Wholesale 2023

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FWD: the voice of wholesale

The Federation of Wholesale Distributors, or FWD, represent and promote the wholesale sector and bring the industry together

YOUR FWD TEAM

JAMES BIELBY Chief Executive james@fwd-uk.com

Our members provide food and associated products to more than 400,000 retail and foodservice businesses, either by direct delivery or via cash and carry depots. Their customers range from small independent stores to large restaurant chains, and from local coffee shops to hospitals and schools.

As well as providing the perfect product mix for each of these diverse businesses, wholesalers support their customers with merchandising materials, business advice, training courses and inspirational ideas.  We also work with product suppliers to help them take advantage of the opportunity to grow their brands through partnerships with FWD members.

FWD’s membership includes companies which provide services to the wholesale channel, such as market insight, technology and consultancy. Product and service suppliers looking to work more closely with FWD’s wholesaler members can join FWD as a supplier partner, supplier member or service provider. Our council of members oversee FWD’s work in three key areas:

Representing wholesale

FWD works with ministers, MPs and government officials to defend and protect members’ business interests against political and regulatory threats. As the voice of wholesale we speak for the sector in policy debates, and ensure that government is aware of the impact of any proposed legislation will have on this vital component of the food supply chain. We also make sure our members are aware of their obligations under forthcoming legislation.

Promoting wholesale

Our wholesale members provide a vital service to communities across the UK, ensuring that small businesses are able to offer compelling and distinctive food offers in cities, towns and villages, and keeping the country’s critical institutions fed and watered – among them hospitals, schools, care homes, and prisons. Along with their customers, they improve diversity,

service and competition in retail and foodservice markets.

It is our job to publicise this significant contribution to society and the economy to government, policy makers, the media and the public.

Bringing wholesale together

FWD is the hub of wholesale, providing a meeting place for suppliers, wholesalers, service providers and other stakeholders to come together and discuss non-competitive issues.

We organise a packed programme of events to bring the sector together, including an annual conference, training days, briefings, category focus discussions, and the annual FWD Gold Medal Awards.

We also chair a number of ad-hoc committees, bringing the representatives of member companies together to discuss issues of mutual interest, such as diversity, sustainability, crime, HR and how to meet the requirements of impending legislation. n

YOUR FWD COUNCIL MEMBERS

DAWOOD PERVEZ –CHAIRMAN, CEO Bestway Wholesale

CORAL ROSE

PAST CHAIR

CEO, Fairway Foodservice

ANDREW

SELLEY PAST CHAIR CEO, Bidfood

HELEN

WILLIAMS Head of Legal Booker

SUE KNOWLES

Marketing/HR Director

Costco UK

VANESSA COOPER

Chief Executive Sterling Supergroup

JOHN KINNEY

Managing Director

Unitas Wholesale

JAMES RUSSELL

Managing Director

AF Blakemore & Son

GARY MULLINEUX Managing

Director Caterforce

COLIN SMITH

Chief Executive Scottish Wholesale Association

EMMA SENIOR

Managing Director

Sugro UK

STUART SMITH

UK Merchandising Director Brakes Group

TOM GITTINS

Managing Director Confex

LYNAS Managing Director Lynas Foodservice

ANDREW

MARTIN WARD

Managing Director Country Range Group

PLANET TALENT RECRUITMENT

What this year looks like with FWD

NETZERO TRADE

If there’s one thing we’ve learned so far in the 2020s it’s that FWD’s wholesale members have incredible resilience and adaptability when it comes to challenging trading conditions – and they’ve had their fair share of those.

Panic buying, hospitality customers having to close, surplus stock stuck in the supply chain, staff shortages, stock shortages and then rampant inflation – it’s been a three-year rollercoaster ride that has tested the ingenuity and business models of wholesalers large and small. Not only have our members overcome all this, they have also protected, served and supported their retail, hospitality and public sector customers along the way.

The year ahead is going to present its own challenges as consumers remain cautious in their discretionary spend. So far in 2023 we haven’t seen anything like the downturn in eating out that was predicted at the turn of the year. We have, however, seen a trend that’s

This year is about creating opportunities and focusing on supporting members through Planet, Talent, Trade

common in a recessionary economy of shoppers turning to the ‘little and often’ approach that favours local stores. So it’s with some confidence that we at FWD can move on from firefighting threats to creating opportunities. We’ve identified three areas where we believe we can help our members raise their eyes from the immediate challenges that have demanded their attention and look further ahead. Those areas are preparing for net zero, recruitment and retention of talented people from all backgrounds, and closer co-operation and understanding with supply chain partners. In short: Planet, Talent, Trade. You can read about these initiatives in the following pages.

Opportunity

If we are finally reaching the fabled ‘new normal’ that beckoned throughout the Covid era, it’s clear that ‘normal’ is now a very fluid term. Now, change itself is normal and should be embraced by the sort of nimble operators who have navigated the decade so far. We have seen a few regional foodservice wholesalers take the opportunity to exit the sector on their own terms, and this consolidation of the market is likely to continue. The old delineation between wholesalers and multiple retailers is also much less clear than it used to be, and again that’s something that offers opportunity of both wholesalers and retailers, where once it would have been regarded as a threat. If we have one message for product suppliers looking at increasing their investment in the wholesale sector, it’s this: what are you waiting for? The public will spend around £50bn this year in the 450,000

Wholesaleis an enormousmarketfor brandsthatare preparedto offerbespoke products,packs andpromotions, andgetunder theskinofa routetomarket thatisonly complicatedif youdon’ttake thetimeto understandit, ordon’ttake advantageof theincredible knowledge andexperience availabletoyou

The

public will spend

around

£50bn this year in the 450,000 retail and hospitality outlets supplied and supported by FWD wholesalers What we do – FWD’s strategic pillars

retail and hospitality outlets supplied and supported by FWD wholesalers. Any of the supermarkets would struggle to match that turnover. Wholesale is an enormous market for brands that are prepared to offer bespoke products, packs and promotions, and get under the skin of a route to market that is only complicated if you don’t take the time to understand it, or don’t take advantage of the incredible knowledge and experience available to you. Wholesalers have the customer relationships, the data and the willingness to match your investment that will deliver successful partnerships.

We’ll be singing this song loud and clear in our series of engagement and networking events over the course of the next 12 months, and we hope to see you there.

n We represent wholesale – this is our government-facing role, the eyes and ears of wholesale, spotting and influencing policy that affects our members, and communicating those impacts back to decision makers.

n We promote wholesale – that’s where the diversity and inclusion work sits, along with our How to Win in Wholesale resources, which help supplier companies to recruit and train the top talents for their wholesale team. We offer part-funded training bursaries and recognise and reward talent through our awards.

n We bring wholesale together – FWD’s role as the meeting place for wholesalers, suppliers, service providers, data and insight providers, media, researchers and anyone with a passing interest in the wholesale trade is well-established, and particularly for the suppliers and service companies it provides invaluable

networking opportunities. We’ve set up the most comprehensive programme of face-to-face and online events FWD has ever offered, with two every month throughout 2023.

From our category focus evenings to our Parliamentary Reception, from the How to Win orientation seminars in members’ depots to the Diversity in Wholesale events, and from the annual conference to the legendary Gold Medal awards, FWD is here to provide the platform for those relationships, partnerships and friendships that keep this channel driving forward. n

FWD EVENTS CALENDAR

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Wholesalers have the customer relationships, the data and the willingness to match your investment that will deliver successful partnerships”

There’s no respite for wholesalers but FWD pushes on as voice to government

A look at a selection of high-profile policy areas that FWD will be focusing on in 2023 to continue to support its members

As the UK economy shakes off the lingering symptoms of Covid and Brexit, the last thing food distributors need is interventions from government that add cost and complication along the road to recovery from the last few challenging years.

Unfortunately, wholesalers won’t be afforded the luxury of a respite as the nature of progress insists that everything, including legislation, must keep moving forward.

As the sector’s voice to government, we at FWD can at the very least make sure that legislators understand the impact of their policy decisions on our members, and at the very best we can prevent the worst of those impacts from happening at all.

Here’s a few of the policy areas we’ll be monitoring during the course of 2023.

National Living Wage

No one would deny their workforce a reasonable living wage, but in the context of sky-high energy bills and commodity costs, an ever-increasing wage bill is yet another cash-flow concern for low-margin wholesalers.

By April 2024, it is expected the National Living Wage (NLW) will be between £10.90 and £11.43, with a central estimate of £11.16, and the government intends to move the age threshold from 23 to 21. With an election on the horizon, the Conservatives are pinning their hopes on improving the economic outlook and increasing the NLW, something they committed to in their manifesto, – an easy policy win with voters. FWD will shortly be sending

out the yearly survey to members to understand the impact of potential wage increases and feed in these concerns into government.

Deposit Return Scheme

The Scottish Deposit Return Scheme has been delayed by 10 months and is now due to go live in March 2024.

The big question is whether the Scottish government can legally go ahead with the scheme without an exemption under the UK’s Internal Markets Act 2020, which prevents different regulations applying to the same product in different parts of the UK. If the UK government refuses to reject the trade exemption request, which is looking likely, legally Scotland may not be able to go ahead with the scheme as planned. Whether this exemption is absolutely necessary to the launch of the scheme is being debated.

