales haveincreasedyearonyearforoveradecade.

“Value-for-moneyconfectionery continuestobeahugelypopular choiceforshoppers,andmore retailersthaneverhavebeenstockinguponcategoriesperforming particularlywellduringHalloween, suchassugarconfectionery.

“Anotherkeyfactormakingsugar confectioneryapopularcategoryis thecustomaroundHalloweentrickor-treat,whichhasalwaysbeen associatedwithsweets.”

NPDfromSwizzelsincludes60g Squashiesasanon-the-goformat

HalloweenhangingbagsMummyMixandMonsterTreats containDrumstickLollies,RefreshersChews,MiniLove HeartsRolls,Fizzers,FruityPops,DoubleLolliesandParma Violets,andshouldbemerchandisedprominentlyforthe occasion,Newtonadvises.

“Halloweenisexpectedtobeveryprofitableforretailers asit’sahighlyanticipatedeventthatallowspeopletoenjoy affordabletreats,shesays.Retailerscandriveprofitsfrom categoriessuchassugarconfectionerybydisplayingarange offun,sought-afterandaffordableproductsandnewflavours thatappealtoshoppersstockingupforseasonalparties.

“Morefamiliesandyoungadultsaregettingintothecategory,enticedbyarangeofflavours, themeddisplaysandin-storeactivations.”

RoseMarketingUK hasintroducedtheCandyCastleMutations range,withbrightpackaging,bold flavoursandinnovativetextures–including‘gruesomegelcandy’–thatareidealforHalloween.

TherangecomprisesSourBelt RainbowRoll,TripleSourSqueezee, SourFunkeeDip,SuperSourSkull, ExtremelySourHardCandyand ExtremelySourVenomGunk.

andMinionsSherbetDipsinFizzyOrange,SourAppleand TangyBerryflavours.

Thelaunchofthe newCandyCastle Mutationsrangeis beingsupportedwith promotions,andall productsarepricedin thepocket-money bracket,andaresuitableforvegetarian andvegandiets.

MondelezInternational adviseswholesalerstoensure theysupplytherightformatsforretailerstomakethemost oftheoccasion.“SeasonaleventslikeHalloweenaregreat forbringingfamilyandfriendstogether,andthisisreflected inthefactthatthetop-sellingproductsaretypicallysharingstyleconfectioneryintubs,treatsizemultipacksandlarge pouches,”saysSusanNash,tradecommunicationsmanager.

“Treatsizeandpouchesareabsolutelykeyforretailers lookingtohaveasuccessfulseason.Theseformatsareperfectforallofthevariouswaysthatconsumersmarktheoccasion,whetheritbewelcomingtrick-or-treaters,entertaining friendsandfamily,orenjoyingabignightin.”

Nashcontinues:”Halloweenisavaluableopportunityfor retailers:in2022,justunderhalfofallconsumerstookpart inHalloweeninsomeform.Thismeantthatthetotalchocolatecategorywasworthasignificant£20millionduringthe season,whilebiscuitswereworth£15million(Nielsen).”

Lastyear,CadburyDairyMilkButtons,CadburyDairyMilk Freddo&FriendsandCadburyFamilytreatsizepackswere threeofthetop10SKUs,andCadburyFamilytreatsize216g wasthebiggest-sellingSKUoftheHalloweenseason(Nielsen).

Thisyear,thesupplierhasextendeditspartnershipwith MerlinEntertainmentstofeatureseasonalpacksincluding OreoSpooky biscuitsand CadburySkeletonFingers, enablingfamiliestosaveon familyexperiences.

MarsWrigley pointsoutthatduringtimesofeconomic uncertainty,consumerslookforproductstheyknowand love.Therefore,thesupplierisfocusingondeliveringitscore rangeofproductstoconsumersthisHalloween.

Celebrationstubsareidealtooffertrick-or-treaters,and arealsowell-suitedtoconsumershostingaseasonalparty, whilefun-sizepacks,whichappealtoyoungershoppers,are alsoidealfortrick-or-treating.

“Tocatertocost-consciousconsumers,confectioneryretailerscancuratecreativeandaffordableproductassortments. Retailersshouldofferavarietyofpacksizesandmix-andmatchoptions,allowingcustomerstopurchaseavarietyof treatsatlowerpricepointsorlargerpacksofferingbetter value,”advisesFlorenceKayll,seniorbrandmanager,Easter andHalloween.

“WithHalloweenbeingakeyseasonforsugarconfectionery,limited-editionlaunchesofferahugesalesopportunityforretailers,whoshouldbethinkingaboutstockingup onspecialpacksandhowtogeneratein-storeexcitement.”

ThisHalloween,MarsWrigleyisbringingbackSkittles Darkside.Thelimited-editionproductcomesin324gfunsize packs(rsp£4)andfeaturesdark-colouredsweetsinDark Berry,MidnightLime, BloodOrange,Wicked PomegranateandSweet Strawberryflavours.

WhileHalloweenand Christmasareundeniablyprofitabletimesfor confectioneryretailers, decidingonstockquantities–particularlyofspecialseasonallines–toavoida surplusafterthefestivitiescanbechallenging.

Walker’sNonsuch hasaportfoliothatovercomesboth issueswithproductsthatcombinequalityingredientsand apremiumlookwithalowpricepointandyear-round suitability.

“Ourgiftrangeisprovingtobeverypopularwithretailers, deliveringonmarginwhilstbeingaffordableandoffering qualitytotheircustomers.Ourbeautifulpackagingwillnot restricttheselinestoanyparticularseasonastheyareaimed tobeagiftforalloccasions,”explainsLisaClowes,technical support&customercare.

Seasonaloccasionssparkdemandfor matches and lighters

Whileconfectioneryistheobviouschoicetoconsiderfor Halloween,it’simportantnottooverlookothercategory opportunities. RepublicTechnologies(UK) highlightsthe £85million(IRI)matchesandlightersmarketasanarea forretailersandwholesalerstofocuson.

“Halloweenleadsthewayforincreaseduseofmatches andlighters–notsurprising,asspendingonpumpkins aloneisestimatedtohavereachedalmost£30millionlast year,”saysGavinAnderson,sales&marketingdirector.

“Againstthebackdropofatougheconomicclimate, peoplewanttomakethemostoffamily-focusedcelebrations.Asmatchesandlighterstakeuplimitedshelf space,retailerscanboostseasonalsalesoftheseaffordablebuthigh-marginproducts.”

Thesalesopportunitiesformatchesandlightersalso rollovertoBonfireNightandDiwali,furthersupporting theneedforeffectivemerchandisingatthistime.

“Timesaretoughforpeopleat themoment,thereforeit

premiumproducts thatwon’thurtthe pocket.Ourgiftrange isaimedata£10retail pricepointorunder.”

Shecontinues:“If wholesalerscanoffer productsthathaveneutral seasonalpackagingthen thatwillgiveconfidenceto retailerstobuyhighquantities,knowingthatifanystockis leftoverafteranyseasonalperiodthentheywillhaveother opportunitiestosellstockthrough–ourcurrenthammer packgiftingoptionsareideal.”

