The best ever NBC Tradeshow was how both members and supplier partners described the annual event held at Whittlebury Park, Silverstone.
With a room full of supplier stands, and several suppliers on the waiting list in the hope of a last-minute cancellation, it was a great opportunity for supplier partners to showcase their brands and engage with members full of positivity for how the group was performing.
Kevin Jopson, Managing Director of Northern Retail Group was appointed Chairman of NBC during the event. He tells Wholesale Manager what made him want to get into wholesaling and why he joined NBC.
What’s your perception of the NBC trade show?
I think it’s fantastic, purely because I’ve been a member of the buying group for the best part of four years before becoming a director. During that time, I’ve seen the group go from strength to strength in terms of how our business has grown. It’s been great to see the number of members wanting to join NBC increase, as well as the number of vendors coming on board.
From where we started with certain accounts, we’ve seen real growth and genuine opportunity with some of the big brands we work with, as well as with up-and-coming, unique brands looking to break into the market where we’re able to give them that opportunity. It really feels like there’s an opportunity for everyone in the room today, which is great for NBC.
Do you think the show will grow from here and perhaps move to a bigger venue?
Year on year, it’s doing exactly that, so for me, the answer would be yes. I think as a business, we’re ambitious enough to achieve it. We continue to stretch the business, and we keep looking for growth and new opportunities.
There’s no reason why we can’t see a much bigger room of people next year, and in the years after that.
Is NBC looking for quality rather than quantity in terms of new members, you want new members, but it’s not purely a numbers game, you want good members?
Yes, that’s exactly it, that’s the vision of the business. It’s easy to draw in a lot of people, but something I pride myself on, which comes from my experience working for a major supermarket chain before moving into the wholesale sector, is that it’s all about service and servicing the members.
It’s the same for suppliers – when we bring them on board, it’s about delivering the right level of service for them while also ensuring they remain competitive on price in the marketplace. But equally, when we have a room full of members, our responsibility is to serve them just as well giving them the very best the buying group has to offer, not just in terms of product and pricing, but in the overall experience of the day.
For us, it’s about quality and price, but the service element is key to what we want as a business. We want to be recognised for consistently delivering for our members.
What made you want to join NBC?
When I formed Northern Retail Group many years ago, I explored all the options available in terms of buying groups. I looked at Sugro, Unitas, and Confex, and NBC was the one that stood out for me. I think that came down to my conversation with David Lunt. When he explained the benefits of NBC and what the group was about, what really drew me in was his passion for the business and his expertise. Having spoken to him and others, it always felt like the right fit because of what NBC can do for its members, and what it is doing in terms of its plans for the future of wholesale and was something I wanted to be part of for my business.
What made you want to get into wholesaling?
I came from a retail background, working for a major supermarket group, and after being made redundant, I moved into the wholesale sector. It was something I was passionate about. I understood the retail side well, and through speaking with suppliers, particularly account managers who used to visit the stores I worked in, I gained insight into that side of the business as well.
I was really enthused by those conversations, especially with people who had strong retail knowledge within the supermarket and wholesale sector, and it helped me understand the wider business much better. In many ways, I fell into wholesale, but it felt like a natural progression and have not looked back.
What are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced as a wholesaler?
At the moment, where we are in the world today, there’s constant uncertainty, and things are changing all the time. A lot of what we do is about evolving, recognising the challenges, understanding what’s within our control and what isn’t, and prioritising what we can influence rather than what we can’t.
For me, wholesale is getting to a point where many are constantly racing to the bottom on price. There are also challenges like shrinkflation, where products are reducing in size and increasing in price. But the most important thing is how we continue to deliver for our customers, what message we’re sending and what we’re offering.
That, for me, is the key challenge: getting that balance right through the wholesale channel. When you consider the wider operational factors and everything happening globally, there’s only so much we can control and only so much we can focus on. It’s about putting our effort, energy, and time into the areas within our control, and using those resources effectively to support our customers, which ultimately flows through to the consumer.
What are your goals for what you want to achieve with your own business and with NBC?
Northern Retail Group has been around since 2019 and is a growing business. I want it to be recognised as a company people want to buy from and work for, driven by strong values and a clear mission, focused on service, quality, and price.