FWD will continue to work closely with both governments to make the case that there should be one unified scheme across the UK to avoid a hard border.

Extended Producer Responsibility

When does packaging become household waste? Under the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) scheme for packaging, any primary packaging supplied by a wholesaler to another business that is not the end user must be reported as household waste unless the business can prove it’s not. Without that evidence, wholesalers will be charged fees to cover the full net cost to local

authorities, in addition to the costs associated with obtaining PRNs. Given the variety of destinations within the wholesale sector’s customer base, this requirement could be a logistical nightmare for businesses. Also, it is currently unclear what evidence would be necessary to demonstrate that packaging meant for businesses will not end up in household waste and, therefore, incur an additional fee. It is not fair nor equitable for wholesalers to be paying these additional fees and this is why we are working closely with officials to feed in data to show how the scheme in its current format has the potential to be very costly for the sector.

Public Sector Food

FWD recently met with representatives from the Crown Commercial Service (CCS) to talk about the ‘buying better foods’ agreement and we are glad CCS has listened to our concerns. The agreement will now run only as a pilot scheme, with the value of the contract capped at £25m a year for an initial two years, with a n option to extend for a further two. The agreement is explicitly open to consortia or special-purpose vehicles. We understand that there is not a mandate for public sector entities to use the agreement. The focus of the agreement is two-fold: firstly, providing a simple option for individual public sector entities, such as a standalone school

who do not have the wherewithal to negotiate a contract with a supplier. Secondly, meet government policy objectives through the creation of this procurement avenue, including shifts towards prompt payments, meeting net zero commitments, aligning with government buying standards for food, and others. After the initial agreement is introduced, CCS plans to evaluate its effectiveness and determine next steps.

The anticipated timelines of the scheme were also shared by CCS. An updated Prior Information Notice (signalling the government’s intention to buy) will be published soon and we expect the tender process to go live in July 2023. The agreement is expected to be rolled out by the end of Q2 2024.

And the rest…

One lesson of the pandemic is that when food retailers and the hospitality sector need government assistance to keep the nation

fed, so too does the supply chain that supports them. When it comes to business rates relief or assistance with fuel bills, it’s imperative that wholesalers receive equivalent support to their customers. We’ve made good progress on this over the last three years, but it’s a point that needs to be continually made.

It will be interesting to see how far the current government goes with interventions to change the nation’s eating habits after it delayed the implementation of High Fat, Salt and Sugar (HFSS) changes to support businesses, which was welcomed.

There are some storm clouds approaching for vape suppliers, as disposable products face a potential ban, and the old spectre of changes to the Sunday trading regime, one of the small advantages local stores have over larger competitors.

And, of course, Brexit continues to throw up operational challenges with changes to the alcohol duty framework due in August, and there’s the ongoing workforce shortages putting further pressure on the service our members provide. So plenty for the FWD government engagement team to get their teeth into for the months ahead. n

Let’s talk

Attracting, retaining and inspiring the widest range of talent is key to the wholesale sector’s success, which is why creating an environment where people can succeed, regardless of age, gender, ethnic group or social background, is so critical. Here are just some of the ways FWD is supporting its wholesale members

Future Leaders’ Forum

How do you nurture talent, promote leadership and cheerlead a niche sector among an entry-level workforce? FWD’s answer was to bring these like-minded individuals together by creating a space to network around an annual programme of activity, all designed to propel wholesale’s

Future

future leaders on to develop their careers in this specialist industry.

All FWD’s membership businesses have access to this forward-thinking network. Following the submission of an application form, prospective Future Leaders’ Forum members are invited to join an introductory meeting with their fellow peers and if they like the sound of what FWD can offer, they are in.

They will then have access to quarterly online hangout sessions with a ‘Big Name Q&A’ – one of which saw Bestway Wholesale MD and FWD Chair Dawood Pervez inspire the next generation of wholesale talent.

The Future Leaders’ Forum also offers members two face-to-face events a year, specifically designed by the group according to their needs. Last autumn, members were treated to a public speaking workshop, and during 2023 participants will be welcomed to a half-day conference where a hostage negotiator from Scotland Yard and ex-actor-cum-coach will share the art

of ‘using your voice’ effectively, both for internally and with external clients.

In addition to all of this, FWD launched its first mentorship scheme in September 2022. Twenty Future Leaders’ Forum members were matched with 20 senior leaders within the wholesale channel for nine months of mentorship. This has been supported with coaching to ensure members are able to make the most of this bespoke opportunity.

Recruitment and retention

Future Leaders’ Forum forms part of FWD’s drive to support its members recruit top talent into wholesale – and once it’s here, keep it!

The association is also helping the

Leaders’ Forum forms part of FWD’s drive to support all its members recruit top talent into wholesale and keep it!”

orientation process when it comes to new starters. It can feel like a complex channel with unfamiliar terminology. I mean, ‘rebate’ anyone? FWD has a wealth of material and videos on its website, designed specifically to help newcomers get to grips with wholesale. It also runs a popular face-to-face event, Introduction to Wholesale, which invites new starters to join us at a member depot and hear from industry titans. This is an invaluable opportunity to meet peers and become more familiar with this fantastic channel.

Diversity in Wholesale and Women in Wholesale

In 2023, FWD launched a new initiative, Diversity in Wholesale. This will encourage diversity and inclusion in the channel

through its support for talented people from all backgrounds.

FWD has worked with Women in Wholesale founder Elit Rowland on this new initiative, which will incorporate non-gender specific activity from Women in Wholesale. The move builds on the excellent work of Women in Wholesale and will retain its 2023 events programme designed by Elit and the WiW Steering

It is vital that the sector provides an inclusive and safe environment to work in for everyone”

Group but under the new branding of Diversity in Wholesale. This year the focus is on wellbeing, age inclusion, male allyship and disability inclusion.

FWD will continue to champion and support women in the wholesale sector with events branded under the Women in Wholesale banner, which will include the ever-popular speed mentoring event and its highly regarded coaching academy.

Standards & Dignity charter

FWD and the Association of Convenience Stores are proud to promote excellence in conduct across the wholesale and convenience landscape. One of the tools used to do this is the Standards & Dignity charter, which strives to set out a raft of expectations that companies who are signed up to this initiative have agreed to.

Businesses that display the Standards & Dignity logo have pledged to provide a harassment-free environment within their premises, to respect each other’s personal space and their time while at events, and to take seriously reports of behaviour that fall short of expectations. In addition to this, member businesses have agreed to not tolerate anyone being subjected to physical, sexual, racial, psychological, verbal, drunken, or any other form of harassment, bullying or abuse.

It is vital that the sector provides an inclusive and safe environment to work in for everyone, particularly as this channel has such a lively events calendar. n

❒ To find out more, visit fwd.co.uk

It’s time for NET ZERO

With ambitious plans for wholesalers to reduce their carbon footprint to net zero by 2040, FWD has created a sector roadmap to help the channel achieve its sustainability goals

At the Cop27 summit in Egypt in October 2022, United Nations chief Antonio Guterres said humanity faces a stark choice between working together or collective suicide in the battle against global warming. “We are on a highway to hell with our foot on the accelerator,” he said.

The UN’s own emission gap report, which looks at how close we are to meeting UN climate targets, stated that to get on the right trajectory to be net zero by 2050 we need a 45% reduction in global greenhouse gas emissions in the next eight years, and they must continue to decline rapidly after 2030.

And Climate Endgames, a report by the prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, states: “There are ample reasons to suspect that climate change

could result in a global catastrophe.” That’s why more than 52 countries and regions, 8,300 businesses and 1,136 cities have signed up to the race to net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier.

What is net zero?

It is defined as reducing emissions as much as possible by mitigation measures, with any surplus balanced by the removal of CO2 from the atmosphere by removing carbon.

The UK government has a long-standing ambition

to lead the world on climate action and has legislated for net zero emissions by 2050. In April 2021, the government adopted the Climate Change Committee’s reduction target of 78% by 2035 (compared to 1990 levels).

Similar commitments have been made by the Welsh government, which also has a 2050 target for net zero, and the Scottish government, which has set a 2045 net zero target. Northern Ireland has consulted on plans for net zero by 2050.

Wholesalers are responding to the net zero challenge with public commitments and strategies, and FWD members

have pledged to eliminate carbon emissions in their businesses by 2040.

It is the role of FWD to provide leadership and support for wholesalers in this aspiration and help the sector by producing a net zero roadmap, with time-bound, measurable and actionable targets on all key issues, and produce detailed plans to help wholesalers deliver net zero by 2040, ahead of the UK’s net-zero target by 2050.

That’s why FWD, in conjunction with our friends at SWA, are developing a sector roadmap to help wholesalers, particularly those at the early stages of developing their net-zero strategy, with clear practical actions to take.

We are working with consultants 3Keel to

get a greater understanding of the direct emissions of the wholesale sector, to offer help to members in understanding their own emissions, and produce the roadmap for members, which contains interim pledges as well as key indicators, such as percentage of renewable energy or low-carbon refrigerants.

