Working with your suppliers

The following article is brought to you by Coors Brewers.

For years the supplier/customer relationship has been characterised by an annual meeting whereby the supplier and the publican beat each other up over price and in the end little changes within the outlet.​

In today's business environment, building a productive and mutually beneficial relationship with your suppliers is just as important as price to ensure the success of your outlet.

Most suppliers have an enormous amount of resource and expertise in areas that can help you run your business more effectively.

They have dedicated departments whose main role is to develop products, merchandising tools and gather market information which can be used to effectively impact sales. By tapping into these resources you will place yourself at a distinct advantage to your competition, and potentially add to your bottom line.

Ranging is key​

Having the right products available for your customers is absolutely key to your success. Your suppliers can help you to make sure that you have what your customers want by assisting you in identifying the best selling product for your particular region, as well as nationwide.

They can help you put together a thorough range review to ensure that you are carrying the right range of products, not only for your clientele, but the best range of products in terms of profit and rate of sale for your outlet. As new products come on to the market, your suppliers can also help you decide which products to de-list to make space for new or to decide if the new product suits your outlet at all.

Once you have the right products, it is then essential to merchandise them effectively and communicate to your customers that these products are available in your outlet. Again you suppliers have a plethora of tools to help you do this, from very simple branded posters, to the Grolsch Silver Service (developed by Coors) which includes a stainless steel ice bucket, Grolsch branded stem glasses and holds three 1.5-litre bottles of Grolsch.

Merchandising tools such as these not only help to add to the presentation of the product, but also enhance your customers experience in your outlet. Most suppliers have teams of merchandising specialists that can help you create impactful back-bar displays to highlight new products, or product offers, and make use of valuable space.

Free education​

In addition to the tools we have mentioned above there is also a more subtle way in which your suppliers can help you improve your business, and that is by tapping into the wealth of knowledge they have available from everything to how to tap a keg, to training employees on customer service.

This free education is invaluable and will no doubt allow you to ensure that you are always delivering the very best quality and service in your outlet. The importance of quality to an outlet is not a new concept, but it is one that is ever more important in not only gaining new customers, but making sure that your regular trade stays with you.

Coors Brewers has identified quality has a tactic that can be used as a significant point of difference versus its competition and has therefore encouraged all its accounts, when serving a pint, to always serve it in branded glassware, at the right temperature. If the customer always gets this level of service, you are in the best position to increase sales and gain loyal business.

When thinking of choosing suppliers or in forward planning for your next meeting with your current supplier, keep in mind the many different ways that you can take advantage of the tools at your disposal. Reaching a "good" price on product is no longer enough to satisfy a productive business relationship.

By making the most of the tools your supplier has available, you will develop a better relationship with your existing customers, and potentially attract new ones.