Alex Yau discusses wholesalers’ pros and cons with retailer Sunder Sandher
Info box
Store name:
One Stop Working With The Royals
Location:
Leamington Spa
Employees:
Six
Operational since:
1983
Average customers per day:
1,000
Which wholesalers do you use and why do you use them?
Tesco and One Stop mainly supply me, but there will be occasions where I will get stock from other wholesalers, such as Booker, or specialist suppliers.
My contract with One Stop allows me to purchase 5% of my stock from external suppliers. The local products often help me differentiate from competitors in the area. Examples of some of the local suppliers I use are nearby producers of samosas, honey and sweets.
Do you get your orders by visiting the cash & carry or having them delivered?
I tend to have my stock delivered to me as it just makes the management of my shop much easier.
Delivered wholesale gives me more time to focus on developing other parts of the business, such as raising the profile by promoting it on social media or finding new products that can help boost footfall.
How can wholesalers improve the online ordering experience?
By offering more delivered options, as this is becoming more of a useful service to have.
How can wholesalers improve the cash & carry experience?
On the occasions I go to the cash & carry, I find the warehouses do not have many customers in them. This might be because more of them are using delivered, but I find there is not much focus on specialist or local products.
What in-depot activity is likely to capture your attention and get you to purchase promotional items?
I would like to see wholesalers invite local and specialist suppliers into their warehouses for a day to promote and tell retailers about their products, and why they would be good to stock in the shop.
It is also a nice hands-on way to get in touch with other retailers face to face and find out how everything is going in their business.
What categories would you like to see wholesalers improve in?
I would like to see wholesalers offering more advice and support for local products and food to go.
These are products that can offer some great margins, but it can be difficult to work out how to make these products work in terms of education on selling them and how to fit them in with existing planograms.
What are the food trends you predict are going to grow this year?
My prediction is that food to go will continue to keep growing over the next year.
A lot more retailers are discovering they can make good margins on the category, which should fuel the growth.
If retailers who trade on a forecourt can make a success of food to go, I do not see why convenience store owners elsewhere should not be able to do the same.