‘Timesaretoughforpeopleatthe moment,thereforeitisimportantto offerpremiumproductsthatwon’t hurtthepocket’

LisaClowes,Walker’sNonsuch technicalsupport&customercare

Whilefamilycelebrationsarethefocusformanyretailers, BrothersDrinks adviseswholesalersandretailerstoconsiderthewideropportunitiesaffordedbytheoccasion.

“Thekeysinglepieceofadvicewe’dgivetoanyonelookingtosecureincrementalHalloweensalesis‘Don’tforget aboutadults’,”saysNicolaRandall,headofmarketing.

“Whiletrick-or-treatingiscentraltoHalloweenactivities, depotsshouldbesuretoalsogiveprominencetoproducts thatappealtoadults,astheyseektheirfairshareofthefun andwanttoenjoythecelebrationstoo.”

Themanufacturer’sBrothersToffeeAppleciderisavailableinregularandalcohol-freeversions,and seesasharpupliftinsales overtheperiod.“Brothers Ciderhadanextremely successfulHalloweenlast timearoundandthebrand sold58%morevolumein themonthofOctoberthan inSeptemberlastyear (Kantar),”statesRandall.

Onceagain,thecashconsciousconsumeris alsoatargetforsales.“Withthecost-of-livingcrisis,we expecteventhosewhomighthaveenjoyedathemednight inthepubtoturntohomegatheringsthisyear.Peoplewill stillwanttoenjoyHalloween,it’sjustthattheywilldosowith akeenereyeoncoststhistimearoundandBrothers,asa brandwithacentreofgravityverymuchintake-homerather thanintheon-trade,issettobenefitintermsofsalesofits ToffeeApplevariants,”predictsRandall.

AstonManor’s ethosisallaroundaffordability.“Weare hereforshoppers,helpingthemtosavewithouraffordable cider,”saysCalliO’Brien,headofmarketing.

“FromlovedfavouritessuchasCrumptonOaksApple Cider,throughtobranchingoutfromwineintoperrywithour new-lookChardolini,consumerswelcomethechancetotry somethingnewathome,andseasonalopportunitieslike HalloweenandChristmasaretimeswheretheyaremore likelytoexploredifferentoptions.”

Christmascheer

Thismonthseesthelaunchofseveralfestiveproductsfrom MarsWrigley.Theseincludegift boxesofMaltesersAssorted Truffles;MaltesersChristmasMix –asharingbagofminiMaltesers ReindeerandTeasers;and MaltesersReindeer29ginmilk chocolateandmintflavours.

Thereisalsothereturnof seasonalfavouritessuchas M&M’sSanta,Celebrations AdventCalendarandMaltesers AssortedTrufflesAdventCalendar.

“Bybringingbacksuccessfullaunchesof Christmaspast,combinedwithasprinkling ofinnovativeNPD,MarsWrigleyisonce againprovidingretailerswiththeopportunitytoboosttheirChristmasofferingand maximisetheirsalesduringwhatisthe mostcommerciallyimportanttimeofthe year,”saysCybiCapaldi,seniorbrand manager,Christmas.

“ConfectioneryandChristmasaresynonymousand,assuch,brandsandretailersalikemustensureanattractiveand fulfillingrangeforconsumerstoenjoy.”

MondelezInternational highlightstheopportunitiesfor incrementalseasonalsalesfromadd-onmissionssuchas thefestivebignightin,wheresharingblocksandpouches arefavoured.CadburyDairyMilkWinterOrangeCrisp360g isavailableinconveniencethisyear.FurthersharingadditionsincludeCadburyMiniSnowballsFamilyPack296g.

Inthegiftingsegment,TobleroneTruffleshavebeen launchedforthepremiumgiftingoccasionandhavethe addedversatilityofbeingsuitable allyearround.Meanwhile,the CadburyDairyMilkMoneyBox Tinisaplayfulgiftwithasecondaryuse.Furthernostalgiais cateredforwiththereturnof CadburyDairyMilkCoins.

Thesupplierhasalsoupdated theCadburyChunkCollectionto includeanewCaramilkchunk alongsideCadburyDairyMilk andWhite,CadburyDairyMilk CaramelandCadburyDairyMilkWholenut.

Caramilkalsomakesanappearanceinthenew

isimportanttooffer

ViewfromHQ

KentonBurchell, grouptradingdirector, BestwayWholesale

HowisBestwaypromotingitsHalloween,BonfireNight andChristmasrangestoitscustomers?

Bestwayrunstargetedcampaigns,publishesbrochures andhostseventstoattractretailerstopurchase Halloween,BonfireNightandChristmasranges,making surethattheygetthebestvalueandrangeofproductsto meetthedemandsoftheircustomers.Ourdepotswill haveallofthelatestpromotionalPoStoinformcustomersofthelatestpromotionaldealsandnewproducts.

ForChristmas,we’llcreateaspecificpromotional campaign–itwillinvolvecollaboratingwithsupplier brandsandensuringthatproductpalletsarewellstocked andavailableduringthedurationofthecampaign.We willpromotetheoccasionthroughtheatre,digital screensandradiotoinformcustomersvisitingthestore aboutspecialdealsandpromotions.Retailerswillhave theopportunitytoentercompetitionstowinprizes.

Whatdoyouexpecttobethetrendsforseasonalevents likeHalloweenandChristmasthisyear?

ForHalloween,sharingbagssuchasthechocolatemultipacks,whicharegoodvalueformoney.Treatbagsare greatforchildrenwhoareouttrickortreating,aspeople canputthesweetsintoabowlsochildrencan takethemfreely.Chocolateboxesaregood valueformoney,aschocolatesareindividually-wrappedandaregoodformixingwithothersweetsforsharing.

ForChristmas,giftingboxesincluding MilkTraychocolatespurchasedtogive asgifts,andpremiumchocolatesasa giftorpersonalindulgence.Regarding drinks,premiumalcoholdrinks–includingpremiumbrandsofflavouredorcraft ginandimportedalcoholdrinks–as peopleindulgeorchooseaspartofagift.

Withthecost-of-livingcrisis,doyouexpectconsumers tospendasmuchonHalloween,BonfireNightand Christmasasinpreviousyears?

ANatWestretailandleisureoutlookreportfor2023 showedthatconsumersarecuttingbackontheirspendingandaretradingdowntocheaperalternatives.Based onthisreport,56.4%ofconsumersareexpectingweaker personalfinancesin2023.

Inacompetitivemarket,Bestwayiscontinuingcampaignsandpromotingthebestvalue-for-moneyproducts tohelpourretailerspurchasethe‘muststock’linesto helptheirowncustomers.Wecontinuetopromotemultibuysandspecialofferswhichgiveconsumerssavings.

CadburyButtons

SelectionBox,which contains95gtreatbags inCadburyDairyMilk Buttons,CadburyDairy MilkOrangeButtons, CadburyDairyMilk SaltedCaramelNibbles andCaramilkButtons.

TheincreasinglypopularpremiumadventcalendarsubsegmentalsoseessomeMondelezNPDwiththearrivalof theCadburyDairyMilkAdventCalendar340g,containing CadburyDairyMilkChunks,CadburyDairyMilkRobins, HazelnutJinglyBells,CaramelChunksanda100gWinter WonderlandBar.