Key themes

The roadmap focuses on a series of key decarbonisation themes.

n Fleet and logistics In the UK, the majority of emissions from fleet and logistics are from road transport specifically, and almost all of this is completed by diesel-fuelled HGVs.

n Decarbonisation of heat in property For many companies, reducing energy consumption represents one of the more feasible emissions sources, in terms of cost and availability, to reduce in the short term.

n Sourcing renewable electricity

Common refrigerants (HFCs) have a high global warming potential and so even small leaks can result in a proportionally larger volume of unnecessary emissions created.

n Reducing refrigerant emissions

Electricity is one of the more advanced sectors on the trajectory of reduction to reach net zero. It is also one of the emissions sources that businesses have the greatest degree of control over.

n Sourcing low-carbon products

Procured ingredients are one of the largest emissions sources and comprise almost 66% of emissions from the UK food and drink sector. Our initial survey of members represents almost three-quarters of the sector by turnover, and reveals that vehicle fuels and refrigerant leaks are their biggest sources of emissions. It is calculated that nearly 80% of wholesaler’s Scope 1 emissions (the elements they are directly responsible for) came from HGV delivery fleets, and a further 10% from refrigerants used in chilled and frozen storage, which accounts for a quarter of their storage space.

Wholesalers with larger frozen capacity reported higher refrigerant loss, as well as higher use of building fuels.

While the larger wholesalers surveyed said they had calculated some or all of their Scope 3 emissions – which include indirect emissions that occur in the upstream and downstream activities of an organisation – more than half do not calculate any Scope 3 emissions.

It is clear that wholesalers are taking action across all areas of their business, but more help and encouragement is needed to enable the sector to fully measure progress towards net zero.

This is no longer an added extra, it’s a business essential for a wholesale channel that is sustainable – in both senses of the word – and this ambitious project will help wholesalers on that journey. n

BESTWAY

Continuing to work collaboratively, and understanding retailer and customer needs is at the heart of Bestway’s plan

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We will continue to unlock benefits for our retailers via the usage of our multiple Bestway supply chains as this supports driving retailers’ sales and maximising their profitability. We will also expand the new award-winning Bargain Booze in Costcutter formats.

Following a very strong 12 months of new business recruitment, we will continue to expand our retailer relationships by attracting quality retailers that want to work collaboratively with plans for growth across the UK.

Building on the invaluable feedback we have established by working with Lumina on what is important to our retailers, we will focus on maximising availability and delivery service, how we interact and communicate with our retailers, and further improving and developing our overall own-label offer.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We will continue to work collaboratively at store level on activities that will improve the shopper experience, which in turn will result in delivering improved commercial performance for retailers via increased sales and profitability.

The field support team will undergo an extensive development programme, which will benefit retailers as an increased focus on supporting operational excellence will be rolled out, including ranging, pricing, marketing, promotional execution and cost management.

All stores presently operating with the group will have a business review where we will discuss each retailer’s ambitions and assess which Bestway brand is most suitable for profitability and success. We will also carry out a review of the best-one proposition.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

Supporting retailers with labour costs, utility prices and the increased competitiveness of the overall market will remain our biggest challenge. However, we will continually review the sector and challenge ourselves to ensure our offer remains competitive. Our field and support centres will continue to work closely with retailers to help drive sales and profitability and our focus on rolling out cost-saving benefits will remain a priority.

We will continue to unlock benefits for our retailers”

BLAKEMORE

Supporting its customers with cost and value, a strong proposition and solutions that meet real needs remain Blakemore’s focus

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Cost and value; efficiency; support, and sustainability.

We know our primary customer need is to focus on delivering against cost challenges –consumer and B2B, so are driven on cost, competitive pricing and deals. In the evolving shopper landscape, interpreting data and trends helps give us and our partners the edge, and we are continuing to invest in technology to drive efficiency and sustainability. This may be in-house or in-store and increasing connectivity, driving efficiency and end-to-end value is a real support to our retail partners.

Q

How will you be supporting your customers?

By making sure we’ve got a brilliant proposition and solutions that meet current market needs, like a great own label, right fit promotions, a really strong, value-led fresh proposition and the solutions which help drive customers through the door.

Costs have risen exponentially, through labour, energy, input costs – historic

agility

paradigms around shared margin chains are wrong and need to change. We continue to fight to develop product value chains which reflect both the increased costs to serve, but also the increased cost of operating a retail store, direct and indirect.

Q

What have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

We are firmly in a never-normal phase, consumer behaviour is changing faster than it ever has. The pandemic showed us and our industry the importance of flex and agility, and since then we’ve moved into a series of post-pandemic issues (availability of labour, drivers, and stock availability) and saw the sands shift again post-Ukraine invasion. Being prepared for the unknown and having clear alternative supply routes helps give our partners confidence that we will continue to be resilient when the next big disruption hits.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge/s for the next 12 months?

Cost and cost focus. Also, relevance – we want to futureproof our business by investing in stores and businesses which will model going forward. Retailers that invest are more sustainable, environmentally and commercially. We are driving format and concept innovation.

The pandemic showed us the importance of

BOOKER

When it comes to supporting its retail customers, Booker is prioritising three key elements: choice, price and service

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Booker Group will continue to prioritise delivering on choice, price and service for our retail customers this year.

Choice: We will continue to develop our Jacks own label range with new products added to the range throughout the year which deliver great value for shoppers and strong margins for retailers.

Price: We will be working with our suppliers to deliver the best value possible for our customers while keeping PMPs a focus area. Our promotion programme remains important to our customers to boost margins and enhance promotions around key seasonal times.

Service: Availability remains a priority, and being part of a bigger group means we are in the best position possible to deliver this.

QHow will you be supporting your retail customers?

Our combined field teams of over 150 RDMs and over 70 store development colleagues will continue to help our retail customers grow sales and develop their businesses. Our new concept stores will continue to be rolled out to help drive growth areas such as food to go, vape, fresh and chilled.

Retailers are facing enormous cost pressures on their businesses and our Added

Value Services are a key tool for retailers. This includes exclusive deals with partners such as Just Eat and Barclaycard to help our customers Make More and Save More

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

The last three years have shown that our retailers are extremely resilient.  They have been the centre of their communities by going above and beyond time and again for their shoppers.

We have also learned that the stresses and strains on them continue to get stronger and stronger and that we need to do all we can to help support them across all areas of their business.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge/s for the next 12 months, and how do you plan to overcome it/them?

Cost pressures have increased in some areas of the supply chain and it’s our job to mitigate as much of this pressure as possible and ensure that our customers can find great value at Booker.

We are working with our suppliers to deliver the best value

Representing over 200 Suppliers

£3bn+ Group turnover

50 years experience

224 Members across the UK

Extensive Own Brand CORE

Share in Group Profits

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

FREE Membership Data-led market Insights

1000s deals across all categories

Carbon neutral Head Office

CONFEX

Retail execution lies at the heart of Confex's strategy and priorities to help its wholesaler members increase both range and sales

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Our focus will be on retail execution with a number of projects coming together under one umbrella to help our wholesalers increase range in line with supplier strategy. We are working with key suppliers bringing together our retail club, food-to-go club, Awwco (D2C online) and Confex On The Go home delivery service. This spans social, digital, D2C, retail and hospitality targeting consumers with market-leading end-user execution. Using sales data we are building unique insight into how brands flow through the channel and into the hands of consumers.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years

As with all industries, the rate of change in our sector is increasing including heightened interest in UK companies from larger international players who see UK wholesale as a pool of expertise which can be adopted across a global portfolio. The UK is a developed marketplace with wholesale having a high level of tech adoption. The pandemic brought this into focus and with dynamism being a critical asset for success in wholesale.

The global supply chain is still not fully operational and so wholesalers need to be more organised, with forecasting now critical

to secure the stock needed for growth. If you are yet to fully understand your business needs, you will be left behind. The biggest advancement for Confex wholesalers over the last three year has been becoming data-led businesses with the help of the Confex Data Insight platform.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge/s for the next 12 months?

Inflation has caused havoc during the last 12 months but there are now signs that the UK economy is stabilising. We hope to see a rapid decrease in cost price increases, which remain a headache for wholesalers to implement internally as well as selling on externally to their customers. There remains a challenge to sell those brands which are now up to 50% more than they were pre-pandemic. We will continue to work with our suppliers to maximise branded sales but the challenge will only increase as the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite. Let us hope that UK interest rates come back down and the next government is able to prioritise UK business with an easing of corporate taxation and fuel duty.

Our biggest advancement has been becoming data led

COSTCO

Controlling costs and driving value for its cash and carry members remains the top priority for Costco, alongside quality and service

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Costco Wholesale UK in its 30th year in the UK and nearly 45 years since its launch in USA.  Our mission statement remains the same: to provide our members with quality products and services at the lowest possible prices and continue to increase the value of the Costco membership card. Quality remains our focus within all aspects of Costco. We utilise our significant global sourcing programme and continue to develop locally sourcing opportunities to bring in speciality items that are unique to a given area of the country.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We continue to retro-fit fuel stations within our UK warehouse locations and by the end of 2023 there will be 20 with plans to retro-fit when planning and land availability is an option for the remaining nine warehouses. We will also be continuing our drive to increase the value of our membership offer to improve frequency of shop and basket spend to all

small to medium sized businesses.  Supplies, freight costs, utility and labour costs continue to affect ourselves and our suppliers so these remain a continued focus for our buying team, however the increased global sourcing is assisting in this area.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

Our online business launched in October 2012 and it has developed to be completely incremental to our cash and carry business.  The crossover of items that are sold online compared with the items we carry in our warehouses is minimal as the cash and carry element continues to be our main focus. Also, people recognise value, quality and service and those things will remain our focus for our members.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months

As always, controlling costs and driving value for our cash and carry wholesale  members in all aspects of our business. We will continue to open new warehouses, introduce new member services, increase the value of Costco membership and develop greater awareness of Costco within the UK.

