The 12th Day of Christmas
12th DAY of CHRISTMAS
On the twelfth day of Christmas, here’s Mark’s Epilogue.
EPILOGUE
2022 will see the death star wholesalers continue to gobble up mom and pop distributors across the country. I’ve touched on what this will mean to small to medium volume suppliers. The mega wholesaler expansion will, however, create niche craft delivery opportunities as small specialist distributors pop up and or merge in order to capitalize on and service these needy smaller suppliers.
One of my personal mantras has been to zig when everyone else zags. I guess this comes from the marketing DNA that flows through my veins. Further, the COVID pandemic has permanently changed the way we go to market. As a result, new and accepted business norms include the unrehearsed and informal zoom “meeting” as well as sterile texting communication.
While your competition has grown accustomed to zooming and texting, I suggest that you meet with your buyers, wholesalers, raw material suppliers and internal sales, marketing and merchandising teams – in person. This new corollary will be your “KDA” or Key Differentiating Advantage. I cannot stress to you how important this face-to-face interaction will be for your brand’s and company’s success. Certainly temper this recommendation around COVID protocols (mask, 6 feet distance, etc.) but trust me, going to see your most important contacts in person, next year, will be one of the greatest New Year’s resolution you can achieve. Let’s call 2022 – the “Year of the Hand Shake.”
I promised a present under the tree, here it is… My greatest career accomplishment did not take place in the beverage alcohol industry. Rather it was as a brand manager for the country’s third largest bakery. Things had gotten so bad for this company that their largest supermarket retail division instituted the following:
1-Disbarment from the corporate reset team
2-Headquarter banishment from making any new item presentations ?
3-Sales communication cancellation to the chain’s supermarket buyer and DMs
I was brought in to reverse rapidly bleeding market share and restore relations with the retailer. It was so bad that the company lost double digit SKU authorizations in a matter of months. All this real estate went to the competition.
I was tasked with a plan to regain the huge supermarket chain’s confidence while restoring lost placements and devising an out of stock reduction strategy (!).?I quickly learned that there was much more to this story. So I decided to dig into the company itself before crafting a revival plan. The company was divided between the expansive delivery arm and management. The distribution side was union. I started there by riding with multiple route drivers. Hearing an alarm at 3 am is never a pleasant experience, however, this effort was truly necessary. After riding with a dozen or more drivers from around the state, I learned a great deal from these route owners. It was fascinating to learn that they owned their routes and that many of the routes had been in their families for generations. As a result there was great pride in the job they performed as well as a distinct level of professionalism and esprit de corps. I took these learnings to heart as I devised my grand plan.
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Shortly thereafter I presented my strategy to senior management. They were somewhat skeptical but also desperate. They gave me free rein to implement my plan. I started at the division level, meeting with DMs to cover their geography and give them an annual business review. I hit it off with one DM who spoke to the Chain’s VP about my plan. This got me in the door which I gambled with and later won. More importantly, as I visited supermarket DMs, I also presented to the union delivery drivers…at 4:30 am. Yes, I suited up, brought donuts and coffee and shared my PowerPoint presentation to over ten “barns” around the state. I can’t count how many of these drivers came up after the presentation, thanking me for including them. The common finding was that management had never shared any chain plan that these drivers religiously delivered to so earnestly six days per week. I knew that if I had not done this that whatever objective I devised would have failed.
After taking some creative gambles with the VP/buyer and gaining the delivery arm’s confidence, we doubled market share in just 18 months. This included reinstatement to the corporate reset team, full portfolio authorization, seven new SKUs authorized and a request to assist the chain with research on a new bakery category – thus allowing the company regular access to the headquarters buying office.
The elongated point above is not made to trumpet my skill set; rather it is made to drive home a key learning. To be successful, include every member of your team, from merchandiser, receptionist, forklift driver, assistant brewer, and sales team to operations, R&D, marketing and accounting in your 2022 grand plan. I learned in the bread business that it is human nature to want to be included. So many senior managers forget this simple fact. Include everyone in your plan and you’ll get 100% commitment. This extra effort will lead to incredible success in 2022 as your team will feel involved, motivated and in the hunt for new business.
In closing, in my 25+ years in the alcohol industry I’ve learned that consumers love to discover new beverages. It’s akin to going on a treasure hunt for them and for us. Make the discovery creative and worthwhile. Your sales will reflect this. We sell and market liquid adult candy. Savor this experience and this great industry that we work in. Fun-kifize!
In the words of my grandfather with some grandson edits, “People buy from people (and brands) that they like. People also sell for brands and people that they like.” May you be that brand in 2022 and beyond.
Happiest of holidays to you and your family.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR ([email protected])
Mark Colburn has over 25 years of marketing, experiential event, sales, distribution and merchandising experience in the beverage industry, is the pod cast host and creator of, “The Shinerunner Show,” the author of, “Craft Beer Marketing & Distribution – Brace for SKUmeggedon,” was the United Kingdom’s lead post on the US food and beverage industry and has a Master’s degree in Marketing. Please contact Mark for either full time executive management opportunities or for consulting assistance within the beverage alcohol industry.