Inthesweetbiscuitcategory,therehasbeenplentyof seasonalactivityfrom pladis, withNPDandbrandrefreshes targetingthegrowingsweetseasonalbiscuitssegment.

“Withbiscuitgiftingprovingmorepopularthaneverand growing25%yearonyear(Nielsen),we’reconfidentwe’ve hittherightformulatoinspireshoppersanddrivefurther valueintotheseasonalbiscuitopportunity,”saysJames King,marketingdirector.

NPDforthisseasonincludesMcVitie’sVictoriaChocolate Creationsforpremiumgifting.TheMcVitie’sJaffaTreeisan affordablesharinggiftingitem(rsp£3),whiletheMcVitie’s PenguinCrackertapsinto thedemandfornovelfestivetreatswithpacks containingaMcVitie’s OriginalPenguinBar, McVitie’sMiniPenguins PackandChristmasparty hat,availableinmixed casesof12.

Meanwhile,McVitie’s SantaSnacksChocolate CakeBars,McVitie’sJaffaCakesChristmasPole,McVitie’s FamilyCircleandMcVitie’sVictoriaalsoreturnforthefestive season.

Insavourybiscuits,pladishasrefresheditsJacob’sand Carr’sseasonalrangeforthisyear,supportedbyanoverarching‘Ready,Steady,Christmas’campaignfeaturingsamplingandonlineactivationalongsideshoppermarketing.

KPSnacks alsohighlightsthemerchandisingopportunitiesacrossthefestiveperiodinthecrisps,snacks&nuts category,withthesharingsub-segmentseeinga74% increaseinpacksboughtoverChristmascomparedtothe restoftheyear(Nielsen)andnutsseeinga60%increase.

“Overthefestiveseason,shoppersarewillingtospendmoreon higherqualitycrisps,snacks&nuts productstobringextraflavourand excitementtoChristmasoccasions,” saysMattCollins,tradingdirector.

“Todrivesalesandcapitaliseon thistrend,retailersshouldbroaden theirproductrangeintheleadupto Christmastoincludemorepremium options.”

Goodcleansupport

Acomprehensiveunderstandingofcash&carriesanddeliveredwholesalersenables RobinsonYoungtoguideitsnon-foodFMCGbrandstosuccessinthiscomplexchannel.

Goodrelationshipsalongthesupplychainarevital forlastingsuccessinthewholesalechannel.

RobinsonYoung hasmorethanhalfacenturyof experienceandcontactstoensurethatitsclients receivetherightkindofsupportandadvicetobuildtheir businessandgrowtheirbrands.

“Forourmanufacturers,weviewourselvesasanextensionoftheirownsalesteam,”explainsChrisHoneyball,seniorbrand&categorymanager.“InworkingwithRobinson Young,theyreceiveadedicatedsalesteamwithestablished relationshipsinthissector.Oursalesteamwillregularlyprovidefeedbacktoourmanufacturerswhichhelpsthem developnewproductsspecificallyforthewholesalesector oramendtheircurrentproductstomakethemmoresuitable forthischannel.

“Forourwholesalecustomers,weareabletogivethem accesstomarketleadingbrandswithouthavingtomeetthe highminimumordervaluerequiredgoingdirecttothe manufacturers,helpingthemtowidentheirportfolioof products.”

RobinsonYounghasanextensiveclientlistofbrandsthat itrepresentsthewholesalechannel,includingACE,Biomed, Bloo,Bodyform,Bristows,Caterpack,CaterpackEnviro,CCS, Cidal,Cuticura,Dylon,E45,Got2b,Jeyes,Mancave,Oust, P20,Pernaton,Poly,Provoke,Reynolds,Simple,Soft& Gentle,Tena,TenaLady,Vosene,Waterwipes,Witch,Wrights andZoflora.Atotalof31%ofRobinsonYoung’sbusiness goesthroughtheC&C/deliveredwholesaletrade.

“ThisyearhasseentherebrandingoftheVosene, BristowsandWitchbrands,”Honeyballreports.“This rebrandingnotonlyfocusedoninvigoratingthebrands’look andfeelbutbroughtthefeaturesandbenefitsoftheproduct frontandcentre,whichgaveourfieldsalesteammultiple discussionpointswhenmeetingwithcustomers.”

Thishasledtoanincreaseindistributionof13.5%and salesof17.5%.Thisdemonstrateshowmuchthesector reallyvaluesinnovationandrelishesbrandsthatareconstantlylookingforwaystoevolvetheiroffering.”

TheperformanceoftheACEbrandinthewholesalechannelisafurthertestamenttothesuccessofRobinsonYoung’s approach,withthebrandshowinga16%increaseinvolume and12.4%increaseinvaluesalesintheyeartodate.

“Overthepastfewyears,oursalesteamhavespenttime educatingtheircustomersaboutthebenefitsandreasonsfor stockingtheACErangeofstainremoverproducts.Asa challengerbrandinthestainremovalcategory,andwithout thelargemarketingbudgetofthecategoryleader,spending thistimewithbuyersandcustomersisjustasvaluable,” Honeyballexplains.

Hecontinues:“Educatingourbrandprincipalsonthe importanceofmakingsurethatproductsareintheright packagingformatandsize,withclearmessagingandcommunicationonthebox,isvital.Understandingtheserequirementsnotonlybuildstrustbetweenourcustomersandthe principalsbutalsohelpstoensurethatproductsandranges aregiventhebestfootingforsuccessintheC&C/delivered wholesaletrade.”

Theseven-strongfieldsalesteamcoverthewholeofthe UKandmake,onaverage,400visitsamonthtocustomers inordertocontinuallyassesschannelneedsandchanges. “Wealsoaskourcustomerswhatproductsand/orgapsthey haveintheiroffering,whetherthisisduetosupplyissuesor customersaskingforcompletelynewproductsbasedon trendsinthemarket,andwetakethisbacktoourbrandprincipals,”Honeyballadds.“ThismarketresearchandinformationisvitalforthebrandsthatweworkwithandourcustomersintheC&C/deliveredwholesaletrade,creatingbenefits forbothpartiestohelpgrowthesebrandsinthischannel.”

RobinsonYoungisalsocommittedtoensuringthatits serviceoffersgoodvaluetoitscustomers.“Ourfocusduring thesecurrentmarketchallenges,whichareseeingincreased costsacrosstheboard,istominimisetheimpactthatour costshaveonourcustomers,”saysmanagingdirector MichaelRobinson.

“Ourfocushasbeenonimprovingefficienciesinternally andlookingatotherprojects,suchasinstallingsolarpanels, tominimisecostsatourheadofficeandwarehouse.Wealso continuallylookattherangesandproductsthatwestock, ensuringthatourportfoliomeetscurrentmarkettrends,but alsointhiscost-of-livingcrisisensuringourcustomersare abletoofferproductsthatarecompetitivelypriced.”

CCM

ManagingdirectorMichaelRobinsonchatswithhisteam.

Thisyear,Witch,BristowsandVosenehaveallhadrebrands.