Quality remains our focus within all aspects of Costco

MEVALCO

Providing quality, sustainable products and working in partnership to source the right ones for customers’ success is core to Mevalco

Q

What are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We are focused on growing our retail presence and expanding our retail product estate, working in partnership with our customers to find the right products to suit their needs. Increasingly, we are developing signature ranges with our retailers that are highly innovative and give them a unique position and opportunity.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We are looking to mitigate price increases as much as we possibly can, but we know that each customer has different needs and, therefore, supporting them through the personalisation of products and service is increasingly important.

offer their customers. That products grown and harvested to the highest sustainable practice are increasingly sought after and demanded by consumers.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

Q

What have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

That great products will always win. That new products that re-energise retailers’ offers can provide them with great new opportunities. That consumer shopping behaviours can change fast and wholesalers need to be flexible and agile to respond and even stay ahead of trends. The digital landscape is increasingly important in how retailers like to shop and the services they

Along with every wholesaler, (whether retail or hospitality), we are battling increasing costs, energy, inflation and labour shortages. For us, as importers from Spain, Brexit has added additional layers of complexity and cost to the business on top of the general costs that UK wholesalers are experiencing. To mitigate this as far as possible, we have created a new role and recruited a specialist to handle the paperwork and logistics from Spain, which has led to other brands looking to enlist our help to bring their products over. Every business is looking at efficiency and we are no different. Our vans are routed in the most efficient way, we have introduced new systems and processes, we work closely with our suppliers to ensure continuity of supply. Everything we do is based on efficient, effective service.

Everything we do is based on efficient, effective service”

DHAMECHA

The focus for Dhamecha is to support its retailers in as many ways as possible and to continue to deliver solutions

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We are a family-owned cash and carry business and had another successful year thanks to our loyal customers.

Our main focus, as before, is that we ensure good availability of stock, keen pricing, regular promotions, and building strong relationships with our customers and suppliers.

Our people-focused approach has served us well over the years and will continue to do so in the future. Our vision is to always be the number-one choice for independent retailers.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We will continue working together with Unitas Wholesale and our suppliers, and we will continue to strive for more competitive prices, deeper-cut promotions and the latest new product launches.

We have successfully launched our Dhamecha app and our customers have benefited. With the click of a button they can now check the latest prices, promotions and location of the products in the branch,

which has made it a seamless shopping experience for them. We never stand still – we are always delivering solutions.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

We have faced a lot of challenges every year, but with the continued support of our loyal staff and customers, we have managed to overcome them and show steady growth and progress.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

The biggest challenges facing us are the ongoing supply chain issues, food inflation, high energy bills, the turbulent political environment and the cost of living crisis, which is impacting everyone in the country. We will continue to work very closely with our suppliers to achieve better pricing. We will endeavour to be quick with our decision making and pass on the cost benefits to our retailers who need all the support we can give them.

Our business development team and our branch managers are in constant contact with our retail customers. They listen to their feedback and work closely with them to act quickly in developing tailor-made promotion plans for them and their consumers.

We never stand still – we are always delivering solutions”

LIONCROFT

Providing the best possible pricing, package and support for its customers to develop their business is the focus for Lioncroft

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

At Lioncroft, we are working hard to counteract the current challenges by providing customers with a very competitive pricing structure and assistance with their offering through retail club and Lifestyle Express.  Our focus is to continually improve our pricing and promotional package and we will be broadening our customer base in the coming months.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We have a market-leading offering for the independent trade. This is not only focussed on pricing, promotions and availability but also around supporting the trade to improve their offering through retail club activity and store development.  We are proud to offer our customers one of the broadest ranges of products stocked in store and in wparticular a market-leading range of ethnic food products.  Many customers come from far and wide to take advantage of our 'one-stop shop' approach and we receive many compliments from our customers.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

Lioncroft Wholesale was established out of the East End Foods business, which has more

than 50 years' heritage in the wholesale and food manufacturing industry.  As Lioncroft, we have taken this experience and redefined the business with a new team, new way of working and new culture. Our customers, suppliers and stakeholders have received these changes very well and the business is going from strength to strength. We are using our legacy but with changes to create a stronger and more influential future and we are seeing a great deal of success from this.  Living our values helps to drive customer satisfaction, stronger supplier relationships and growth for the business.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge/s for the next 12 months, and how do you plan to overcome it/them?

The biggest challenges are inflationary pressures and we will continue to provide the best possible pricing, package and support for our customers.  The independent retail trade is alive and kicking but it is important to continue nurturing our customers through these challenging times in order to come out of it bigger, better and stronger than ever.

Living our values helps to drive customer satisfaction

NATIONAL BUYING CONSORTIUM

Working closely with supplier partners on pricing is a key priority for NBC as it rises to the challenges facing the sector

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We will work closely with supplier partners to ensure our members get access to major brands at great net prices. This means more than agreeing annual plans, but advising on availability, NPD, promotions and pricing. Everyone knows the pressure created by cost increases and our job is to ensure we get our suppliers’ brands to consumers in the channels of trade that we serve.

QHow will you be supporting your members?

We want to deliver benefits of membership – great terms, 100% on time and in full; a free web-2-print brochure service to activate activity; volume discounts and smaller minimum order quantities through NDN, our central warehousing and logistics facility. We want to deliver results so that membership is an investment, not a fee. We want them to know they are in safe hands with NBC.

We want our membership to be an investment, not a fee

We want suppliers to benefit from the connectivity with members and understand that NDN is a safe route to market to new customers. We have more than 55 engaged members and access to 120 third party customers, and a centralised warehouse and logistics facility for bulk purchases as well as a centralised order to cash facility, which helps reduce credit risks.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

None of this would be possible if the group, our members and supplier partners did not work collaboratively and with complete transparency. Our resilience to challenges has meant we have emerged stronger as a result.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12?

The cost of goods and inflation, availability of skilled people and the potential consolidation of routes to market all create a perfect storm. We need to demonstrate that our members are in safe hands; that we are a safe route to customers for suppliers, and that we can provide a flexible way to great savings for those customers that are having difficulty getting access to major brands at great prices.

SUGRO

There have been a number of e-commerce launches, initiatives and partnerships introduced to benefit Sugro’s members and suppliers

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We are committed to working with members and suppliers to deliver e-commerce solutions. Our All-In-One B2B E-commerce Solution is free for members as we know it is imperative for our members to remain at the forefront of the move towards full digitalisation. We launched B2B Open Banking; it allows members to accept payment by bank transfer, which is a secure, fast, convenient way to settle account balances at a fraction of credit-card and cash-handling charges.

We also launched a business WhatsApp solution for members and suppliers, enabling them to target wholesale customers with specific marketing campaigns and promotions at scale in a secure one-to-one messaging environment. It also offers the ability to directly link the multi-format marketing and promotional collateral to websites and ordering apps.

We have partnered with PepsiCo and Coca-Cola Europacific Partners for a split testing project. The initiative is aimed at improving e-commerce performance with targeted advertising focused on different

customer groups to identify the most successful approaches.

We are developing further digital benefits including a sales data solution. We have launched Drive Your Sales, a retailer guide providing category and seasonal advice, updates on legislation and the latest expert insight and data. We are also launching a Drive Your Sales portal.

We are also rapidly diversifying into other categories and this means a much greater product offering.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years? Our key learnings are certainly continuous collaboration, communication, adaptability, resilience and ability to embrace challenges and convert them into opportunities.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months? Consumers’ savvy approach will continue, which is where the importance of promotions and value-for-money offers come into play. It’s likely we’ll see some reduction in out-ofhome consumption, which represents an opportunity for wholesalers to drive growth via big night in sharing occasions.

Price-marked packs, multipacks and sharing formats provide a huge opportunity to drive a value-for-money offering for consumers.

We are committed to… deliver e-commerce solutions”

UNITAS

Having 157 wholesale members with a combined turnover of £8bn gives Unitas unparalled scale to support its retailers

QWhat are your retail plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Our priority is to continue to support our members by ensuring they are competitive on pricing. Our core focus is to ensure suppliers work with us to provide competitively priced products and promotions that members can offer to the independent retailer and, ultimately, the consumer.

We will build on our category insight and improve store experience through our store development programme with members, and build on our Plan for Profit category service. We will refresh the website and equip retailers with the latest insight using our revamped Focus On series. We will also expand the number of own-brand lines.

The quality of the store environment and experience will continue to be a key differentiator for independent retailers. We are working with members to refresh their fascias and encourage suppliers to test initiatives within members’ estates to drive footfall.

Q

What have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

The past three years have demonstrated how much consumers value local stores. We saw increased footfall to independent shops during each lockdown, but far from this being a short-term effect of the pandemic,

footfall remains at higher levels. We have also seen how resilient and quick-thinking our members are.

