On the road

"This isn't a personal question mate, but where do you keep your nuts?"

For a Walkers sales rep this gag is most likely one of the oldest in the book, but for a journalist spending the day doing the rounds in a Walkers sales van it still manages to raise a snigger.

But that may be because I'm a little excited. After all, it's not often one gets to swap a day in the office for a day driving round the pubs of Brighton and Hove in a wagon containing more than 2,000 packets of Walkers crisps, snacks and corn-based products.

My escorts for the day are Mark Doherty, van sales manager, and, in the driving seat, Mark Simmons, the van sales rep endowed with the task of looking after the south coast.

In the interest of avoiding confusion, and in order to stretch the Escort theme for the remainder of the article, I shall refer to my two crisp companions as Mark One (Doherty) and Mark Two (Simmons).

I was picked up at 10am in the van, well it's more of a lorry actually, of which Walkers now boasts a fleet of 76. Thirty of these were added in the last 18 months.

Mark Two drives the lorry, but he's not just a delivery person. He calls in on every pub on his patch once a fortnight to make sure that everything is satisfactory as far as the snacks and crisps are concerned.

In short, Mark Two does everything so the publican doesn't have to. This involves making sure that the pub has enough crisps, that the stock is arranged according to best before date, that the range is suitable for the pub's clientele and that the licensee is displaying his nuts where everyone can see them.

Our first stop is the Laurel-owned Hogshead in Hove where Mark Two has obviously worked his magic. On the shelves opposite the till, nestled between a pair of Stella Artois bottles, can be found two packets of Big Eat Walkers Crisps for all to see.

Mark One is happy. "Eye level is buy level," he informs me. "The key for us, above all else, is display. If you only display beer at the point of purchase then all you're going to encourage among beer drinkers is a brand switch.

But by highlighting crisps you're adding incremental profit.

"We're not trying to turn the pub into a crisp shop and we realise crisps aren't the biggest part of a pub's business. But if a licensee can tag a packet of crisps onto the end of every round then that's huge incremental profit and that's what you're looking for."

Although Walkers introduced the Big Eat range eight years ago, some licensees remain sceptical about the bigger size, with margin being the main gripe.

"You pay a premium to come into a pub and although more expensive the Big Eat is a better option in terms of value for money," argued Mark One.

By going large, as they say in McDonald's, there's more dosh in the publican's pocket.

"The publican has to start thinking of himself as a retailer. It's not always about profit margins - it's about getting the cash going through the till and getting more people into your pub," said Mark One. "It's a smaller slice of a bigger pie."

The majority of Mark Two's customers run managed outlets, but our next port of call is the Golden Cross, a community sports-led independent in the midst of a re-fit.

"The independent managers tend to be more open to ideas as it's their money on the line," added Mark One.

While freetraders can visit the cash and carry for their snacks, Walkers not only brings some marketing insight but also saves the hassle of transporting the bulky boxes of crisps that would take up valuable space in the licensee's car.

For licensees that practice what the van sales reps preach yet fail to shift the stock, the company will take back out-of-date snacks - no questions asked.

Next up was a Beefeater pub at the Brighton Marina, a seaside complex made up of luxury flats, a multiplex cinema and some fancy yachts.

Manager Katrina runs a food-led operation with 140 covers, occupied predominantly by elderly diners and, in the summer months, tourists.

The clip sticks were a bit bare, but Mark Two soon sorted that out. In outlets where food is a priority, can snacks handicap the food sales?

"A lot of people worry about this but it shouldn't have an impact on the food at all," said Mark One. "People don't see it as a substitute and will still sit down and have a three-course meal."

A five-minute journey down the coast road and we're at the White Horse, a Greene King managed pub in Rottingdean. It's a big day for everyone as Mark Two is not only delivering a new expanded range, but also installing some clip sticks for the first time as well.

In addition to a core range consisting of the usual suspects: cheese and onion, salt and vinegar and ready salted, Walkers encourages the regular rotation of speciality brands such as Monster Munch or Quavers.

However, as Mark Two happily displayed the new arrivals behind the bar, I notice a sense of unease with Mark One.

He's not happy this time. A point-of-purchase contretemps in the form of a Greene King IPA display consisting of a Greene King fleece, a Greene King umbrella and a few fancy looking IPA glasses has dampened the enthusiasm brought about by the new string of Sensations on the back-bar.

Having spent the day with the two Marks, I shared his frustration. Nothing was said, but we both knew that the same space could have housed a dazzling array of snacks. A van sales rep's work is never done.