Archive for April, 2019

Procuring Your Proprietary Product- Part 2

Thursday, April 25th, 2019

 

 

Today’s post is written by Heather Powell, Director of Major Accounts and Special Projects at SafeSourcing Inc.

In this series, the author will work to educate you on how you CAN take your proprietary product out to market. While there are many confusing words associated with proprietary products; such as trade secrets, non-disclosure agreements, trademarking, and many more. The author will break down the meanings and how many of them are in place to protect you and your product.

According to the Merriam-Webster definition proprietary means “something that is used, produced, or marketed under exclusive legal right of the inventor or maker”. It takes patience, dedication and years of hard work to build a proprietary product, especially in a foodservice program, that customers can trust, but not all creators have the patience, desire or aptitude to take on the commitment required.

There are many ways creators make a proprietary product, out of necessity or to satisfy the need of many people. Those who create proprietary foods may start with a family recipe or create something from scratch and family and friends encourage the creator to market the item. Many items come to mind as a food product that is proprietary; Kentucky Fried Chicken famous blend of 11 herbs and spices breading, McDonald’s special sauce, and Oscar Mayer Bologna are just a few of many hundreds of thousands of proprietary products.

It is possible to take your proprietary products out to market for new manufacturers, co-packing needs, or to get better market rates on your ingredients or materials needed for your product. In the next series of procuring your proprietary product, the author will define and discuss the importance of trade-marking.

SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your proprietary product on our “Risk Free” trial program for RFPs and RFQs, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative.  We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments.

 

 

Retail Store Fixtures

Wednesday, April 24th, 2019

 

 

Today’s post is written by Ivy Ray, Senior Procurement Specialist at SafeSourcing Inc.

Over the past five years, the Retail Store Fixture Dealers industry has grown by 5.5% to reach revenue of $5 billion in 2018. In the same timeframe, the number of businesses has declined by -0.6% and the number of employees has grown by 1.4%.

With the closing of some major retailers, like Toys R Us and Sears, you would think that the opposite would be true, with the used retail fixtures flooding the market from these closed stores. Higher disposable income and stronger consumer confidence is expected to boost retail sales, and increase the demand for retail fixtures. This is also due to brick and mortar retailers reinventing themselves to stay a step ahead of the online retailers.

Visual merchandising is key to staying relevant. Store planning, design, and visual effects are important for attracting customers and enticing them to make purchases. I personally prefer buying online because it is usually cheaper, and I save myself the hassle of making a trip to the mall. I also end up purchasing more than I intended, proving that clever merchandising does what it is designed to do. Some customers still prefer to touch and try on things before buying, which is why in-store shopping remains the most popular buying option, followed by websites and then mobile apps.

The Retail Store Fixture Dealers industry primarily acquires retail store fixtures from manufacturers and resells them to retail industries. The industry includes a wide variety of products, such as showcases and counters; gondola store shelving; glass, wood and plastic displays; display racks; gridwall; slatwall and accessories; forms and mannequins; sign holders; and food and jewelry displays.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist you in exploring your procurement solutions for your business or on our “Risk Free” trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative.  We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments.

References….………………………………………….

https://www.ibisworld.com/industry-trends/specialized-market-research-reports/specialist-engineering-infrastructure-contractors/construction-building-services/retail-store-fixture-dealers.html>

 

 

Pressure Washing Benefits

Friday, April 19th, 2019

 

Today’s post is by Troy Lowe; Vice President of Development at SafeSourcing.

Have you noticed a green tinted staining on the outside of your home or business? If so, you may not know that this could be mold or mildew. This is a very common occurrence if you have vinyl siding. Dirt can accumulate on the siding and this can lead to the mildewing because mildew feeds on dust and dirt. If your home or building is close to trees it may also cause mildewing as well. Another reason for the mildew or mold is excessive moisture or lack of sunlight. Because of this you may notice that the staining may only occur on certain areas of the structure and not the entire surface. Removing the mildew can be very simple to do. One of the most common ways to remove the staining is to have the area pressure washed. There are companies that specialize in pressure washing and can do an excellent job of removing the stains. You can also choose to pressure wash the area yourself. Pressure washers can be purchased from many common retailers and are fairly inexpensive. Deciding to do this can save you money but there are some hazards of doing it yourself. Having the pressure set to high can cause water to seep into the walls of your existing structure causing mold to grow within the structure. So if this is something that you decide to do yourself, make sure to research and read all documentation before beginning the job. Below are other things to be aware of when pressure washing your structure:

  • Risk of electrical shock
  • High pressure water can cause serious injuries to skin
  • Strong spray can throw small objects
  • Water seeping into the attic
  • Siding loosened or damaged
  • Damage to windows and screens
  • Accidental Removal of paint
  • Accidental Removal of mortal between bricks
  • Damages to surfaces

Whether you plan to clean the structure yourself, or hire a company, feel free to contact SafeSourcing.   We can gather all the necessary information for you and help you decide which one meets your needs.  If you would like more information on how SafeSourcing can help you, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service representative.  We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

 

 

 

 

Feel the Hype!

Thursday, April 18th, 2019

 

 

Today’s blog is by Margaret Stewart, Manager of HR and Administration.

There are a lot of things happening now that have people excited. From first ever pictures of a black hole, upcoming movies and television, your recent money savings or accomplishments, $100m Fortnight championship, to your upcoming holiday plans, there is so much to help you feel the hype. Let us take a moment and appreciate all the work that made these things happen.

Hype: A simple picture, one that would not be recognizable before, has made headlines because it is the first of its kind – an actual picture of a black hole. Not only is it amazing to see and confirms Einstein’s theory of general relativity, but astounding when we consider the efforts put forth to make it happen. Thousands of hours of work, hundreds of thousands of computer codes, millions of light years between us, yet it can and has been observed and photographed. ​

Hype: What’s new to watch? Feel the hype because the final season of Game of Thrones is here and so is the final Avengers: End Game along with other movies in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. On top of that, there are many other highly anticipated movies and series, like the live action Dumbo movie, a return of The Twilight Zone, and Stranger Things. These exciting shows have been in the works for quite a while the time has finally arrived that we can reap the rewards of the hard work of so many.

Hype: If you get hyped when you save money, then here’s news for you. Using a procurement partner, like SafeSourcing, can save you even more. In fact, those who use SafeSourcing typically see 10x ROI. Not only can you save money, but you can get the quality and service you really want from people you may not have known existed. You can feel the hype and see the savings, and SafeSourcing can do the work for you. We will work with your procurement department, buyers, and finance people to help get the results that we can all feel excited about.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help in your procurement efforts, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

 

 

 

Part II of II. Are reverse auctions a good tool to use in the retail distribution cost plus arena?

Tuesday, April 16th, 2019

 

Todays post is by Ron Southard, CEO at SafeSourcing

Yesterdays post reviewed why and how this author felt that reverse auctions were potentially good for both the distributor and the retailer alike. So just what is cost plus?

According to Wikipedia  Cost-plus pricing is a pricing method used by companies. It is used primarily because it is easy to calculate and requires little information. There are several varieties, but the common thread in all of them is that one first calculates the cost of the product, and then includes an additional amount to represent profit. It is a way for companies to calculate how much profit they will make. Cost-plus pricing is often used on government contracts, and has been criticized as promoting wasteful expenditures.

Once unit level cost has been established for the distribution of products it’s easy to turn that into a percentage and add it to the price of a product coming up with a distributed unit price or category price. The most important part of this pricing exercise for the distributor is to get the distribution costs correct. This can include price of storage, freight, length of travel, driver cost and any number of other costs. This is an area where a distributor can lose a lot of money if they are not very careful.

So, are revere auctions a tool that can help distribution companies?  The answer is a clear yes both above and below the gross margin line. If you like to know more please contact me at ronsouthard@safesourcing.com.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

Part I of II. Are reverse auctions a good tool to use in the retail distribution cost plus arena?

Monday, April 15th, 2019

 

Todays post is by Ron Southard, CEO at SafeSourcing

A lot of distributors have told this author that reverse auctions don’t apply to them because they use the cost plus model and as such they just add their price or profit margin on top of the contract price with their source to drive their distributed price.

The fallacy in this thinking is that it may make buyers and category managers lazy in their approach to driving margin within the categories that they manage. This results in a higher price to the retailers they distribute to and ultimately to the consumer or their customers customer. A worst case scenario is that the consumer stops shopping at their customer’s store which reduces overall volume and further increases prices by not meeting volume incentives. It’s a slipper slope.