We have seen what we can achieve through collaboration across the supply chain. We must continue to build profitable partnerships to meet challenges ahead. Members are growing their distribution capabilities as well as developing sustainable logistic plans. We will also look to drive members’ operating costs down by increasing central terms agreements for service providers.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

We’re urging suppliers to support the wholesale channel by improving availability, increasing shared margins when CPIs are put in place but also ensuring that price-marked packs are competitive with other channels so independents are not disadvantaged. We ask that suppliers don’t increase prices that could affect the reputation of independents. Shoppers won’t just switch to a cheaper brand, they may leave the sector altogether, which will damage the long-term sustainability of the entire wholesale channel.

A key objective is to support our retailers on price”

BESTWAY

A continued investment in price-hold or everyday low prices pricing model and focusing on driving frozen food offer is key for Bestway

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

One of our top priorities is to remain focused on our support to local authority and contract customers through the cost of living crisis and high inflation. We will do this by providing menu suggestions, and alternative packs/products to help reduce costs and work within shrinking budgets.

We will continue to focus on our service standards to ensure we carry on providing +98% availability with on-time and in-full deliveries against a very disruptive supply chain backdrop.

We will also take the learning from our delivered Drinks Express licensed offer and expand this to grow share and recruit customers.

We have a big focus on driving our frozen catering offer where we have expanded ranges. We will be targeting pubs with food and restaurant partners with key menu items such as chips, burgers, chicken, seafood, appetisers and gateaux, for example.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We will continue to invest in our price-hold or everyday low prices pricing model as this is key to ensure we provide our foodservice customers with a quality value offer.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

A major learning has been to build higher stock holding in depots where we have seen the disruption caused by macro factors. The supply chain is a lot more challenging than it was pre-Covid, so continuing to invest in stock to improve customer service is key.

We have also had a 40% increase across our frozen food category in the last few years, predominantly due to staffing issues in outlets and a lack of chefs in the industry. Frozen offers great-quality, low-risk products that are easy to prepare in the outlet.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months? We suspect that stock availability will continue to be a challenge, but we will invest in stock to ensure we provide a high level of service for our customers.

Inflation is still an issue, so with this in mind we will try to mitigate supplier price increases to ensure we provide our foodservice customers with a value offer.

our service standards”

We will continue to focus on

BLAKEMORE

Faced with the pressures of rising costs, Blakemore is keeping it simple and delivering brilliant service and cost-effective solutions

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Our priorities are simply to deliver against the needs of the caterer and foodservice operator.

Energy and commodity increases have impacted this sector harder than any other. Our job is to ensure we provide brilliant service to minimise disruption, while providing effective solutions which deliver against consumer value and operator margin requirements.

Against this backdrop, we also have to ensure that our foodservice customers are able to continue to offer great innovation to their customers as food trends continue to move as quickly as price points.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

We wil be supporting customers by delivering great solutions. We’re focussed on delivering really strong value, leading quickly when commodities move and brilliant solutions which add value, or remove direct or input costs.

We’ve got the best independent foodservice own label offered through Country Range Group which our customers have embraced. They are really excited about some of the innovation that will take place in this space over the year ahead.

We are supporting our customers to offer great innovation

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

How essential it is for businesses to be agile. Over the past few years we have recognised the need to keep things simple and stay focussed.

As a business, we have really focussed on who we think we can service with excellence, within a controlled geographical area and with a well-managed assortment. We will keep focussed on delivering in this space which we know will continue to grow our business sustainably.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

It is clear that commodity movements and economical ups and downs will add a degree of noise and complexity.

While the economic conditions are not as bad as had been predicted, the cost-of-living challenges mean that discretionary spend is still really pressured, as are trade margins.

We willl work relentlessly to deliver solutions which reduce costs back of house and deliver against the value requirements of the consumer.

BIDFOOD

It’s

clear that Bidfood is going above and beyond for customers through a tough economic climate with abundance of support

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the next 12 months?

Our plans remain true to our strategy and mission, which is to deliver service excellence, make life easier for our customers and help them grow. We deliver that by offering customer service excellence, great food, real value, forward thinking, and the best team. We plan continual investment in new technology to serve our customers as well as our operational and sales team, infrastructure, with three new depots in the next 12 months, training, development and engagement to attract and retain the best team, and focus on added value support for customers.

That support ranges from sharing insights into changing consumer habits, and the food and drink trends on the horizon to advising on product availability and switches that help mitigate the impact of inflation, or helping customers streamline their menus and source innovation to develop their offer.

The crux of our approach is working with customers and suppliers as business partners. Over the past few years, our industry has faced so many different challenges, and it’s the close collaborative working across the supply chain that has enabled us all to keep the wheels turning. We value real partnership, which means giving customers and suppliers true commercial value through our products, our people, support and services.

We are wholly focused on helping customers survive the challenges that trading in today’s inflationary environment brings, from grappling with food inflation to driving footfall and spend, and securing sufficient skilled staff, as well as maintaining continuity of product supply.

Our teams are working hard at supporting customers in all areas, whether that’s product price and availability, providing clear and timely communications or delivering operational efficiency. Our priority is providing the support and guidance they need to make tough decisions with menus, offering alternatives that make commercial sense and don’t compromise their offer. A great example of this is our Unlock Your Menu content hub, which provides food menu engineering tips, and advice and guidance to support their success in managing costs, team and kitchen efficiencies. Equally, we’re looking ahead at the support that will help them thrive. Our Bidfood Food and Drink Trends Guide looks at the key trends set to shape the eating-out market in 2023 and beyond, with great recipes, hints and tips that will hit the mark with consumers.

Our approach is working together as business partners”

BOOKER

Reliability and good stock availability on core lines form the backbone of Booker's offer for its foodservice customers

QHow do you support your customers?

Our customer commitment of choice, price and service remains at the very heart of everything we do.

Over the past couple of unpredictable years, our priority has been to ensure reliability and good stock availability on the core lines backed by locked-down prices.

Our top priority has been to support our customers by offering a great range that is consistently available to suit various customer needs. These could be in a deskilled kitchen with quick serve products that are pre-portioned and offer minimal preparation, or they could be premium ingredients for that enticing footfall menu.

To support our customers, our skilled team across our branches are here to help at every single stage, from reception to delivery. They are experts at helping our customers grow their business. A great example of this is how our butchers can help with menu development, as well as preparing the best meat options for each customers' individual businesses. And, all of this is backed by our 100% money back guarantee.

Accessible across the whole of the UK, Booker and Makro now offer a wide range of channels to suit the customer. This ranges from the traditional collect service to the

We will stick to the key mechanics our customers like most

newly introduced click & collect service, or ordering online for delivery.

We also offer an option to purchase from an extended range of premium alcohol, food or event catering equipment through Booker Marketplace which is then delivered direct to our customers' premises.

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We will continue to stick to the key mechanics that customers have told us they like. This could be seasonal locked down pricing on the most important lines, or continuing to offer great value in own brand products, whether that be the basics such as Chef Essentials or more premium options such as Blackgate or Alfred Button.

BRAKES

Innovation and a new reward scheme are just two ways in which Brakes is helping its customers navigate today’s difficult market

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We have been on a transformational journey since 2016, when Brakes Group was bought by Sysco, the world’s leading foodservice business. Our key focus for the year ahead will be supporting customers to be successful, which has never been more critical than in today’s difficult market, so we need to understand the consumer and use our eclectic customer base to provide ‘service for success’.

We will continue delivering the right food and service proposition for customers, ensuring that our food offer leads the industry, delivering on our focus for food quality and innovation.

And service matters too, so we will continue to invest in operations, advancing depot network strengthening plans and improving service levels. Using proprietary technology from Sysco, investment in warehousing, transport and back-office technology will continue to enhance the customer and colleague experience.

Across Sysco in Great Britain, we have some fantastic businesses, and we will continue to bring them closer together,

combining Fresh Direct’s specialist fresh offer with Brakes’ comprehensive range, the largest in foodservice, so that across Great Britain, all Sysco businesses will offer operators the perfect combination of range and specialism, helping to deliver a more comprehensive service to customers.

Q

What have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

The last three years have reinforced the need for wholesalers to be flexible and innovative to support customers through an unpredictable, challenging landscape. While it has undoubtably been difficult for the sector, it is also an opportunity to create product ranges and services that support a lower-skilled, time-pressed workforce and cost-challenged operations.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

We will continue to innovate to support customers, delivering products and solutions that make kitchen management easier, removing labour and cost. We’ve also launched mybrakes rewards, which provides personalised rewards and offers to help customers save money. At the same time we’re focused on tackling supply chain challenges head-on, leading the foodservice industry with more than 99% FTA.

We’ve launched mybrakes rewards to help customers save”

CATERFORCE

Harnessing the success of the past 12 months, Caterforce and its collaborative membership model is focussed on excellent results

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

With 9 members and a turnover forecast to hit £709m this year, we are going from strength to strength. Our focus is to harness this momentum, working collaboratively with members and suppliers to secure the best prices and margins possible.

The Group has the largest average turnover per member in the sector so is the lowest cost to service, providing suppliers the best return on investment. Our priority is to continue to deliver outstanding results.

