SMALL FOOD AND DRINK PRODUCERS URGED TO CONSIDER DOING BUSINESS WITH SUPERMARKETS

Norfolk’s small food  and drink producers have been urged to consider doing business with supermarkets, which are now much more receptive to stocking locally-sourced produce. 

That was the message at a seminar hosted by Lovewell Blake’s Food and Drink Team, at which small producers had the chance to quiz two supermarket buyers, as well as hearing how one Norfolk farm has created a positive relationship with Tesco and other supermarkets.

But to succeed on the supermarket shelf, producers were told they had to get to grips with essentials such as knowing their market, understanding their financial numbers, developing a strong brand, and being proactive in marketing activity to create awareness.

Around 40 producers attended the seminar at City College Norwich, where they heard presentations from Lovewell Blake partner Shaun Mary, East of England Co-op Sourced Locally team members Kevin Warden and Jason Whittleton, and Matt Brown from Heygate Farms, producer of the successful Norfolk Peer potato.

“For many small food and drink producers, the idea of dealing with supermarkets is too intimidating to contemplate,” Shaun Mary told the seminar.  “Yet in recent years, supermarkets – driven by customer demand – have become much more open-minded about dealing with smaller suppliers on a local basis, and are doing business in a way which is much more compatible with the artisan producer.

“The simple fact remains, if you want your products to have a wider audience, you should at least be considering whether to target the supermarket shelves.  The good news is that nowadays this doesn’t mean losing control of your business, or compromising your artisan ethos.”

Mr Mary introduced the findings of research carried out by Lovewell Blake amongst small producers, which showed a difference in the perception of supermarkets between those who have experienced doing business with them, and those who have not.

“For small producers which have not dealt with a supermarket, there is some reluctance to do so, mainly because of fears about losing control of the business, and moving away from what they see as an artisan ethos,” he said.

“However, the picture is different when you talk to small producers who have done business with supermarkets.  They tend to believe it has been a positive experience, they have not lost control, and that it has been good for their business.”

For those seeking to make that first step onto the supermarket shelves, the East of England Co-op is often viewed as a good starting point.  Their dedicated Sourced Locally team has helped grow sales of produce from local producers six-fold since 2009, with that business now worth over £12 million per year.  East of England Co-op now deals with 140 local suppliers in Norfolk, Suffolk and Essex, with 2,750 products on the shelves.

“Supermarkets are increasingly realising that a successful business is built on partnership, not on exploiting producers,” explained Jason Whittleton, a former baker who is now part of the Sourced Locally team.

“We talk about the ‘Three P’s’: there has to be Profit for the producer; there has to be Profit for the supermarket, and the product has to be on the shelf with a fair Price for the customer.  If we can achieve that, we have a sustainable business model which will work for everybody.

“Our customers are asking us to put as much locally-sourced produce on our shelves as possible – the local story is very important.  Whilst we may be in a better position to do that than other supermarkets, that is true across the board.  It makes increasingly good business sense to deal with local producers.”

One Norfolk producer which has successfully dealt with the biggest supermarket of them all is Swaffham-based Heygate Farms, which produces the Norfolk Peer potato.  Matt Brown of marketing company One Vision, which works with Heygate Farms, told the seminar about the realities of getting their products into nearly 100 Tesco stores across East Anglia.

“The Big Four supermarkets have 74 per cent of the grocery market – that reality presents both a problem and an opportunity.  The problem is that there are only a very few operators who you can talk to; the opportunity is that they represent a great way of getting your product in front of a massive number of customers.

“That opportunity is enhanced by the fact that 49 per cent of customers of those supermarkets will choose a local product if they can – that figure has grown from 35 per cent just three years ago, and the supermarkets have realised how important that is.  Provenance has become really important.”

Mr Brown explained how it had taken Heygate Farms 12 months from first approaching Tesco to getting their products on the shelf.  “There is finite space in-store, and the reality is that for your product to make it onto the shelf, someone else’s has to go.

“You will have a short time – probably no more than 12 weeks – to prove yourself, so you have to work hard to make the relationship work.  It is no good simply sitting back and waiting for the supermarket’s customers to buy your product.

“You need to develop a strong brand which consumers will seek out, and you need to use a broad range of marketing tools to create awareness of your product.  You have to invest time and effort into making the relationship work.

“I always thought of supermarket buyers as being a bit like my old headmaster, stern and unapproachable.  But the reality is they are human beings like everybody else, they want great products which consumers love.  But they are incredibly busy, so they want you to make their lives easy.”

The seminar concluded with a demonstration from top Norwich chef Roger Hickman, using a variety of local produce.

More details about Lovewell Blake’s specialist Food and Drink Team can be found at www.lovewell-blake.co.uk/specialisms/food-and-drink.