Off course this argument is relatively easy to overcome when we get around to discussing capital goods and expense related products and services area. These areas have an impact on the distributor’s net profit. And I’m sure that many of you will agree that just because one says they are a cost plus provider does not necessarily mean it’s true in the most pure sense of the definition.

Check back tomorrow and we’ll review what the real definition of cost plus is in part II.

We look forward to and appreciate your comments.

Tuesday, April 9th, 2019

 

 

Today’s post is by Gayl Southard, Administrative Consultant at SafeSourcing, Inc.

People don’t just dislike having their given names misspelled, they often have feelings of rejection when the person who does the misspelling is a relative, friend, teacher or a business associate. Although my first name is common, the spelling is not. In fact, I have only met one person that spelled their name like mine. If you know people well enough to address them by name, please have the courtesy to learn how to spell their name.

The White House press office misspelled the British Prime Minister Theresa May’s name three times. One error referenced a “bilateral meeting” between Trump and “Teresa May”. Teresa May is a former soft porn star and model. That was a huge gaffe.

It is important to check for grammar and spelling errors for three reasons:

  1. It limits the chances that your message will be misunderstood or misinterpreted.
  2. It reflects your credibility, intelligence and reliability.
  3. It indicates that you care about how you do business.

Spelling mistakes can cost millions of dollars in lost sales. A single spelling mistake can can cut online sales in half, according to William Dutton, Director of the Oxford Internet Institute at Oxford University. There seems to be more tolerance with informal parts of the internet, such as Facebook, towards grammar and spelling. Although Spellcheck is a valuable tool, it does not catch homophones (words that sound alike, but are spelled differently, and have completely different meanings). It can automatically change the spelling of new or unusual words, such as names to a word that is more easily recognized, without your permission,

There are four tips to observe when sending important business correspondence:

  1. Slow Down. Never send anything without proofreading it first.
  2. Don’t Multitask. Your brain refocuses each time you switch to a new activity.
  3. Get a Second Pair of Eyes. Have a colleague review your work.
  4. Double Check Facts, Names, and Industry Terminology. Spelling someone’s name correctly is extremely important because a name is part of one’s identity. Messing up relevant information can be interpreted as disrespect, and makes you look unprofessional. It also represents the lack of attention to detail, which can negatively affect the relationship between two parties.

“We are human and therefore bound to make mistakes. But your business reputation is too important to lose out over poor spelling. Try to be as accurate as possible when corresponding with clients, customers and colleagues. Your reputation (and ultimately your bottom line) may depend on it.”1

For more information on how SafeSourcing can help in your procurement efforts, or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire team ready to assist you today.

References………………

  1. Jessica Robinson, Michigan Mobility Institute, Entrepreneur.com/article/288812, 4/5/2019

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Baseball Season and eProcurement Part 2

Friday, April 5th, 2019

 

Today’s post is by Dave Wenig, Vice President of Sales and Services at SafeSourcing, Inc.

This post is part 2 of Baseball Season and eProcurement series. In the last months post, Baseball Season and eProcurement Part 1 we discussed how at SafeSourcing we measure eProcurement success using baseball terminology as our customers watch their online Request for Quote (RFQ) Events.

Today’s post will focus on the importance of getting on base with a Single. At SafeSourcing, we define a Single as an RFQ Event that has savings of at least 5%, but less than 10%. In future installments of this series, we’ll focus on Doubles, Triples, Home Runs, and Grand Slams. It’s too easy to say that the goal of an RFQ Event should be a Home Run or a Grand Slam. After all, with an average savings percentage that is nearly a Grand Slam at 24.8%, it’s fair to expect big results.

As you probably know, base hits are very important in baseball and that holds true in eProcurement. For some categories including certain commodity items, a Single is actually a very significant win. For other categories, a single represents a last mile effort to drive out even more savings on a category that the customer has already done a reasonable job of negotiating without eProcurement.

In one recent example of a high spend category that had been negotiated by the customer pretty well before an RFQ Event, we attained a Single. This category was plastic bags and was a closely monitored category for this retailer. This was still a high-value win for the customer as it was a simple RFQ Event to prepare for and achieved immediate savings dollars representing hundreds of thousands in savings over the term of the award.