QHow will you be supporting your members?

In addition to year-round competitive prices, our members also benefit from fully integrated digital and print marketing support, use of in-house digital designers and artworkers, a managed PR service and use of a photographic studios.

We also have four award-winning own brands, offering hundreds of products across categories to ensure members’ customers have a top quality, cost-effective alternative to the leading brands. The Group continually

reviews the range, listing and delisting products based on member and customer feedback as well as consumer trends to ensure it always delivers the products most needed by its members.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

That collaboration is essential for success. Where Caterforce stands out from its competition is its close-knit membership, where members work together rather than against each other, as colleagues not competition, sharing insight and best practice, which leads to benefits and improvements for all.

All nine members are regional champions, proud of their heritage and fiercely independent, and Caterforce not only recognises their difference, but celebrates it. Every member is is actively involved in decision making, from board level to trading teams, marketing, sales, finance and IT, there is such openness and willingness to work together and support each other.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

The biggest challenge remains the cost-of-living crisis and we are supporting members with the right products at the right prices throughout the year.

We are supporting members with the right products and prices

CONFEX

Supporting members and their customers with the right mix of own brand and branded products remains a priority for Confex

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Our success with our CORE own brand shows no sign of slowing down with forecast growth of 25% during the next year. Range extensions are well underway with Confex foodservice wholesalers driving the range in line with their customer needs. Own brand will continue to play a vital role in combating the cost-of-living crisis so offering CORE continues to be a focus.

QHow will you be supporting your customers and members?

The marketing of branded products is where Confex excels. Our suppliers are excellent at communicating their range attributes and we extend end-user penetration through social, digital and promotional mechanics. We have launched Confex Accelerate, bringing together a digital library where members can access all product data (specs, allergens, images, pricing and promotions) in one search engine, allowing them to onboard new products quickly and with confidence, while personalising the platform to use with their customers. This is a game changer!

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

Foodservice wholesalers, along with their hospitality customers, have been among the most resilient UK businesses during this time. We are so proud of how our family-led members have invested in their businesses during the toughest trading conditions since World War Two. As a Group we have grown 51% over the past three years due to the initiative and diversification of our wholesalers, who continue to adapt to a changing landscape.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge/s for the next 12 months?

The supply chain remains the biggest challenge over the next 12 months. Stability is required in production which will lead to the levelling out of price along with a more robust supply of product to wholesalers. Confex has dramatically increased the number of suppliers with which we provide detailed forecasts, in turn helping our wholesalers to get the stocks they need. However, supplier service levels remain below pre-pandemic levels and our wholesalers are only able to deliver products they are supplied with. If we can increase supplier service levels back to pre-pandemic levels then Confex will continue to grow well ahead of our competitors.

The marketing of branded products is where Confex excels

COUNTRY RANGE

It’s been a memorable 12 months for Country Range and looks set to continue with a new-look brand and new portfolio addition

Q

What are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

We want to grow through making smart data-driven decisions, invest in our processes and improve efficiencies across the group. We want our turnover to grow and our members to be more profitable. We want their customers to have everything they need so they don’t just survive but thrive. We want our Country Range brand to continue to win praise and awards for its range, quality and value.

We are delighted to unveil a new brand refresh that will provide consistency across all touchpoints. The new branding showcases our personality and passion for ingredients and foodservice as a whole, and will incorporate a new logo, vivid colours and striking fonts, as well as photography and illustrations. We are also rolling out another level to our portfolio with our new Country Range Signature collection, which is perfect for chefs looking to add fine dining to their menu and contains carefully sourced, premium ingredients and products from across the globe.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

Our goal is to ensure family-run, independent wholesalers can achieve a faster, more profitable growth by being a member of our group, while continuing to cherish their independence.

The sector has made great strides from a

We are delighted to unveil a new brand refresh”

sustainability viewpoint but there is much more to be done. Wholesale needs to improve so we work in a more environmentally friendly way, we make it easier for customers and chefs to do the same, and we attract the next generation of talent.    We have made huge improvements in reducing packaging with 57 tonnes of non-recyclable black packaging materials removed from the supply chain and we’re switching white cardboard to brown to provide further savings. We’re also working with ClimatePartner to audit all areas of the business so we can set additional targets.

QWhat

do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

We’re certainly not short of challenges but it’s pointless worrying about the things we can’t control. We have to concentrate on fulfilling our roles better than before –leaner, more efficiently, more creatively. At the same time, we hope for a bit of stability and joined-up thinking from the government and an understanding of the importance of wholesale and the foodservice industry to the health of the nation.

FAIRWAY FOODSERVICE

Maintaining a voice in the industry and thinking differently, as well as supporting members, are priorities for Fairway Foodservice

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

As is the role of any buying group, we will be maintaining competitive pricing and value for money across brand and own brand. We also provide our member community with expertise and services that would be hard for them to resource locally, such as a comprehensive suite of marketing services, from traditional brochure printing through to video production, and a digital package including website development, email marketing and social media management.  This helps our members to effectively tailor their marketing activity and in turn provide targeted promotional communications and better value for their customers.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

The challenges thrown at us over the last three years have reinforced the importance and value of collaboration, whether within a buying group or across the industry. It became apparent that wholesale was not an industry that was acknowledged, never mind understood, within Defra and the wider government. Through FWD we now have a voice and it is important that we maintain this.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months?

We will continue to see price inflation and other pressures, resulting in increased costs for members and operators. Meanwhile, their customer base has pressure on disposable income making it harder to pass costs on. We need to provide a solution that helps the caterer and encourages the consumer.

There is an increasing amount of environmental legislation and, while we recognise the need for change, this hasn’t been effectively thought through, such as DRS and EPR. We will work with the industry to push for clarity on how to accurately and fairly fulfil our obligations.

Our industry is dynamic and there will no doubt be further consolidation through acquisition of independent wholesalers.  We need to think differently across the industry in order to protect independent wholesalers so that there is still diversity and choice for caterers.

We need to think differently across the industry”

MEVALCO

Unique support, providing exceptional ingredients and maintaining relationships that cannot be replicated are Mevalco’s USPs

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

To continue to grow our business through providing exceptional ingredients of the finest quality that cannot be sourced elsewhere and maintain superb relationships with our customers that cannot be replicated. If we look at products, these include an incredible seafood and dish range, our UK-first MSC octopus (harvested to the most sustainable practice), our amazing cheeses (sourced from artisan producers in Spain), our beef and lamb (grown in the Pyrenees and Asturias), and our outstanding Duroc pork and jamons.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

The support we give our customers is, we believe, unique. We develop menus with them, they join us in Spain to meet our artisan suppliers, and create dishes and ingredients that are bespoke to their business. We ensure our prices are competitive yet reflect the quality and provenance of our products. Our team can never do enough for them, and our customers stay with us for

years, and value the knowledge and expertise that we hold within the business.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

To ensure we have a diverse offer that does not rely on one specific market. Balancing our hospitality clients with retail supply is important.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months? Along with every wholesaler, (whether retail or hospitality), we are battling increasing costs, energy, inflation and labour shortages. For us, as importers from Spain, Brexit has added additional layers of complexity and cost to the business on top of the general costs that UK wholesalers are experiencing. To mitigate this as far as possible, we have created a new role and recruited a specialist to handle the paperwork and logistics from Spain, which has led to other brands looking to enlist our help to bring their products over. Every business is looking at efficiency and we are no different. Our vans are routed in the most efficient way, we have introduced new systems and processes, we work closely with our suppliers to ensure continuity of supply. Everything we do is based on efficient, effective service.

Our customers value our knowledge and expertise”

When times get tough, you don't have to go it alone.

GREENE KING AND BELHAVEN

Raising awareness across the industry of its comprehensive new service, Value for Venues, is the priority for Greene King and Belhaven

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

Following the launch of our new service, Value for Venues – which offers a unique package of product catalogue, logistics, business management and financial support services to independent venues – this year we plan to raise awareness of the support available and grow our customer base for the full service. We’re also keen to work with other wholesalers and brand owners to support the on-trade and hospitality sectors by sharing our industry knowledge and helping them grow.

QHow will you be supporting your customers?

The three key pillars of service are range freedom, customer service and financial support/business advice. By offering range freedom across an array of bestselling beers, ciders, wines, soft drinks and spirits, independent venues can avoid dealing with multiple suppliers, delivery slots and points of contact. Value for Venues makes things simple by offering an extensive range of drinks in one, reliable delivery.

The premium customer service support offered within the package also helps

businesses to run smoothly, with 363 days per year over-the-phone troubleshooting and cellar support.

The third pillar of service available is financial support and business advice, needed now more than ever during an unstable financial climate. Value for Venues can help to keep cash flow healthy and provide advice on lowering operating costs, ultimately making businesses more profitable. We’re proud to invest in customers’ plans and visions.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenges for the next 12 months? As businesses continue to face uncertainty, our teams at Greene King and Belhaven can be a real support and source of knowledge and expertise to help independent venues weather the storm. The challenge for Value for Venues is building awareness of the services we offer to as many venues as possible and continue to build that trust with new and existing customers.

n Find out more at valueforvenues.co.uk

Our teams can be a real support and source of knowledge”

REYNOLDS FOODSERVICE

The launch of its Foodtown strategy means Reynolds is ensuring quality and consistency for all of its foodservice customers

Q

What are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

In recent years we have expanded our product portfolio with new businesses and ranges. This began in 2017, with the foundation Carnivore butchery, and Shoal, a fishmonger, both delivering bespoke services. In 2018, we bought Solstice to dice and slice fruit and vegetables to add value and save clients time. In 2021, we acquired Davin Foods, bringing yet more added value. Recently we entered a partnership with Select Butchery, integrating the business into the Reynolds Foodtown model, which delivers the expertise of specialists with the efficiencies of one vehicle and one invoice.

