Morrisons to nominate 'M Partners' to grow categories and boost sales

Morrisons is looking to change the way it deals with suppliers to help get to grips with flagging sales.

In a move led by recently appointed group trading director Casper Meijer, Morrisons will work with one supplier in each category as its ‘M Partner’.

The M Partners will in effect become category champions, with whom Morrisons will draw up longer-term supply agreements, usually for three years. Both parties will draw up business plans aimed at driving category growth through joint category and sales activities.

Morrisons is primarily working with branded suppliers on the initiative, but it will also be looking for own-label champions in the fresh produce category.

“M Partners is a preferred, strategic relationship within each category with a core supplier that is geared to longer-term planning and developing that category,” Meijer told The Grocer. “Alongside this, we also still continue to have great relationships with all our suppliers.”

One supplier, who has been chosen as an M Partner, suggested Morrisons was looking to reduce the number of suppliers it deals with.

“Having one supplier as a point-person for providing category insight is a good idea,” he said.

Morrisons this week reported tough trading during the third quarter of the year, with like-for-like sales down 2.4% for the 13 weeks to 3 November.

However, it did predict a return to positive like-for-like growth in Q4 - albeit qualified by the fact it would be trading against soft comparables from last year.

CEO Dalton Philips said Morrisons “was exiting Q3 with some momentum”.