Aserviceforallseasons

Whetherit’sforsummerrefreshmentorwinterailments,SHShastheportfolioand expertisetoensurethattheconveniencechannelcanmaximisesalesopportunities.

Theteamat SHSSales&Marketing haveexperiencedanotherbusyyear,asitcontinuestosupport thewholesaleandconveniencechannelinthegrocery,confectionery,softdrinks,icecream,healthcareandhouseholdcategories.

LeadingwaterbrandHighlandSpringhasjoinedtheSHS portfolio,andthesales&marketingbusinessiscontinuingto drivegrowththroughexistingbrands,whichincludeZip, Meridian,OldElPaso,Reckitts,Haleon,MarsIceCream& Milks,Terry’sChocolate,Burton’sSweetBiscuits,PGTips andarangeofUnileverbrands.

Therehavebeenchallengesamongmanycategoriesina timeofuncertaineconomicpressures,butbottledwater remainsindemandandisperformingwell.SHSSales& MarketingannounceditspartnershipwithHighlandSpring lastyear.

Thewatercategoryisworthalmost£350millionannually totheimpulsechanneland,assuch,isavaluablesectorfor retailerstogetright.Consumersnotonlyexpecttofindafull rangeofsizes,flavoursandpackformatsavailableintheir localstore,theyalsowantsustainabilitycredentials. HighlandSpring’seco-friendlypackagingfulfilsthisrequirement,andtheSHSSales&Marketingteamhavebeenworkingwithimpulsestorestoensurethey’rebuyingtheoptimumrangefromtheirwholesalerandmakingiteasyfor consumerstoshopin-store.

Icecreamsaleshaveflourishedovertheadmittedly patchysummer–valuesalesinthecategoryareupmore than17%versus2022.MarsIceCreamisoutperformingthis with35%valuesalesgrowth(IRI),whilstSnickersIceCream isnowavailableinalmost5,000moreimpulsestoresthanit wasayearago–perfecttimingtoaccompanythecurrentTV advertising.

Alongsideicecream,theMarsMilkportfoliohasalso deliveredanimpressiveperformancein2023,registering growthof46%involumeand67%invalueversus2021(IRI), drivenbystrongandstabledistributionacrossthechannel aswellasengagingin-storedisplays.

Comingintoautumn,therearetwospecificareasto whichretailerswillbeturningtheirfocus–Christmasand seasonalillness.Whilesomeoftheanxietyofthepandemic haspassed,coldandflubugs areaspersistentasever,with consumersmoreeagerthan evertostaywell.

Whentheyareill,consumersarewantingtoselfmedicateratherthanvisittheir GP,andbrandssuchasLemsip, Nurofen,Strepsils,Anadin, BeechamsandPanadolwillall beindemandtohelpalleviate symptomsathome.

TheSHSSales&Marketingteamhavebeenworkingwith wholesalersandretailerstostockuponawiderangeof formatsearly,asconsumersseektofilltheirmedicinecupboardsaheadofthekeyseasonforcoughsandcolds.

AsretailersbegintoplantheirChristmasoffers,SHS Sales&Marketingagainplanstobeattheforefrontinadvisingthemonhowtomaximisetheimpulsegiftingopportunity whichcanbesolucrativeovertheseasonalperiod. RepresentingNo.1giftingproductTerry’sChocolateOrange, theSHSteamwillbehelpingdepotsandwholesalersensure thatthereisplentyofstockforretailerstobuildengaging in-storedisplaysandhighlightingbrandNPDsuchasTerry’s ChocolateMint.

Withcontinuingstrongperformancebyestablished brandsalongwithnewadditionstotheportfolio,SHSSales &Marketingcontinuestoberecognisedasavaluablesource ofinsight,adviceandinspirationinthewholesaleandconveniencechannel.Timeispreciousforretailers,sotheSHS Sales&Marketingteamcontinuestoworkwithdepotsand wholesalerstoensurethattheircustomerscanfindtheleadingproducts,intherightformats,asquicklyaspossible.As thechannelcontinuestoadapttochangesinconsumer behaviourandeconomicuncertainty,sotoodoesSHSSales &Marketing–ensuringthattheresourcetheyhaveavailable tosupportthechannelistargetedandeffectivetomaximise alltheopportunities.

Thebusinesshasalsomadesomeupdatestointernal structurestobetterservicethewholesaleandconvenience channel,astheteamcontinuestobringleadinginsight, adviceandin-depotexecutiontothetrade.

“Whileithasbeenanincrediblybusyyear,wehavelargely beenoperatingaswehaveforalmost40years,bringingthe optimumbrands,insightandadvicetothechannelsothat thewholesalersandretailershavethebestchanceofsuccess,”saysmanagingdirectorJohnHeynen.“Weareincrediblyproudofallthebrandswerepresentandknowhowcrucialtheyaretothesuccessofthechannel,andweremain passionateanddedicatedtoworkingwiththemtodrivesales andgrowthforbrandownersandcustomers.”

MDJohnHeynen.

SHSrepresentsbrandsspanningconfectionery,softdrinks, icecream,healthcare,groceryandhouseholdcategories.

Zestfulapproachtofoodservice

Afocusoninnovation,sustainabilityanddatahasenabledayoungsales,marketingand procurementbusinesstosecuresalesanddistributionforemergingfoodservicebrands.

Thereishelpforbrandsnavigatingthefoodservice channel. ZestFoodPartners isateamofstrategy, sales,marketingandprocurementexpertsworking withfoodanddrinkbrandsthatarelookingto expandandgrowwithintheUKfoodservicemarket.

Thebusinesswassetupthreeyearsagobyateamthat haveover125years’combinedexperience,anditoffersa completesolutionforsuppliersandmanufacturerswanting toservethesectorinacost-effectiveandefficientway,while providingtailoredspecificsolutionsforbuyers.

“Asateamwehavealotofexperienceinthewholesale sector,whichisimportantasweunderstandtheintricaciesof thechannel,”saysClaireWilliams,marketingdirector.“We alsoknowtheimportanceofbuildingandmaintainingrelationshipsandcreatingpartnershipsandjointbusinessplans toachievelong-term,sustainablegrowthwithcustomers.

“Weusea‘pushandpull’strategy,meaningweworkwith thewholesalemarketaswellaskeytargetend-usersto ensurewearebuildingtheend-userinterestanddemand, whilstidentifyingtheroutetomarket.”

WIlliamscontinues:“Thewholesalechannelisverymuch partofourlong-termgrowthstrategy,andwearecommitted toworkingwithbrandsthatwholesalecustomersloveand productsthatmeettheirneeds,aswellasworkingwith wholesalerstounderstandwherethereareanygapsor opportunitiesinthemarketsowecansupportthatway,too.”

Thecompany’sunderstandingofthefoodservicechannel iskeytobuildingthebusiness.“Weareanagilebusinessand arealwaysadaptingtotheever-changinglandscape,”she declares.“It’simportantthatwecontinuetolookaheadto spotopportunities,suchasintroducingown-labelorvalue productstomeetaspecificpricepointorwinalong-termbig contract,orprovidingproductsthatwillhelpoperatorscreateexperiences,havegoodmarginopportunities,andoffer somethingtheircustomerscan’trecreateathome.”

