Nisa Cutting Wholesale Prices And Investing In Logistics

 Namnews, 29th March 2021

At its virtual conference at the end of last week, Nisa Retail revealed it was investing £2m in cutting wholesale prices so that its retailers (partners) can remain competitive.

The move will result in price reductions on branded as well as Co-op own-label products as part of the group’s new ‘Fresh Thinking’ proposition aimed at helping retailers meet changing shopper habits.

The investment includes cuts in the wholesale price of Co-op chicken fillets, baked beans, and flour. Nisa stated that the reductions will not only support partner margin on individual product lines, but will increase bottom line POR.

The investment in branded items includes Lucozade, KitKat, and Cathedral City Cheese, with the symbol group saying this will enable its retailers to stay competitive in an evolving market.

Alongside the investment in price, Nisa revealed that it was planning significant promotional activity and new product development for this year to adapt to changing consumer trends as the UK emerges from lockdown.

Ken Towle, CEO of Nisa Retail, commented: “We are always looking for ways to ensure our partners can adapt and grow in a fast-evolving market; this significant investment in price will ensure our partners stay competitive across a basket of goods, helping to drive sales and margin in key categories.”

“I am also pleased to see Nisa remains cheapest across thousands of branded product lines compared with our competitors. We continually work hard to secure the best terms we can for our partners with the might of Co-op’s buying power behind us, and this significant investment is just one of a number of ways we are helping partners grow their businesses in 2021.”

Meanwhile, the group told attendees of the conference that it was investing millions in its logistics and delivery operation to enhance service levels across the network, making delivery “faster, more efficient, and easier” for partners to use. This includes a “substantial investment” in new vehicles as part of Nisa’s ‘fleet refresh’ programme, helping to secure new specialist temperature-controlled vehicles. Nisa is also upgrading its depots, with improvements in refrigeration and freeze plants underway to cater to the growing demands for fresh food.

Improvements in delivery methods include how independent retailers receive chilled goods to minimize unpacking and stacking costs to improve efficiency. Planned for the second half of 2021, a new electronic proof of delivery system (e-POD) will enable what it claims to be a simpler paperless sign off process on delivery.

Nisa has also launched a ‘Distribution Charter’, which lays out clear promises to retailers with regards to its logistics and distribution network. This will include the group publishing key performance information relating to distribution in order to increase transparency.

John McNeill, Chief Operating Officer, commented: “Today’s investment to improve the efficiency, reliability and ease-of-use of our service will ensure Nisa is able to maintain its market leading levels of availability and improve the distribution service for our partners.

“We want to ensure we are the wholesale delivery partner of choice for independent retailers and the significant investment, alongside our Charter, shows we are serious about this; it is important our partners have all the tools in place to grow their businesses, and that process starts with distribution.”

The event also saw the convenience group introduce its partner proposition, called ‘Nisa Fresh Thinking’, which aims to help retailers create the best customer offer and grow their businesses.

The initiative will see independent retailers given access to expertise and thought leadership to help continually improve customer experience through in-store solutions, category insights, store format innovation, and account management teams.

Laura Gomersal, Head of Marketing at Nisa, said: “For any brand or business to succeed, you must be clear about what your customers and partners want and what makes you different from competitors. With the support of our partners, we’ve been working the last few months to define the Nisa proposition and Fresh Thinking will help guide our decisions based on our retailers’ needs.”

The group stated that the Co-op own label plays a pivotal role in helping its partners to develop a fresh proposition and so it has upweighted its marketing support to help them add value within their stores. Retailers with a “credible range” of Co-op own-label products will get access to an enhanced multi-channel ‘Proud to Stock’ support package, to help make shoppers aware that they stock Co-op. Nisa is also offering enhanced support of new product development and has launched the Co-op core essentials range to support partners in building up their offering.

Gomersal added: “UK corner shops and independent retailers have seen a surge in sales in the last year and we will continue to support our partners with Fresh Thinking at the heart of everything we do. We understand shopper needs for every category and every convenience mission and are using this data and insight to bring the best offer for our partners.”

NAM Implications:

• “For any brand or business to succeed, you must be clear about what your customers and partners want and what makes you different from competitors”.
• Why not try our Buying Mix Analysis tool to really get into this means of differentiation?