Discounters keep the market honest and ensure shopper trust
As an advocate of brands and innovation, I never thought I’d be representing the view that we are fortunate to have the discounters here in the UK. But they do play an important role in policing the industry.
Tarry’s work at Tesco shows the power of supplier collaboration
Under Jason Tarry, supplier dialogue with Tesco buyers became more strategic – investment followed and honourable commitments replaced settlement wrangling, says David Sables, CEO of Sentinel Management Consultants
Morrisons must sell suppliers a clear turnaround vision
We all have a soft spot for Morrisons. It’s been hard to watch the catastrophic share decline of this former big four bastion. It’s now set to become the sixth-largest supermarket, behind Aldi and Lidl, later this year. Sir Ken Morrison is remembered by employees for his ‘retail is detail’ mantra and driving high in-store standards. The same is now […]
Suppliers: survive the recession by mastering three trends
Don’t allow the pessimism around a new ‘recession’ to drag you into defensive mode. There are many opportunities, and those presented by three trends in particular will make you future fit, or set you on a tragic trajectory, depending on how you embrace them.
Suppliers must not capitulate to retailer bullies
Such escalating retailer-supplier tensions are bad for both parties but suppliers must navigate especially carefully, says David Sables, CEO of Sentinel Management Consultants
How suppliers can create sustainable customer business plans
Last month I wrote about customer business planning (CBP). It clearly struck achord with many suppliers facing the challenges involved. I will answersuppliers’ key questions here with some of our CBP principles at Sentinel MC. The hottest topic is how to navigate the closing of one year at the same timeas setting up the next […]
Joint business plans are often meaningless
Suppliers are thinking “must get next year’s customer business plans agreedbefore Christmas”. Meanwhile, those customers are threatening to cancel themeeting because they can’t get payment of unearned retro in this year’s plan. At its best, customer business planning (CBP) creates certainty for supply andincentive for growth. At its worst, it’s just another way for the […]
An open letter to the CMA: your profiteering accusations are damaging
In this week’s column, I would like to write an open letter to CMA CEO Sarah Cardell. I write in relation to the three investigations you are overseeing in relation to retail pricing during the cost of living crisis. The first two reports, which investigated the role of retailers in inflated fuel and food prices, […]
I’ve witnessed misogyny in fmcg negotiations and it needs to stop
Prompted by the allegations behind the recent resignation of Tesco chairman John Allan, I believe it’s a good time to highlight what I consider unacceptable personal abuse frequently witnessed in fmcg. We all know buyers use pressure tactics to make suppliers feel uncomfortable, because it often results in concessions. So, classics such as “the other […]
Suppliers are the latest scapegoat for high food prices. Let’s bust this myth now
Now the government has rightly moved its pointy finger away from retailers, Jeremy Hunt has directed profiteering concerns at suppliers. The concern is there is not enough competition in our apparently sleepy world of fmcg supply. Of course it is madness. We know suppliers are going into administration at an all-time high, and every category […]