NBC operates in a very similar way, but on a much larger scale. For me, it’s about the influence I can bring from my own business into the buying group, and more importantly, how I can use my skill set, whether that’s product knowledge, building great relationships or industry insight, to help NBC achieve its goals.
How is Northern Retail Group currently performing?
We are a very steady business and like most have had our challenges over the last few years. Northern Retail Group was initially very focused on export markets, but we’ve since shifted that focus. Today, the business is predominantly focused on the domestic market, with strong attention on a range of UK channels.
We’ve adapted and restructured to ensure we stay aligned with what’s happening in the market and remain in tune with current trends. It’s about making sure we’re not pushed to one side by factors outside of our control, and that we continue to position ourselves effectively within the market.
Can you describe Northern Retail Group as a business?
We are a wholesale business serving domestic channels, primarily through the cash & carry model, supporting independent businesses across a range of retail channels. We also have a small export arm within the business.
In 2019, we partnered with a company called Speke freight terminal, a 3PL provider, which aligns well with the NBC model. As a business, we continue to adapt and stay close to the market, ensuring we can offer our customers the best possible prices while maintaining lower overhead costs.
Our model is very much focused on cost control, making sure we can fulfil and deliver efficiently within the operational framework required to operate successfully as a wholesaler in the UK.
What benefits do you get from being a member of NBC?
The biggest benefit for me is what we’re doing today working with some of the biggest and best suppliers in the UK. NBC provides a channel that offers a net position on cost, meaning any rebate or retro support is managed through the buying group freeing up cash flow.
We also have an established member owned distribution point, where NBC holds a certain level of stock through our 3PL, ensuring there is always readily available stock held within the business allowing us to better serve our customers.
Without the buying group, gaining access to direct accounts would be much more difficult.
How far is the geographical reach of your business?
Worldwide. That is where we started, as an export business. From a domestic perspective, we go UK wide.
Do you have an e-commerce site for your customers?
No, that’s not something we’ve done yet. Part of the business model for us this year is to get that set up.
Traditionally, we started by buying stock in volume and then distributing it to customers through the relationships we’ve built over the years. That’s done through communication via digital channels, but also in the traditional way, picking up the phone and speaking to people directly about the opportunities we have.
A lot of the customers we sell to take years to build relationships with, but once those relationships are established, people tend to come to you rather than you constantly having to reach out. That’s because they know they can rely on you to deliver stock and offer competitive pricing.
Looking ahead, a lot of what we do is still very relationship led. WhatsApp has really taken off for us over the past few years, alongside telephone calls, email and a well-managed CRM, it’s how we stay close to our customers and members and keep things moving quickly.
How many products does your business supply, and what categories do you cover?
We have access to over 12,000 SKUs. The categories we mainly work in are confectionery, soft drinks, non-food-based products, and household toiletries.
Are there any new products in the ranges you want to talk about at the moment?
I’ve just had a really interesting conversation with Mars, and it’s great to be in the room today because you can see some of the new lines our suppliers are bringing through, or have just launched into the market. I’m particularly excited about some of the Mars products coming through at the moment. M&M’s Cookie Dough has just landed and is already looking to be very popular. The Bounty Trio as well, Bounty has always been a firm favourite with a lot of our customers, so to see a new variation like that coming through is fantastic.
Red Bull’s new Summer Edition Citrus Zest could be one of my favourite flavours, it’s already generating a lot of interest, and I think that’s going to be a really strong performer for us.
How would you say the wholesale industry has changed in recent years?
I have been in business for seven years and have seen a lot of change. Product availability has always been a challenge as the world has evolved. If we go back to the Covid period, everything was turned upside down from there, and availability became a particular issue.
Another key challenge has been price sensitivity. Consumer behaviour shifted significantly towards cheaper alternatives and away from branded products. We are now starting to see some of that reverse, with branded products becoming more favourable again, and some of the larger brands beginning to review their pricing in recognition of how sensitive the market has become.
The challenge of price will always be there. The economic backdrop is very difficult at the moment. We know inflation has risen, and the cost of producing goods is probably higher than it has ever been, along with all the associated pressures on growth and supply chains.
What also doesn’t help is global instability, including conflicts in different regions, which creates further uncertainty and impacts businesses on a global scale.
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