What is your biggest source of frustration when you scour a soft drinks category?

I’ve actually been amazed at how little category management is deployed, particularly in cash & carries. Some of the old habits around listing a piece of NPD just because a supplier pays a listing fee are, in my opinion, outdated and damaging to the overall category. I’m also surprised at how many depots merchandise by volume, rather than value/profit. This tends to result in duplication of ranges, especially very low-value tertiary brands, which is a driver of deflation.

Is cross-category merchandising an area that is underutilised in the soft drinks market?

Without question, cross-category merchandising is massively underused but it can’t be done on everything all of the time. Suppliers and wholesalers need to work closely together to choose a few key opportunities and scale them appropriately to make a real impact. Within our own portfolio, there are ample opportunities to appeal to all depot and outlet types. As we look to grow our Purdey’s brand with wholesalers specialising in upmarket licensed environments, Gin & Purdey’s becomes an interesting and fast-growing opportunity. The same applies to water and our Robinsons dilutable range.

Through your discussions with retail customers, what do they value most when they visit a depot or order from a delivered wholesaler?

Without a doubt, I’d say that offering a personal touch in terms of depot management and supplier representative advice is most valued, as well as being able to ‘get close’ to a product. What are the key points depot managers need to remember before creating a point-of-sale display? The most effective PoS includes anything that achieves a perfect balance of impact, fact-based retailer information, value messaging and brand essence. It always helps when in-depot PoS aligns in timing with above-the-line activity outside the depot, such as posters and TV advertising.

How closely does Britvic work with cash & carries and delivered wholesalers?

Over 25% of Britvic’s GB turnover goes via wholesale, so it’s a really important area. Wholesalers offer us a fantastic route to market for the 1.5 million or so small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that buy soft drinks, and that’s why we over-resource for the channel, be that via direct headcount or other forms of investment, such as bespoke packs. We have a team of around 50 who serve wholesalers and support them in winning contract business, as well as in driving pull-through to the independent sector via a significant annual budget to support field sales activity. Around 95% of on-the-go products we sell to cash & carries are price-marked and these require manufacturing, logistical and price-discount funding.

How are you looking to strengthen your partnerships with wholesalers over the next 12 months?