Tuesday 14 March 2017
Supermarkets Using “Shocking” Tactics To Obtain Money From Suppliers
The GCA needs a basis for taking action, your experience can help:
- The key to better working relationships i.e. willing adherence to the spirit rather than letter of the law has to be in the hands of suppliers that are willing to come forward...
- i.e. If many suppliers complain of the same type of treatment, then ‘an isolated incident’ can become an issue…
Friday 10 March 2017
Monday 6 March 2017
When the client actually knows best, despite the research...
Today's emphasis on Big Data as a must-have in brand marketing reminds me of my early ventures in giving business advice to a Danish dairy company re the fact that their UK butter offering might prove confusing to UK shoppers because of its 'haphazard' changes in colour from yellow to white and back again during the year.
Despite my farming and Mom 'n Pop store upbringing in less politically-correct times, I persisted in recommending a purist marketing approach to this farmers' cooperative in that a consumer-test was essential in establishing whether white or yellow was the preferred colour. This insight would then determine whether the product should be bleached or coloured yellow to match consumer need...
The client politely pointed out that theirs was a natural product whose colour reflected the cow's seasonal diet, and told me they did not think much of my reservations re the brand name either...
I often wonder what ever became of Lurpak over the years...
Despite my farming and Mom 'n Pop store upbringing in less politically-correct times, I persisted in recommending a purist marketing approach to this farmers' cooperative in that a consumer-test was essential in establishing whether white or yellow was the preferred colour. This insight would then determine whether the product should be bleached or coloured yellow to match consumer need...
The client politely pointed out that theirs was a natural product whose colour reflected the cow's seasonal diet, and told me they did not think much of my reservations re the brand name either...
I often wonder what ever became of Lurpak over the years...
Friday 24 February 2017
Aldi's down-to-earth proof-of-origin
According to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine, Aldi Süd are piloting Isotope Analysis to guarantee produce source by locality/region...more details here.
Apart from savvy consumers’ interest in establishing the source of their food, this Aldi initiative will also help in allaying doubts regarding discounters ability to provide like-for-like produce at prices lower than the mults.
In addition to adding cost to the sourcing process, this will heighten consumer curiosity as to the origin of other products available in discounters.
In the UK, this increase in their costs would result in a reduction in the pricing advantage enjoyed by the discounters, but if this proof-of-origin initiative gives Aldi a competitive advantage, others will follow…
Interesting how the cookie crumbles...
Apart from savvy consumers’ interest in establishing the source of their food, this Aldi initiative will also help in allaying doubts regarding discounters ability to provide like-for-like produce at prices lower than the mults.
In addition to adding cost to the sourcing process, this will heighten consumer curiosity as to the origin of other products available in discounters.
In the UK, this increase in their costs would result in a reduction in the pricing advantage enjoyed by the discounters, but if this proof-of-origin initiative gives Aldi a competitive advantage, others will follow…
Interesting how the cookie crumbles...
Wednesday 22 February 2017
The extra little help Tesco Ireland does not need during a strike.....
Students and Scargill show support.
A St Pat's lecturer brought her students to Tesco yesterday to teach them about the strike. According to The Journal, the DCU Lecturer from St Patrick’s Campus in Drumcondra, Dublin brought her students to the local Tesco so that workers could inform them about the nature of the strike action.
This comes as the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) reaffirmed its support for the industrial action after workers at Tesco Drumcondra stated that local students had been crossing the picket line and entering the store.
In addition, The Irish Times reports that the terms of employee contracts at Tesco have come under criticism from former British trade union leader Arthur Scargill, who joined workers on the picket line at two of the 23 striking stores on Saturday.
Given that the workers affected by the old contract appear to represent approximately 2% of the Tesco workforce in Ireland, perhaps a defensible way of buying out the old contracts may be the only pragmatic option?
A St Pat's lecturer brought her students to Tesco yesterday to teach them about the strike. According to The Journal, the DCU Lecturer from St Patrick’s Campus in Drumcondra, Dublin brought her students to the local Tesco so that workers could inform them about the nature of the strike action.
This comes as the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) reaffirmed its support for the industrial action after workers at Tesco Drumcondra stated that local students had been crossing the picket line and entering the store.
In addition, The Irish Times reports that the terms of employee contracts at Tesco have come under criticism from former British trade union leader Arthur Scargill, who joined workers on the picket line at two of the 23 striking stores on Saturday.
Given that the workers affected by the old contract appear to represent approximately 2% of the Tesco workforce in Ireland, perhaps a defensible way of buying out the old contracts may be the only pragmatic option?
Monday 20 February 2017
Kraft-Unilever, file closed, now what?
Kraft-Heinz's weekend agreement to withdraw its offer to take over Unilever will not be the end of the story...
- Fundamental issues remain for each party
- K-H still need to improve Sales and Margin growth, with acquisition the fastest route
- In preparing for the Unilever bid, K-H's appetite for Home & Personal Care margins will have been whetted... (think Colgate, Kimberly Clark etc. etc.)
- Also, Unilever coverage of emerging markets is complementary to that of K-H, see other options of similar profile
- Meanwhile, moving back from the stock exchange spotlight, Unilever will need to make some signigficant changes to indicate it has 'learned' from the encounter...(think refinition of 'core', sell-offs etc, and more cuts...)
- More significantly, K-H have demonstrated that a company can make a credible bid for a target more than 3x its size in sales revenue...
- In other words, anything goes in terms of potential takovers, anywhere...
Thursday 9 February 2017
Need high-level help with a de-listing?
How about trying a trump card?
International Business Times reports that President Trump has tweeted against retailer Nordstrom for dropping Ivanka’s fashion line: "My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person -- always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!"
A pointer for well-connected NAMs everywhere?
International Business Times reports that President Trump has tweeted against retailer Nordstrom for dropping Ivanka’s fashion line: "My daughter Ivanka has been treated so unfairly by @Nordstrom. She is a great person -- always pushing me to do the right thing! Terrible!"
A pointer for well-connected NAMs everywhere?
Tuesday 7 February 2017
Amazon's supermarket of the future could operate with just 3 staff - and lots of robots
According to the New York Times (as quoted in Business Insider) both Amazon Go and the new supermarkets (10,000 to 40,000 sq. ft. two storey) would contain no cashiers, no registers, and no lines. Instead, they would rely on an app on customer's phones that would detect items picked off shelves for purchase.
No one really expected Amazon to simply make a better version of what is available…
The issue for other retailers has to be how to find ways of copying – and improving upon – these amateur shopkeepers who realise that all a consumer wants on the shop floor are 4,000 items that shoppers "like to touch," such as fresh meat, fruit, vegetables, and eggs, while robots complete the shopping list upstairs..
Meanwhile, suppliers need to figure out ways of keeping their brands on that shopping list.
No one really expected Amazon to simply make a better version of what is available…
The issue for other retailers has to be how to find ways of copying – and improving upon – these amateur shopkeepers who realise that all a consumer wants on the shop floor are 4,000 items that shoppers "like to touch," such as fresh meat, fruit, vegetables, and eggs, while robots complete the shopping list upstairs..
Meanwhile, suppliers need to figure out ways of keeping their brands on that shopping list.
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