QHow will you be supporting your foodservice customers?

We will be supporting customers developing bespoke product offerings like marinated meats, and helping them to combat economic pressures by buying more for less. We will try to keep product inflation as low as possible, by buying better and finding client solutions.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

The pandemic enabled us to futureproof with

our Foodtown strategy. The Foodtown distribution hub brings together fruit, veg, fish, meat and added value, all in one location. By delivering what we promise, we give customers an unrivalled service. A single-source solution for fresh food, Reynolds delivers all the expertise of specialists, but through one logistics platform, ensuring quality and consistency for all our customers. Managing good relationships with customers, suppliers and employees has enabled us to succeed where others have failed. Widening our client portfolio across all areas of foodservice has ensured our business is strong and stable.

QWhat do you see as the biggest challenge for the next 12 months? The biggest challenges to overcome in the next 12 months are likely to continue to be political, environmental and economic pressures, with the pace of technological change also being one to watch.

Widening our portfolio has ensured we are strong

UNITAS

The scale of the Unitas group means competitive pricing, the very best deals and bespoke trading strategies all benefit its members

QWhat are your plans and priorities for the coming 12 months?

This year we will be developing channel guides to support our members with information on range, new products, food trends and specific promotional activity for the channels they operate in, such as education, leisure, pubs and restaurants. We host several events for members each year including an annual conference and Meet the Member opportunities, plus a gold day for on-trade and foodservice. These events create network efficiency opportunities for suppliers and members to meet in a cost-effective environment to discuss their joint business plans and how they can grow their businesses in partnership.

QHow will you be supporting your foodservice customers?

The scale of the Unitas group enables us to buy key commodities at competitive prices, which benefits our foodservice members. We’ll be increasing our focus in this area.

We have also been working with third party service providers to get our members the very best deals in areas including energy, banking and telecoms, reducing their operational costs and making them more profitable. We encourage members to log on to our hub to take advantage of the great deals we’ve negotiated on their behalf.

Foodservice customers also benefit from bespoke trading strategies tailored to help them grow their business. Our own brand, Caterers Kitchen, has an important role to play with more than 300 lines bespoke to the channel. Plus, full marketing and digital support and a business development team to identify opportunities. We provide a comprehensive selection of deals negotiated by Unitas Wholesale specifically for the out-of-home sector.

QWhat have been your biggest learnings from the past three years?

Our members are resilient. That is a valuable learning that we will harness for the future. Our foodservice wholesalers worked hard throughout the pandemic to support their customers. They were flexible in their approach to credit and range, and worked tirelessly to adapt throughout closures and reopenings. As a result, they’ve built strong relationships with their customers and as their customers’ businesses thrive again, so do our members. In the past 12 months, foodservice members have grown 17.61%.

We provide a comprehensive selection of deals”

ENVIS SNACKS

A focus on innovation, availability and every day value is paying off for Envis Snacks as it launches its latest new products

QWhat do you see as the big opportunities for the months ahead?

Keeping good availability of the bestsellers will remain key to success for wholesalers. It is also crucial that the range is balanced with differentiated lines, such as Pomsticks and Curlys with exciting new lines such as Chipoys to add interest. For wholesalers, getting this balance right will be a key to unlock huge sales opportunities as retailers actively search for lines that will offer good value, choice and differentiation in their stores.

QWhat are your plans for the coming 12-18 months?

We are proud to be the UK exclusive importer for selected brands in the UK and we look to continue to be able offer the right range from the Lorenz Snackworld and OK Snacks portfolios. We are continuing the momentum with brands such as Crunchips X-cut, Pommels and Roasted and will continue to offer great value with OK Snacks

Wanted Tortilla Chips offering £1.25 PMPs with a whopping 125g fill.

However, we are really excited about the launch of US brand Chipoys rolled tortilla chips into the UK with two awesome flavours, Fire Red Hot and Chilli and Lime, which we believe will ignite sales of the

growing American lines in the UK crisps and snacks market.

QHow are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

We have a relatively small range which enables us to focus on availability and good every day value to ensure consistent supply for wholesalers and therefore retailers. Our products also offer great shelf life of around 6 months across the entire range to reduce the element of risk from stock rotation for wholesalers and retailers alike.

QIf you could give wholesalers one piece of advice on how to make the most of your products, what would it be?

Well the obvious answer here would be to simply stock our lines and give them a prominent position in depots, but there is more to it. We know that a focussed range for the individual wholesaler based on local demographics reaps better rewards, and we are more than happy to offer support and advice across our range of Lorenz, Wanted and new Chipoys to tailor the right solution for the incrementality these brands can bring.

Retailers are looking for value, choice and differentiation

PEP IT UP!

With PEPPADEW® - the UK’s No.1 Pepper brand^

From the unique flavour of our vibrant fruit to our innovative pickling brine and our exclusive new product - PEPPADEW® Bites, our exceptionally versatile and ontrend products burst with flavour and can easily pep up a wide range of dishes!

PEPPERDEW

Taking its products on the road to drive awareness has been an essential for Pepperdew's success as it plans for the future

QWhat has your business learnt in recent years?

There has been a significant impact on supply chains, stock risk and new product launches and we recognise the importance of working with wholesalers as a route to market. When launching a new product, such as PEPPADEW® Bites , we recognise that it is essential to be at wholesaler trade shows.

QWhat are your plans for the coming 12-18 months?

We are continuing to focus on PEPPADEW® Bites, red piquanté peppers that have been hand filled with West Country cheese, rolled in a panko-style breadcrumb which are currently only available through wholesale. We are taking our Airstream on the road to get people to try them, as when they do, they love them and want to buy them.

We are launching a yellow sweet piquanté into foodservice, the same great taste as our red peppers – perfect for if you’re looking to inject colour into your dishes. To make the piquanté peppers the go-to ingredient, just simply add them to pizza, salad, sandwiches and soups.

QHow are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

We provide POS to demonstrate the versatility of the PEPPADEW® Sweet Piquanté peppers as the flavourful opportunities are limitless.

We are growing our digital and social media presence, which we will use to focus on driving wholesaler awareness. We will be driving buyers to wholesalers through tradeshows and promoting wholesale is a feature in our marketing collateral. We are taking our Airstream on the road to sample our PEPPADEW® Bites, so if you’d like us to come and support you, let us know.

QIf you could give wholesalers one piece of advice to make the most of your products, what would it be?

PEPPADEW® is a premium brand with a well-established, loyal UK consumer base, achieved through wholesale, retail and brand partnerships. The product offerings are truly unique that can drive value in the various categories, such as antipasti, ingredients, pizza and frozen, adding premiumisation to dishes. Brand is king, with 57% of consumers say they are willing to pay a premium for name-brand foods when dining out.* Also, pizza will remain a focus so create a pizza section, grouping all the ingredients together, both online and in depot.

*Source: (Independent Toluna Insight with 1,000 UK consumers, March 2022)

Brand is king with consumers willing to pay a premium

RH AMAR

It’s a busy and exciting time ahead for RH Amar as it welcomes new brand partners and develops its ranges and strategy

QWhat are the lessons your business has learnt recently?

We have seen how important core range availability is for our customers and that the value message remains more important than ever. We’ve worked hard to offer a range reflective of this, with strong promotions, an increasing focus on price-marked packs, and adapting to smaller case sizes where needed. The quick recovery of foodservice has highlighted that people are clearly keen to get out and about to enjoy hospitality again. We service everyone, from mobile vans to top-class restaurants, and have a range that reflects this. We have increased our range and brought in more quick-serve options and smaller formats to meet demand from foodservice outlets.

QWhat are your plans for the coming 12-18 months?

We’re committed to supporting our brands and helping wholesalers compete in this ever-growing and important route to market. We have new brand partners, which we are excited about taking into the trade – some will be entering wholesale for the first time. It’s a great time to be getting back in front of customers, and attending trade shows and events showcasing the breadth of the range that RH Amar offers, including across our foodservice portfolio.

QHow are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

Looking ahead, there is a lot to be excited about. We have developed our range to meet wholesalers’ needs and know that the brands we offer deliver for our customers. We have a key strategy for wholesale, with targeted plans in place to support our brands at every level, helping to drive volume through wholesale. With ongoing cost of living pressures, we are focused on continuing to deliver best value and offering a range reflective of this with strong promotions and increasing focus on price-marked packs, which we know drive value.

QIf you could give wholesalers one piece of advice, what would it be?

We know there will continue to be a lot of change over the next 18 months and wholesalers will need to be agile and react quickly, all while maintaining a watchful eye on value messages and price. For foodservice, there will be a need to respond quickly to menu trends and changes led by cost of living pressures.

