Rural indies left out as supplier sales visits dry up

Independent retailers in rural parts say they feel abandoned by many of the UK’s key suppliers, as sales calls and support dry up.

Some suppliers have axed calls to remote independent stores completely, leaving store owners in the dark about new products, merchandising advice and legislative updates, retailers claim.

In Barnstaple, Devon, Frankmarsh Stores owner Lesley Brown said the growing disinterest in her store had left her feeling “greatly disheartened.”

“Certain suppliers made less effort last year, and despite asking for help it felt like they would rather deal with the multiples,” Lesley said.

“We were recently informed by Coca-Cola that after April they would no longer be visiting independents in North Devon as they cannot get in enough calls in a day. It’s a similar story with some of our confectionery reps. Sometimes we go months without seeing anyone,” she said.

West Sussex retailer Colin Woods of Amberley Village Stores also complained of a falling number of visits from reps.

“We hardly ever see a rep in our store any more. Tobacco constitutes 15% of our sales yet I’m lucky if I get a visit once every four months. Some companies don’t bother with us at all. I sell more than 30 different lines of Border biscuits but have never once seen a rep.”

Lesley added: “I understand that money is tight and logistically it’s a challenge when they’ve got to drive 20 or 30 miles between stores, but there has to be a better solution.”

She suggested wholesaler-hosted quarterly forums in depots where retailers could meet key suppliers.

Sylvia Winter of Creaton Villlage Shop & Post Office, Creaton, Northamptonshire, said: “I think suppliers are cutting back on rep visits to smaller stores. They can go to a large store who might take five boxes of product, whereas they’d have to make five separate visits to smaller stores to get the same business. Everyone is looking to cut costs where they can – even big companies and reps are being given wider areas to cover.”

Rural Shops Alliance chairman Trevor West acknowledged it was a problem, and urged those suppliers struggling to access rural stores to consider improving their online resources as an alternative.

The five major branded suppliers contacted by Convenience Store denied that visits to rural and remote stores were being cut.