TheZestteamhasaproventrackrecordindelivering growthandsignificantsalesforfoodanddrinkbrands,andis buildingitsclientlist.Brandsthatitrepresentsinclude Campofrio,Kingsmill Professional,TeaJoy andYallo.

Thesearealready seeingthebenefits ofthepartnership–lastyearKingsmill Professionalwas launchedinthefoodservicesectorandalreadyhasmonthon-monthincreaseswith50wholesalestockists,while TeaJoyjoinedforceswithZestatthestartoftheyearfora wholesalelaunchandalreadyhaswholesalecustomersand productdevelopmenttoshowfortherelationship.

Withcostsbeingamajorconsideration,valueiskeyin foodservice.“Wholesalers,customersandsuppliersare

currentlyfacingsomanychallengesandthereisnogetting awayfromtherisingpricesandthecost-of-livingcrisis.We haveadaptedourofferingtomakesurewehavetheright productsthatofferaconvenientsolutionanddeliverstandoutappealforcustomers.”saysWilliams.

“Byimmersingourselvesinabrand’sbusiness,wecan addadditionalvalueoverandabovesalesandmarketing, whetherthatisworkingwiththeirNPDteams,supportingthe widerteamtoimplementmoreefficientprocesses,oradvisingthemontheirCSRpoliciesandsustainabilitycredentials.” Thecompanyalsocitestechnologyasvitalforcreating successfulsalesopportunities.“Havingaccesstodatahas beenkeytoouroffering.Itenablesusandourcustomersto understandmarketinfluencesandopportunities,toshape thewaycustomerspurchaseandhowwemarketourproductranges,andithelpsusalltomakesmartercommercial decisions,”sheexplains.”E-commerce,althoughcurrently under-exploitedinwholesale,willseehugegrowthinthe nextfewyearsanditwillreallyhelptocreateamorepositive experienceforcustomers.”

Zestalsopromotestheimportanceofsustainability.“With operatorsstrivingtooffermoresustainablechoicesontheir menus,andwholesalersontheroadtonet-zero,it’simportantthatweworkwithourbrandstoimprovetheirsustainabilitycredentialsandsupportwholesalerstoreachtheir ambitioustargetsquicker,”shecontinues.

Zestisabusinesswithaneyeonthefuture.“Innovation, provenance,sustainability,andhealtharealldriversandare themainpillarsthatweconsiderwhenworkingwithclients onNPDandwhenlookingatexpandingourbrandportfolio,” Williamsexplains.

“Brandsandwholesalersneedtoinnovatetoremainrelevantandwe’dencouragewholesalerstobebraveandbold whenitcomestotakingonnewproductsandranges.While weunderstandthatnoteverythingwillwork,ifyou’remaking data-drivendecisionsthentakingtheriskmayhelpyoufind thenextbigthing.”

MarketingdirectorClaireWilliams(front)withtheZestteam.

Profile: Caterforce

by Gary Mullineux,

managing director

How is Caterforce presently performing?

As a group, Caterforce is on target to achieve £750 million turnover this year, which is testament to the work carried out by our nine wholesale members and our strategies to help them thrive.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

The biggest challenge for our members right now is the rising cost of living and cost to do business. Caterforce supports its members by securing the right products at the right prices, holding regular tenders for key commodities and through the fantastic supplier relationships we have built during our +30 year history.

What have been your group’s most recent developments?

Q Catering joined the group earlier this year, and its location in the south east of England means we now have coverage across the whole of the UK and Ireland.

We have carried out a data cleansing project to improve our Sales Hub to provide suppliers and members with accurate, up -to - date information via an easy-to -use and intuitive dashboard.

We have launched a new and improved rebate management platform to centrally manage the contractual agreements across our central suppliers.

Our focus has been on enhancing our own brand, including optimising all product information for ecommerce.

We have improved reporting to measure marketing campaign performance and have seen an increase in suppliers running group marketing activity.

Which services offered by your group have been most used by your members during the past few months?

All our members regularly use our central photography studio, a fantastic facility complete with a full kitchen, prop library and a team of professional food stylists and photographers.

We have expanded our creative team to meet our members’ needs for web design, logo development and monthly promotional brochure creation.

Our members are actively working with our central office marketing team to elevate their PR through proactive press releases and industry award entries.

Our centrally managed digital product information is being used across the group, with some members having an API (application programming interface) connection through to their ecommerce platform.

What member events do you have coming up?

The Caterforce Supplier Presentation Day is always oversubscribed and the next event, on 4 October at Derby Football Club, is no exception. It offers a fantastic opportunity for both new and existing suppliers to showcase new products and spend time with members’ buying teams.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

We will continue to focus on supplier relationships, working closely with our key suppliers to plan marketing activity for 2024 and support their ambitions to grow in independent foodservice.

We are working on several digital platforms to improve efficiencies and will be launching our new -look website and members portal later this year.

We are also excited to be working with a chef influencer to develop recipe ideas and social media content for Chefs’ Selections and will be rolling out an enhanced Chefs’ Selections range, plus new seasonal showstopper products, ahead of the festive period.

What is your group’s USP?

We have always focused on providing a customer-first approach. Our members are truly independent wholesalers and their points of difference allow for agility and regional expertise. For suppliers, Caterforce has the largest average turnover per member in the sector, meaning we are the lowest cost buying group to service. CCM

Head office: Macclesfield, Cheshire Website: caterforce.co.uk Tel: (01625) 440188

Caterforce fast facts

Number of members: 9 Combined member turnover: £750 million, up from £654 million in 2022

New members this year:

Q Catering

Number of head office staff: 13

Member testimonial: Castell Howell, Llanelli

“ We joined Caterforce because of its strong reputation for collaboration and its respect for its membership’s regional specialisms. We view Caterforce as an extension of the Castell Howell team. Our traders work closely together, and Caterforce

secures the best prices. Our marketing departments collaborate to maintain accurate product information for our customers, as well as sharing food insights.”

Matt Lewis, managing director, Castell Howell

Gary Mullineux: ‘ We focus on providing a customer-first approach.’

We help our members thrive

Independent regional wholesalers across the UK and Ireland

Focus on sustainability

Director from every wholesaler on the Caterforce Board

Family businesses sharing best practice

Everything goes back to our members

Collaboration across all departments

Creative marketing support

Four award-winning own brands

EDEN GROVE

Profile: Confex

by Tom Gittins,

chief executive officer

How is Confex presently performing?

Confex is performing ahead of the market, with half-year results +12.41% value and +4.86% volume. We are seeing strong growth across all our major categories in both retail and foodservice.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

Stock availability remains the biggest issue currently facing wholesalers along with increased inflationary pressure, both in the supply chain and with fixed business costs. Confex has £3 billion of buying power we use to leverage stock allocations with our suppliers. Forecasting is key, and with the help of our Confex data insight platform we are able to learn from historical buying patterns to ensure we can get the stock for our members when they need it. This is vital for smaller wholesalers who do not have the warehousing to hold stock in preparation for seasonal spikes.