We’re committed to helping wholesalers compete”

BCP

Omnichannel fulfilment can streamline fulfilment processes and distribution of orders, helping businesses to stay competitive

QWhat are the lessons your business has learnt from thepast three years?

In today’s digital landscape, businesses can stay competitive by leveraging the power of omnichannel fulfilment. This unified approach to managing inventory and order processing can streamline fulfilment processes and the distribution of orders, reducing errors and inconsistencies.

QHow are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

Omnichannel fulfilment unifies inventory and order processing from various channels, including online marketplaces, ecommerce websites, telesales, and cash and carry outlets. This feature can make or break a customer experience, allowing them to easily navigate the purchase process regardless of the channel.

According to Salesforce: “Modern customers expect a seamless omnichannel journey, and businesses that fail to deliver on this expectation risk falling behind.”

Wholesalers can increase sales and reduce order abandonment rates by providing a

seamless customer experience across all channels. Studies show that that omnichannel customers spend 20% more than single-channel customers. Multiple channels allow you to reach a broader customer base, increasing sales and improving customer lifetime value.

Omnichannel fulfilment empowers you to manage inventory in real-time across all your channels to avoid overselling and deliver orders quickly and accurately. By automating and centralising operations, you can reduce errors and inconsistencies.

Unified ecommerce platforms, such as Oporteo and Accord, play a critical role in omnichannel fulfilment, providing a centralised hub for managing inventory, orders, and customer data, leading to improved efficiency, increased sales, and reduced costs.

QIf you can give wholesalers one piece of advice, what would it be?

Contact one of our experts to learn more about how our OMS can help wholesalers to operate more efficiently. We offer an OMS that enables wholesalers to manage stock, process orders, and streamline fulfilment across all channels, with centralised order tracking, real-time inventory management, faster shipping and delivery, and returns and reverse logistics handling.

Wholesalers can increase sales and reduce costs and errors

PAYMENT PROS

Delivering wholesalers cost-saving initiatives while enabling them to attract and retain customers is the top priority for Payment Pros

QWhat are the lessons your business has learnt from the past three years?

As a payments business, the key lessons we have experienced stem around education, innovation and understanding that each of our customers desire an element of customisation. Being able to provide timely, relevant information and updates on the general UK ecosystem of payments is critical, as is investing in the development of innovative solutions. The past three years has seen our business learn and develop in tandem with our customers and our role is to support them throughout this journey.

QWhat are your plans for the coming 12-18 months?

A significant focus is being placed on cost-saving initiatives across the majority of UK businesses. There is also a clear trend and desire to create enhanced loyalty mechanisms to attract and retain customers. We have to be ready to deliver against these objectives for our customers via our payment solutions, and we view innovation as key to this.

QHow are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

Our wholesale customers have saved an aggregated £2.4m (2023) in card payment processing fees when choosing to move their

payment processing to Payment Pros.

The addition of Bankzy Open Banking® as a solution to accept customer payments will increase that figure substantially over time, across our wholesaler customer base. Bankzy Open Banking is typically 75% cheaper to process as opposed to general debit, VISA Business debit and Mastercard Commercial debit card payments.

QIf you could give wholesalers one piece of advice, what would it be?

Firstly, reviewing your existing set up and cost base for processing payments can be a swift, simple win. Secondly, if you haven’t already defined your Open Banking partner and strategy, you should have. We appreciate that sounds blunt, however when you explore the potential cost-savings versus processing traditional debit card, your competitors will be using these savings to maintain low prices for customers. Thirdly, we are strong believers in seeing solutions working and live to bring a proposition to reality. We are greatly appreciative of our existing customers sharing our ability in delivering for them within the wholesale and foodservice sector.

Our wholesale customers have saved £2.4m in fees

THE BRIGHT MEDIA AGENCY

Stand out in a competitive market with innovative, bespoke marketing and communications that help businesses get the edge

QWhat are the lessons your business has learnt from the past three years?

How essential it is that businesses continue to invest in their marketing and communications, especially when times get tough. Those businesses who maintain visibility, communicate with their customers and engage with potential new customers are the ones who will remain front of mind.

QWhat are your plans for the coming 12-18 months?

We are continually evolving and innovating in order to provide impactful marketing and communications solutions that compel audiences to take action. We will continue to work closely and creatively with wholesale and supplier clients to understand their objectives and shape marketing solutions to ensure key messages get through to the right people in the most engaging, effective way.

Q

How are you supporting wholesalers to succeed?

We give our wholesale and supplier clients a platform to shout about their brilliance, while our expert advice and guidance communicates their messages in the best

way possible. This could be through the means of attention-grabbing PR locally, nationally or in the trade press, impactful product guides that add value for customers, eye-catching brand campaigns, winning award entries or insightful communications for customers, staff or stakeholders. By utilising our skills and experience, we can tell your stories powerfully, creating tangible growth for your business.

QIf you could give wholesalers one piece of advice of how to best work with you and your services, what would it be?

We don’t offer a one-size-fits-all service at The Bright Media Agency. We work as a trusted extension of your team to provide targeted solutions that deliver real results. We’re always exploring innovative ways to communicate in a way that’s guaranteed to resonate with your audience, so get in touch today to explore how we can help you to achieve your objectives.

We can tell your stories powerfully, creating tangible growth

SERVICES FOR FWD MEMBERS

Service providers support and inform FWD wholesale members

n ADVANCED B2B RESEARCH AND INSIGHTS ADVANTAGE GROUP UK advantagegroup. com/FWD awilkes@ advantagegroup. com

n B2B FRESH PRODUCE CONSENTIO andym@ consentio.co

n BUSINESS ADVICE VERLINGUE jamie.barham@ verlingue.co.uk Jo.kennedy@ verlingue.co.uk

n CHARITABLE REDISITRIBUTION FARESHARE UK fareshare.org.uk Hilary.Nithsdale@ fareshare.org.uk

n CONVENIENCE NEWS C-TALK c-talk.co.uk paul.chamberlain @c-talk.co.uk

n DATA ANALYSIS TALYSIS talysis.co.uk jill.morris@talysis. co.uk

n DATA ANALYTICS PHOCAS SOFTWARE phocassoftware. com alison.mckenna@ phocassoftware. com

n DATA AND INSIGHT TWC twcgroup.net tanya@wsale. co.uk

n DIGITAL EXPERIENCE OPTIMISATION BIGLIGHT LTD steve.borges@ biglight.co.uk

n DIGITAL PRODUCT CONTENT NIELSENIQ BRANDBANK brandbank.com oliver.best@ nielseniq.com

n DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION INFOR infor.com ruth.white@ infor.com

n E-COMMERCE SOLUTIONS APHIX SOFTWARE aphixsoftware. com kevin@ aphixsoftware.com

B2B.STORE b2b.store/ rob.mannion@ b2b.store

FOODSERVICE ONLINE foodservice online.co.uk richard@ foodserviceonline. co.uk

n EVENTS IFE, INTERNATIONAL FOOD & DRINK EVENT ife.co.uk philippa.christer@ montgomerygroup. com

n FIELD MARKETING INSPIRE FIELD MARKETING inspirefield marketing.com paul.marsh@ inspirefield marketing.com

n FINANCING PRODUCT AND SERVICE PROVIDER AMERICAN EXPRESS tiffany.oliveira@ aexp.com

n FINANCING SOLUTIONS LEVANTOR CAPITAL levantor.com stuart.duckett@ levantor.com

n HOME DELIVERY SERVICE SNAPPY SHOPPER RETAILERS snappyshopper. co.uk dael.links@snappy shopper.co.uk

n INTERGRATING THE SUPPLY CHAIN CERVE cerve.co dan@cerve.co

n MARKET AND CONSUMER INTELLIGENCE LUMINA INTELLIGENCE luminaintelligence.com jill.livesey@luminaintelligence.com

n MARKETING COMMUNITY SUPPORT COVENT GARDEN MARKET AUTHORITY Tommy.Leighton@ cgma.co.uk

n MARKETING, MEDIA AND PR THE BRIGHT MEDIA AGENCY thebrightmedia agency.com hello@thebright mediaagency.com

n MARKETPLACE MIRAKL mirakl.com aedeen.mageean @mirakl.com

n ORDERING APP ORDERLION orderlion.com/en gabriel. vanheerden@ orderlion.com

n PAYMENT SOLUTIONS PAYMENT PROS gregg@ paymentpros.co.uk

n PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT SOLUTIONS AKERON akeron.com/en aliceallegrini@ akeron.com

n PRICING STRATEGY FLINTFOX: INTELLIGENT PRICING PLATFORM flintfox.co.uk cbrands@flintfox. com

n REFRIGERATION LIEBHERR GREAT BRITAIN stephen.ongley@ liebherr.com

n SOFTWARE SOLUTIONS BCP, BUSINESS COMPUTER PROJECTS bcpsoftware.com andy.pratt@ bcpsoftware.com

n TECHNOLOGY CIRCANA salesout.co.uk lindsey.hills@ circana.com

PAYPOINT contactus@ paypoint.com

STL TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS LTD stl-solutions.com Ivan.Durkin@ stl-solutions.com

n WAREHOUSE MANAGEMENT MINSTERWMS minsterwms.com phoebus@ minsterwms.com