Number of depots: 173
Turnover: £3.04bn
Growth year-on-year: -31.4%
Type of Operation: Cash & Carry, Foodservice, Delivered wholesale
When Charles Wilson took the helm of Booker in November 2005 he faced a mammoth task to turn the business around as the company was in a pretty sorry state.
“Calls from the bank manager were not something we looked forward to,” he admits. This he says was with good reason. Booker's half year results to September 2005, showed the company had debt of £361m and pre-tax profit had fallen by 41% on the previous year. By the same time in 2006 Wilson's turnaround strategy had resulted in this debt being slashed to £70m, He hopes to have wiped another significant chunk off by this autumn.
The strategy he says was a simple one “choice up, prices down, better service” which came from listening to customers. “It wasn't nice to hear, but they told that our range had got worse, our prices had gone up and our service levels had gone down. Ultimately it cost us £500m in sales,” he admits.
In terms of choice up - Booker's main focus was on improving its fresh range which Wilson says can be a real opportunity for independent retailers if they can get the basics right. “Retailers don't need to stock a wide range but if they start with something simple like our new banana tree display they will be able to see the extra sales for themselves,” he explains.
The wholesaler has switched from sourcing its fresh produce centrally to using 14 local markets which its says allows it to get produce one and a half days fresher. In keeping with the strategy this also enabled it to slash some prices by up to 30%.
“Local sourcing is something the multiples have always struggled with and so it is something that independents can make an investment in,” he says. It is something the Booker is continuing to invest in.
It is currently running a trial in Kent in which producers of local chutneys, juices and meats are all ranged together in its depots under Kent banner. While it remains at the early stages Wilson says that the reaction has been encouraging with retailers keen to champion the local produce.
It has also extended its premium offering with a number of new champagne and fair trade lines. At the same time it has cut 600 prices across its range and introduced a new value range called Booker Basics.
Availability and promotions were also high on Wilson's agenda. This he says has improved by 2% across the board, but this is even higher when it comes to what he calls must stocks. Each of these is given a special green ticket on shelf and depot staff are charged with ensuring that these lines always available. In terms of promotional compliance this has reached 90%.
“We now feel we have a good mix of good, better, best,” says Wilson. “Our availability is good and staff are much more enthusiastic about the business.”
But he maintains there is still a long way to go. “We can still do much better. Even in the areas that we have focused on already such as fresh produce we are still looking to improve the range.”
What Booker is currently looking to do is develop its business in accordance with what the predominant customer demand is in each geographical area.
It is working on setting up its depots with who the bulk of the customer base is. For example at its St Pancras depot in London, the majority of customers are caterers. Hence the front of the depot is given over to catering and alcohol lines. In other parts of the country the mix will be more weighted towards independent retailers and lines that appeal to them will be front of house.
Wilson says that the company is currently working with 8 different set-ups but that depot managers can help tailor their offering individually.
Booker has also been working to improve its retail offer through its Premier symbol of which it currently operates 1,898 symbol stores. This figure has remained static in the last 12-months although there has been a considerable change in the membership. It has added 300 better performing stores while losing around the same amount of under-performing stores.
“We are keen to have the right sort of retailers,” he explains. “We are concentrating on getting better promotions and implementing these better. Of course as well as our Premier retailers we have 108,000 other retailers who use us for their main shop and we are also doing a better job for them.”
The business he says is in a much better place, staff are no longer worried by bankruptcy, morale is high and all branches and categories are monitored weekly for customer satisfaction.
“We want to be the UK's best and biggest supplier to small business and suppliers preferred route to market in the UK,” says Wilson. “To do that we need to be flexible and continue to listen to our customers.”
Turnover: £3.04bn
Growth year-on-year: -31.4%
Type of Operation: Cash & Carry, Foodservice, Delivered wholesale
When Charles Wilson took the helm of Booker in November 2005 he faced a mammoth task to turn the business around as the company was in a pretty sorry state.
“Calls from the bank manager were not something we looked forward to,” he admits. This he says was with good reason. Booker's half year results to September 2005, showed the company had debt of £361m and pre-tax profit had fallen by 41% on the previous year. By the same time in 2006 Wilson's turnaround strategy had resulted in this debt being slashed to £70m, He hopes to have wiped another significant chunk off by this autumn.
The strategy he says was a simple one “choice up, prices down, better service” which came from listening to customers. “It wasn't nice to hear, but they told that our range had got worse, our prices had gone up and our service levels had gone down. Ultimately it cost us £500m in sales,” he admits.
In terms of choice up - Booker's main focus was on improving its fresh range which Wilson says can be a real opportunity for independent retailers if they can get the basics right. “Retailers don't need to stock a wide range but if they start with something simple like our new banana tree display they will be able to see the extra sales for themselves,” he explains.
The wholesaler has switched from sourcing its fresh produce centrally to using 14 local markets which its says allows it to get produce one and a half days fresher. In keeping with the strategy this also enabled it to slash some prices by up to 30%.
“Local sourcing is something the multiples have always struggled with and so it is something that independents can make an investment in,” he says. It is something the Booker is continuing to invest in.
It is currently running a trial in Kent in which producers of local chutneys, juices and meats are all ranged together in its depots under Kent banner. While it remains at the early stages Wilson says that the reaction has been encouraging with retailers keen to champion the local produce.
It has also extended its premium offering with a number of new champagne and fair trade lines. At the same time it has cut 600 prices across its range and introduced a new value range called Booker Basics.
Availability and promotions were also high on Wilson's agenda. This he says has improved by 2% across the board, but this is even higher when it comes to what he calls must stocks. Each of these is given a special green ticket on shelf and depot staff are charged with ensuring that these lines always available. In terms of promotional compliance this has reached 90%.
“We now feel we have a good mix of good, better, best,” says Wilson. “Our availability is good and staff are much more enthusiastic about the business.”
But he maintains there is still a long way to go. “We can still do much better. Even in the areas that we have focused on already such as fresh produce we are still looking to improve the range.”
What Booker is currently looking to do is develop its business in accordance with what the predominant customer demand is in each geographical area.
It is working on setting up its depots with who the bulk of the customer base is. For example at its St Pancras depot in London, the majority of customers are caterers. Hence the front of the depot is given over to catering and alcohol lines. In other parts of the country the mix will be more weighted towards independent retailers and lines that appeal to them will be front of house.
Wilson says that the company is currently working with 8 different set-ups but that depot managers can help tailor their offering individually.
Booker has also been working to improve its retail offer through its Premier symbol of which it currently operates 1,898 symbol stores. This figure has remained static in the last 12-months although there has been a considerable change in the membership. It has added 300 better performing stores while losing around the same amount of under-performing stores.
“We are keen to have the right sort of retailers,” he explains. “We are concentrating on getting better promotions and implementing these better. Of course as well as our Premier retailers we have 108,000 other retailers who use us for their main shop and we are also doing a better job for them.”
The business he says is in a much better place, staff are no longer worried by bankruptcy, morale is high and all branches and categories are monitored weekly for customer satisfaction.
“We want to be the UK's best and biggest supplier to small business and suppliers preferred route to market in the UK,” says Wilson. “To do that we need to be flexible and continue to listen to our customers.”
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