We have both retail and foodservice member committees which communicate via WhatsApp and meet regularly to help each other by sharing best practice. Our central distribution facility, which has been running for 15 years, gives our members access to all the top brands and is used very effectively by members as a ‘top -up shop’ so that they should not need to buy outside of the group.

What have been your group’s most recent developments?

In 2023 Confex has been focusing on technology. We are trying to get ahead of the curve with tech investment which

Confex fast facts

Number of members: 231, up from 219 in 2022

Combined member turnover: £3.06 billion, up from £3.02 billion in 2022

New members this year: 12

Number of head office staff: 16

will not only help our members to grow but also make it easier to develop business with our suppliers.

Our newly launched ‘ Confex Accelerate’ platform aims to streamline listing a new product through having all product details, imagery, pricing and promotions within one ultra-functional search engine. This platform will also allow members to integrate API & EDI ordering (application programming interface and electronic data interchange ordering) with our suppliers, minimising cost while increasing efficiencies throughout the supply chain. We expect this system to revolutionise the way suppliers interact with buying groups over the next few years.

What member events do you have coming up?

We are due to hold our Foodservice Fair in September which will showcase 60

foodservice and key impulse suppliers at Stratford- on-Avon racecourse. We will also be holding our annual conference in Lanzarote in October. Both events are already looking to break attendance records, highlighting the importance of offering networking and business development opportunities for our wholesalers and suppliers throughout the calendar. We are very proud that all our events remain free to attend for Confex wholesalers.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

We aim to maintain our position as the fastest growing buying group in the UK through working harder for our members, while offering measurable value for our supplier partners. We will look to continue the stratospheric growth of our own-brand CORE along with recruiting forward-thinking wholesalers who can add value to the group.

What is your group’s USP?

The diversity of Confex remains its strength. £3 billion buying power (accounting for 10% of UK wholesale), trading across every product category, allied with 51 years of wholesale experience, keeps Confex and our wholesalers growing ahead of the market. Confex offers no joining or membership fees plus a share of the profits, which is why we continue to recruit wholesalers from other groups. We are keen to talk to wholesalers about how Confex can help take their business to the next level. CCM

Member testimonial: Woods Foodservice, Uxbridge

“ Confex membership offers Woods Foodservice so many opportunities to help support and grow our business. For over 30 years they have certainly been there to help us on our journey.

“Whether it be the events,

promotions, own brand, business support or networking opportunities, we would recommend Confex membership as a key partner in fulfilling your business plans.”

Lana Bhikha, deputy MD,

Woods Foodservice

Tom Gittins: ‘ The diversity of Confex remains its strength.’

Representing over 200 Suppliers

£3bn+ Group turnover

50 years experience

224 Members across the UK

Extensive Own Brand CORE

Share in Group Profits

the home of progressive wholesalers

FREE Membership

Data-led market Insights

1000s deals across all categories

Carbon neutral Head Office

If you’re a Wholesaler or Supplier and want to find out more about one of the UK’s largest and most diverse buying groups, contact us today on enquiries@confex.ltd.uk confex.ltd.uk

Profile: Country Range Group

by Martin Ward, chief executive

How is Country Range Group presently performing?

2023 has been an incredibly positive year all round for the Country Range Group (CRG). Comparing like for like to our 2022 figures, we’re ahead when it comes to both value and volume, with the newly refreshed Country Range brand launch earlier this year and CRG exhibition providing huge boosts to the group. Group turnover is on track to hit well over £800 million this year, which is a fantastic achievement that puts us very much on track to reach our £1 billion turnover target by 2026.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

Our strength has always come from our teamwork, collective power and discipline. Our member wholesalers remain immensely passionate about their independence but understand that by working closely and sharing intelligence and best practice, the power of the group ensures success when it comes to efficiency, sustainability, logistics, product choice, customer service and marketing. With price inflation still causing issues, our experienced trading team has also been communicating daily with suppliers and partners to ensure the most competitive pricing and valueadded promotions.

In addition, our Country Range new product development has been ongoing to ensure that members and their customers have the latest products, ingredients and solutions to fight back in these challenging times.

Country Range fast facts

What have been your group’s most recent developments?

I have never known things to be busier for the group and that highlights how hard everyone has been working to ensure our members and their customers have everything they need to compete, survive and hopefully thrive. We have welcomed two new members in Brook Street Foodservice and Harlech Foodservice, so it ’s been a busy 2023 so far. We have invested heavily in data solutions for our members, including our intranet, directory and PIM. Our wider digital presence has been enhanced with our new group website and refreshed Country Range brand website.

Which services offered by your group have been most used by your members during the past few months? With foodservice as competitive as ever and caterers under serious pressure

from energy and price inflation, the data, insights and trend analysis we provide in tools such as our Commodity reports and Stir it up magazine features have become even more crucial to our members and their customers.

What member events do you have coming up?

Our next business development day is on 26-27 September and then we have another in January. Our ‘An Evening With’ celebration, which includes our member and supplier awards, takes place at Abbey Road Studios on 14 December; our Christmas show in April; and our annual exhibition in June.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

The 2024 Student Chef Challenge has just launched so we’ll be busy promoting it to colleges and students across the UK and Ireland. When it comes to NPD, we have several products on the way, including the launch of our new Signature brand.

What is your group’s USP?

We are the leading independent buying group in foodservice and will continue to be so because our members fully understand the importance of working together. When suppliers work with CRG they know that we will do exactly what we say we are going to do. We also have an own brand that oozes quality, an industry-leading magazine and the best events to connect all our suppliers and members together. CCM

Member testimonial: Creed Foodservice, Cheltenham

“An unassailable product portfolio and buying power, extensive marketing support and campaigns, shared best practice, data and insights plus a real family mantra running through each member and the group as a whole – it ’s a huge

honour to be part of the Country Range Group. “We’re more than just a good business or good buying group – we’re good people and that matters.”

Philip De Ternant, managing director, Creed Foodservice

Martin Ward: ‘I have never known things to be busier for the group.’

Created for the makers

same trusted quality and value

At Country Range, we believe that catered food should always be good quality, regardless of budget.

Our range of over 700 products are created specially to meet the Our range of over 700 are created to meet the caterers, who take pride in making food for other people We caterers, who take in food for other people. We know caterers need consistently good quality, good value products, in know caterers need consistently quality, value products, in changing trends and the right mix of products to maximise margin trends and the mix of to maximise margin.

Everything we do at Country Range is created with caterers in mind, we do at is created with caterers in mind, helping those who serve food to others, to always serve their best those who serve food to others, to always serve their best.

Profile: Fairway Foodservice

by Coral Rose, managing director

How is Fairway Foodservice presently performing?

Trading is strong throughout the membership, not just value growth, which you would expect to see due to all the price increases, we are also moving more boxes. Our membership was traditionally profit sector focused and whilst this still dominates, many of the members have further diversified into care homes and independent schools following the pandemic. We are seeing the benefit of the expanded customer base leading to increased sales.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

Primarily the role of a buying group is to utilise the collective scale for commercial benefit and that has been our focus with suppliers.

We provide members with a range of competitively priced, good quality ownlabel products that not only provides greater margin opportunities for our member wholesalers, it also provides caterers with a great product that saves them money.

