Brief Summary

Managing trade concentration…

Essentially there are 2 approaches to the inevitable concentration, everywhere.  There are those who follow the concentration, and those who attempt to spread the risk by maintaining support for medium and smaller customers, at increasing cost…

Helping the Customer to Improve Market Capitalisation...

A trade partnership based upon increasing both party’s market capitalisation would drive benefits for suppliers and their major customers.

Making trade funding work…

As with most business situations, simple ideas work best.  The current regulatory spotlight on trade funding simply requires getting some basic things right in the relationship between suppliers and their trade partners.

Helping the Customer to Differentiate

In order to realistically participate in the new UK 2-horse trade race it is essential to use Tesco/Asda as a starting point for an analysis of the source of your business.

Helping the Retailer to Reduce Grazing…

Given the fact that grazing can escalate to more ambitious in-store theft, ultimately reflected in increased supply chain costs via shrinkage-allowances, it is perhaps in the supplier’s interest to encourage quantification and reduction of unauthorised snacking on the way to the checkout….

Making Working Capital Work...

Three basic calculations can help you to dramatically demonstrate your impact upon company profitability, especially in demanding times…

Learning From Chaos…

The main problem with the current UK market turmoil is not the temptation to procrastinate strategically until things ‘settle down’ or return to ‘normal’, but that the focus upon fire-fighting prevents KAMs from benefiting from the unique opportunity to accelerate the business-learning process, first-hand.

Effective Management of Rest-of-field Customers….

When a market moves rapidly to a 2-horse retail race, the effect on the rest of the field can be fundamental in respect of what they need from a supplier.

Managing Schizophrenia in the Aisle…

The consumer-shopper’s confused reaction to trade consolidation can be effectively managed in-store if one acknowledges the co-existence of 2 disparate appetites, which must be satisfied, profitably…

Working within the Retailer’s Marketing Mix…

Essentially, the retailer acknowledges the presence of two complementary appetites in the shopper-consumer within the store traffic, shopping needs and consumption needs.

ROCE - The Ultimate Demonstrator

As a retailer seeks to optimise the use of available funds, then the key stakeholders (owners, shareholders, staff, suppliers and shoppers) all need a means of transparently demonstrating effective use of current resources over time.  ROCE is such a tool.

A Fundamental Tool-kit for KAMs….

Essentially, because of time limitations in the role, a KAM needs a mental tool-kit of techniques that are high-output, comprehensive, thorough, flexible and fast.