Another recent example of a Single achieved by a SafeSourcing customer was in an RFQ Event that included items like various pickles and peppers. In this example, the customer had been presented with a price increase. Despite the price increase, they were able to attain a 6.93% savings on the category. Considering that they were able to avoid the increase and then some. That is a solid base hit.

There are many results like these and there are interesting stories including great savings dollars behind each. In the next entry in this series, some examples of Doubles will be shared.

For more information, please contact SafeSourcing.

 

 

 

 

Don’t let decision maker fatigue ruin your sourcing project!

Thursday, April 4th, 2019

 

Today’s post is from our extensive blog archives at  SafeSourcing:

As a procurement professional operating under other managers or engaging vendor executives, Having the decision making power change hands in the middle of a procurement project can be disruptive, but you can still keep things on track if you can keep a few key points in mind:

  1. Keep a running history of how the project got to its current stage, so that you can get the new manager up to speed quickly. If you can show your reasoning through the process to make sense, they will be more likely to get on board.
  2. Gauge his/her buy-in and be ready to head off objections before they’re even brought up. Show authoritatively that you know the project intimately to instill confidence in its handling, but give the manager the sense that they are in charge, and that they will get the big win out of the project.
  3. Avoid discussing legacy decisions. If the new manager’s predecessor made poor decisions the new manager could use that as an excuse to scrap a legitimate project, or worse, they could be looking for a scapegoat to blame past failures on.
  4. Find out the new manager’s goals (and potential hidden agendas). Let the new manager drop clues about his knowledge of the projects history. You may find out about some of what lead to the previous managers departure that can help you avoid future pitfalls.

For more information on how SafeSourcing can assist your team with your procurement projects or on our Risk Free trial program, please contact a SafeSourcing Customer Service Representative. We have an entire customer services team waiting to assist you today.

We look forward to your comments

My thoughts on the use of e-procurement tools by retail collective buying organizations.

Wednesday, April 3rd, 2019

 

Todays post is by Ronald D. Southard CEO at SafeSourcing.

I originally wrote this post 10 years ago. While a lot has changed, a lot has not. Many collective buyer organizations, share groups and even some GPO’s  are understaffed and lack the category expertise to serve their constituency adequately on a total spend basis particularly in the retail space.

Many of these structures believe that they speak on behalf of their retail members for anything and everything that they source. Unfortunately many of their members do not agree. These are independent business people. If they have an opportunity to reduce their cost of goods, expenses and capital spend it is their right to do so. Are they all getting the best pricing today. don’t believe it for a minute.

These business structures have been around for a long time. Many have evolved to use cutting edge e- procurement tools, but many have not. Do their retailers also benefit from their use of these tools in order to reduce their net landed costs? I’ve been in the supply chain since 1970 and the answer is NO!

This author remembers being a young salesperson over 40 years ago (ouch!). I convinced a customer to buy some new point of sale equipment. I was really excited when I took the contract to the customer for signature. Once there, the retailer told me I had to get a purchase order from Cressy Dockham who was their wholesaler and they would tell me how much discount the retailer was to receive. Cressy Dockham is no longer in business today. They were located in Americus Georgia. I worked in Boston. Thus began a long relationship with collective buyers across all segments of the industry. Explanation of fees was always a part of the discussion.

These types of organization can go by a lot of different names such wholesaler, collective buyer, consortium, cooperative, share groups and more. They all have one thing in common. They consolidate purchasing volumes for a wide array of groups that may have very similar business structures, but can also be wildly different. Some retailers may actually belong to several different buying groups because their primary group does not offer expertise in a certain area.

Obviously, these organizations are not in business to lose money. There are some non profit membership organizations that do return earnings to their members on a pre-planned basis such as quarterly or annually.

As a result of volume consolidation or aggregation, these organizations often qualify for much larger discounts from manufacturers and suppliers than do their independent retailer partners. In many cases the full discount is not passed on to retailers in order to cover the cost of administering the programs. Additionally, other service fees may also be added to invoices.

Today’s advanced e-procurement tools make it much easier to accomplish collective buying. Large and small retailers alike now have the capability of viewing a much broader universe of suppliers while also coordinating and participating in collaborative events from hundreds if not thousands of miles away. Suppliers now have an opportunity to earn business they could never compete for in the past.

Retailers should ask their collective buyers how they plan to make the use of these tools available and how many suppliers they have to choose from by category.

I look forward to your comments.