We manage the digital marketing activity for our members and have been using social channels to inform caterers about their local offer, and it ’s encouraging to measure the impact of this and the benefit for members and suppliers.

What have been your group’s most recent developments?

We are pleased to have a full NPD schedule, with a number of products being launched this year and a busy

Fairway fast facts

pipeline of development. Our marketing support plan is comprehensive, with a range of on and offline communications to our members and their customers.

The marketing team have been deploying various AI tools to great effect, saving both time and money.

Fairway has been ahead of the curve for many years in having a bespoke information portal, Connect, which allows members to access contract detail, product information and market updates, and over the last few months we have added further functionality.

Which services offered by your group have been most used by your members during the past few months?

Connect, as previously mentioned, has been critical as the blog enables us to give members immediate updates so they can react quickly to any changes or recommendations.

More members are using the digital promotion site as this is a quick and easy way for them to set up and communicate local offers. We have also had great success with new business campaigns activated digitally where we can target specific customer types or locations.

What member events do you have coming up?

Our Meet the Member event is in September. Following the success of our group marketing webinar earlier in the year we are looking to host a marketing conference for our members to help them maximise local resource. We will also repeat the Fairway Assured brand event held earlier this year.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

We are still in a period of price inflation, and the extreme weather conditions across the world are going to add more pressure, and our focus is to ensure our members remain competitively priced. We will continue our development of the Fairway Assured brand, and we are excited to launch our digital magazine Chef’s Insider.

What is your group’s USP?

At Fairway central office we compile a strong commercial proposition and use our marketing experience to enable members to stand out and sell more. Across the membership we collaborate, sharing expertise and best practice in a way that every member can benefit. We are a group without an ego. CCM

Member testimonial: King Bros, Peterborough

“ The King family decided to join Fairway in 1990, a decision they still stand by 30+ years later. Apart from the important aspects of cost savings, access to a wide range of quality own-label goods and marketing services Fairway

membership brings, it ’s the interaction with fellow members, the sharing of ideas, skills and industry knowledge that can prove just as important.”

Martin King, managing director, King Bros

Coral Rose: ‘ We are seeing the benefit of an expanded customer base.’

We are a friendly, not for profit, buying and marketing group dedicated to delivering a range of services that provide commercial advantage to our community of independent foodservice wholesalers.

2

AGREEMENTS WITH 400 SUPPLIERS FOR OVER 6,000 PRODUCTS

FLEXIBLE PURCHASING ARRANGEMENTS

EXCLUSIVE ACCESS TO OWN BRAND RANGE

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BECOME A PART-OWNER OF FAIRWAY FOODSERVICE

BESPOKE MANAGEMENT AND INFORMATION PORTAL

ERUDUS ACCESS FOR ALLERGEN AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

FULL MARKETING SUPPORT FOR STRATEGY, DIGITAL AND PRINT

MANAGED EVENTS AS WELL AS SUPPORT FOR MEMBER EVENTS

PROGRESSIVE, TRANSFORMATIONAL AND INNOVATIVE APPROACH

For more information please visit www.fairwayfoodservice.com/membership or email: marketing@fairwayfoodservice.com

Profile: NBC

by David Lunt, managing director

How is NBC performing?

We measure the performance of the group slightly differently to other groups. For our members, we concentrate on their ability to get access to great brands at great prices, and the two metrics that help guide us are supplier rebates (are they increasing year on year, demonstrating our commitment to our supplier partners’ agreements?) and sales through NDN where we are facilitating supplier agreements with our centralised warehousing and logistics service. As the group is wholly owned by its shareholders (membership is an investment, not a management fee) we also measure the performance of the group companies, specifically revenues, costs and net income. All of these measures are showing yearon-year improvement.

How are your members coping with current market challenges?

Since before NBC started, and continuing after the launch, our members have shown resilience and ingenuity in the way they run their businesses. Staff shortages, market restrictions, cost of goods inflation – you name it, our members have found ways to continue to actively trade and grow. The group plays a role in ensuring access to great brands at great prices, whichever channel of trade they serve.

What are NBC ’

s priorities?

The group’s priorities are the key reasons why a business would join NBC as a member: maintaining access to great

NBC fast facts

Number of members:

Over 55

Combined member turnover:

Circa £750 million

NBC net income in 2022: +63%

Recent additions to the group: Candy Hero, Northern Retail Group, Marion Trading, One For The People

brands; improving terms for members; developing our web -2-print brochure service; maximising volume discounts and minimising minimum order quantities through NDN; and last but not least, as member shareholders ensuring that we are adding value to the company through growth in net income.

What services are most beneficial to your members?

We have a wide variety of businesses, and their needs can be so different that offering a wide variety of services is not the best way forward for us. Certainly, new product launches and active engagement in promotional programmes are the core services developed for both members and suppliers. Our web -2-print bespoke brochure service was well received, with in-person demonstrations at our recent member and supplier networking event. Our

members also have access to our marketing partners – May Marketing – for expert advice from a trusted partner since the group started in 2019.

What member events have you held so far this year and what is coming up?

We held a member and supplier networking event in June near Silverstone, which was the best attended event so far. We have also recently run an AGM for the member shareholders where we announced our financial results (page 8). The group prefers to focus upon delivering benefits to members instead of overseas trips that owner operators seldom find enough time to benefit from.

How will wholesale change in the next few years, and how will NBC fit into it? Consolidation – it reflects the industry in which we work, the economic climate that we work within, and the challenges that our supplier partners face.

As long as our members continue to be agile, this is an environment in which the group can thrive. We have great agreements in place with our core category suppliers, and we plan to improve in the categories that are developing, which may involve greater collaboration with suppliers and indeed complementary organisations where mutually beneficial opportunities exist.

The recent developments of buying groups offering “an attractive exit route for founders” is very interesting and we will keep a keen eye on how this might affect all independent businesses in this channel. CCM

Member testimonial: Candy Hero, Bradford

“ We wanted to find a business partner that would help us on the next phase of our journey, and a business partner we could relate to.

“ The team at NBC made it so clear how we could

work collaboratively together that it was a really easy decision to join.

“A great team to work with.”

Frank, founding partner, Candy Hero

David Lunt: ‘All of our performance measures are showing improvement.’

Profile: Sugro

by Yulia Petitt, head

How is Sugro presently performing?

Sugro has had 17 consecutive years of growth and it continues with a strong performance in 2023, with year-to - date growth of 12% compared to the same period in 2022. The growth is consistent across all categories: confectionery +8% year to date, year on year; soft drinks +9%; crisps & snacks +24%; and grocery +26%. The growth has been driven by the group’s diversification into new categories, as well as new members joining the group.

We are delighted to have been voted No.1 buying group by our supply partners in the recent Advantage Report Survey, benchmarked against all other participating buying groups.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

We continue to work hard to ensure we support our members with a strong competitive terms offering and an effective promotional calendar, as well as technology.

In collaboration with our supply partners, we effectively address any challenges with stock availability and continue to progress in terms of digitalisation and diversification, ultimately striving for reduced costs, increased sales, and an expanded customer base.

