Welcome to the November issue of Wholesale Manager. Although Covid-19 infection rates have been on the rise and the hospitality sector has seen greater restrictions on opening hours, both these factors have likely contributed to the growth of the grocery market. According to Kantar, take-home grocery sales rose by 9.4% in the 12 weeks to 4 October. Nielsen figures told the same story, revealing grocery sales grew 8.3% in the four weeks to 3 October following the end of the ‘Eat out to help out’ scheme.
The Scottish Wholesale Association has welcomed the news that food and drinks wholesalers will be able to access a portion of the £40 million support package announced by the Scottish government to help hospitality businesses affected by the latest round of lockdown restrictions. Wholesalers can apply to a hardship fund to receive payments of £1,000 or £1,500 per depot.
Congratulations to General Mills, which has signed up to the Race at Work Charter, designed to foster a public commitment to improving the outcomes of BAME employees in the workplace. By signing the charter, General Mills pledges to take practical steps to tackle the barriers that people of ethnic minorities face in recruitment and progression and to improve diversity within the company.
Well done also to Scarborough retailer Proudfoot Group which has raised £10,000 for good causes this year from the sale of 5p carrier bags alone. The funds were raised in the four Proudfoot supermarkets, based in Newby, Eastfield, Seamer and Manham Hill, since the start of the year and have helped to support four local charities at a time when additional funding is needed more than ever.
Nestlé Cereals supplies some iconic breakfast brands including Shredded Wheat, Cheerios and Shreddies. In a Supplier Spotlight interview, Alistair Lee, Sales Director UK & Ireland at Nestlé Cereals, tells Wholesale Manager what is driving the cereal category and how Covid-19 has affected the market.
Lincoln & York began back in 1994 with coffee buyer James Sweeting and coffee trader Simon Herring hand roasting coffee in a garden shed. Today, the out-of-home UK coffee market is valued at £6.5 billion and the pop-up roastery at the bottom of Simon’s garden is now a 6,000 sq m state-of-the-art facility, located between the two home cities it was named after. Chris Tough, Marketing Manager Lincoln & York, reveals how wholesalers can maximise coffee sales and what his plans for the brand are.
Sugro UK is a buying and marketing co-operative of 80 independent wholesalers companies which supplies over 16,000 independent retailers nationwide. On our Who’s Who in Wholesaling page, Yulia Petitt, Sugro Head of Trading and Marketing, explains how the group builds mutually profitable, long term relationships with suppliers.
Enjoy reading the issue.
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