What have been Sugro’s most recent developments and which services that you offer have been most used by your members during the past few months?

We have recently moved premises from Nantwich to Newcastle -under-Lyme as

of commercial & marketing

To specifically support retailers, we have recently launched Drive Your Sales digital magazine, and this month we are launching a Drive Your Sales digital portal to support members and their customers even further.

What member events have you held so far this year and what do you have coming up?

well as undergoing full rebranding. The rebrand provides an insight into the Sugro values of Strength, Unity, Growth, Reliability, and Opportunity and reflects the group’s evolution of digitalisation and diversification.

We have recently launched B2B Open Banking for our members and the WhatsApp for Business API solution, which enables members and suppliers to target wholesalers’ customers with marketing campaigns and promotions.

In addition, we have partnered with PepsiCo on a split testing project, which is aimed at improving e - commerce performance with targeted advertising focused on different customer groups.

Our most recent development was our partnership with TWC on launching the Sugro Insight Service (SIS) platform, which will enable us to focus on distribution gaps and evaluate our performance in the wholesale market.

We have an excellent events calendar, with two trade shows each year. Our annual Sugro trade show and conference took place in May, with over 200 attendees, and in June, our members and supply partners attended The Bateaux London event. We will be holding our annual business networking event on 26 - 27 September in Birmingham, and this year our annual business convention event will take place in Chile in November.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

The key focus will be on further diversification and digitalisation as well as working closely with our members and suppliers on sustaining our fantastic track record of growth.

What is your group’s USP?

We consider ourselves as very much a ‘Sugro Family ’. We see this daily, with our members truly supporting one another in numerous ways. This has been in our DNA for years and makes us stand out as a buying group. There is a lot of interest from wholesalers outside the group in joining us. CCM

Head office: Newcastle -under-Lyme, Staffordshire Website: sugro.co.uk Tel: (01270) 628728

Sugro fast facts

Member testimonial: Nasco, Southall

“ We are thrilled with our experience partnering with the Sugro buying group! They have provided us with access to top -notch suppliers and promotions, leading to remarkable sales growth.

“ Thanks to Sugro, we now offer a broader

range of brands and more competitive pricing, while their enticing incentives and supplier competitions keep us motivated to excel. A truly professional and rewarding collaboration!”

Ashish Vidani, director, Nasco

Yulia Petitt: ‘ We consider ourselves as very much a Sugro Family.’

THE UK’S OFFICIAL NO. 1 BUYING AND MARKETING GROUP*

WHY YOU SHOULD JOIN US

Member centric individual approach with a diverse Membership of over 90 wholesalers

Impeccable Member retention score with many longstanding Members being part of the group since the start

Exclusive deals for Retail Club Members

Sugro All-in-One B2B Ecommerce Solution with Open Banking, Split Testing and WhatsApp for Business capabilities

Access to industry leading promotions across Impulse, Grocery and Non – Food categories

As a Member-owned, not-for-profit Buying Group, we give back to our Members annually a share of the Sugro Surplus 100% overrider terms paid to Members in timely manner

Opportunity to stand as a Board Director

Access to Central Statement (Sugro centralised terms and billing system to reduce admin-related work and cost to members)

Access to Central Distribution for smaller orders

Annual overseas Convention

We are thrilled with our experience partnering with the Sugro Buying Group! They have provided us with access to topnotch suppliers and promotions, leading to remarkable sales growth. Thanks to Sugro, we now offer a broader range of brands and more competitive pricing, while their enticing incentives and supplier competitions keep us motivated to excel. A truly professional and rewarding collaboration!

Ashish Vidani, Director of Nasco UK

FREE WHEN YOU JOIN US

Leaflet design and print for each Promotional Period including POS ticket

Member personalised App development with Member logo and credentials

Website development support

Attendance to two annual trade shows

Access to Category Information via Educational Drive Your Sale Digital Magazine and Web Portal

Access to Sugro Insight Service (SIS) Data Portal

Profile: Unitas Wholesale

by John Kinney, managing director

How is Unitas presently performing?

It ’s been another great year for Unitas and our members. The latest data from our data partner TWC shows us performing ahead of the market for value and volume in both out of home and convenience. While other routes to market are feeling effects from a slowdown in consumer spending, Unitas’ independent wholesalers are seeing growth.

How are you helping your members deal with current market challenges?

The scale of Unitas allows us to negotiate competitive trading terms and promotional support from suppliers, ensuring our members and their customers can remain competitive on price, something which is vitally important in this cost- of-living crisis.

We are also working with our members to reduce their operating costs. This includes the roll- out of agreements from third-party service providers in areas including energy, banking and telecoms.

We support our members with wideranging marketing and digital business services, including our Digital Excellence Academy. It offers support on a range of topics including cyber security, how to boost sales through social media, and how to drive better customer engagement, whether that ’s with a retailer, chef or landlord.

Our members and their retailer customers also benefit from the latest category insights and range guidance through our Plan For Profit core range scheme.

What have been your group’s most recent developments?

We are delighted to announce we are relaunching our retail own-brand range, giving it a fresh new name and look, Local Living. Developed following extensive consumer research, Local Living, which is home to over 150 SKUs, will build on the success of the range that is already growing by 29% year on year.

We’re also relaunching our biggestselling energy drink range, LSV, with a bold new pack design and limitededition Cherry Isotonic flavour.

To improve efficiency for suppliers we are in the process of launching our new online Central Invoicing system including a direct link to Product Information Management, allowing realtime visibility for members. It reduces the need for credit control resource, and suppliers benefit from a single payment from the Unitas group.

What member events do you have coming up?

We have an annual calendar of events for our members and supplier partners across all channels. This month we have our annual overseas conference, which is in Athens. It offers a fantastic opportunity for our members and suppliers to hear market insight from industry experts, get involved in channel- specific discussions and build stronger business and personal relationships.

What are your plans and targets for the next six months?

Our current focus is on supporting our members to continue to outperform the market. Unitas ’ independent wholesalers are investing, expanding and seeing real progress and we expect this to continue. Over the past 12 months, our members have opened more depots and invested more in leading- edge technology than the rest of the wholesale market put together.

What is your group’s USP?

As the UK’s biggest independent buying group, we can provide the most competitive trading terms and promotions support in the industry. This is underpinned by our great service and marketing support that allows our wholesalers, and their customers, to compete effectively in their marketplace.

We pride ourselves on being a champion of independent businesses and will use our position to become the voice of the industry, supporting our members and their customers to thrive. CCM

Head office: Doncaster, South Yorkshire Website: unitaswholesale.co.uk Tel: (01302) 249909

Unitas fast facts

Member testimonial: Dhamecha, Wembley

“Being part of the UK’s largest independent buying group gives us access to trading terms, insights, expertise and central office services which help us grow our business and provide the best possible service to our customers.

“Sharing resources reduces

our overheads, and the collective scale of over 150 wholesalers ensures that we are always able to offer competitive prices and fair margins to our customers.”

Mukesh Vithlani, trading director, Dhamecha

John Kinney: ‘It ’s been another great year for Unitas and our members.’

category which has grown +400% in the last 3 years.*