Confex and Fairway Foodservice members are joining forces to create a new wholesale buying group.
The Wholesale Group will officially launch on 1 January 2025 as the ’home of the independent wholesaler’, and has been created to provide retail and foodservice support for independent wholesalers.
The group will be led by joint managing directors Tom Gittins and Jess Douglas with Martin Williams and Coral Rose as co-chairs.
The Wholesale Group is expected to represent more than 12% of UK wholesale, with a £4.47bn annual turnover across 253 depots in the UK that serve more than 349,000 customers.
Commenting on the announcement, Gittens said: “Put simply, this is the buying group that the sector needs. The Wholesale Group will be the only UK buying group to offer an extensive retail and foodservice range and expertise, alongside logistics efficiency via central distribution. It has an award-winning foodservice own brand supported by bespoke, coordinated member marketing and retail member support. And there are no membership fees and every member receives a share of the profits. We are delighted to launch The Wholesale Group as we know it is the solution for the independent wholesaler.”
Douglas added: “The sector has changed dramatically and it is crucial that we do things differently to accommodate these changes for both our members and suppliers, and The Wholesale Group will lead the way. Driven by data and technology and with a crystal-clear focus on service, it will be the largest delivered buying group, the largest foodservice buying group and the second largest retail buying group in the UK.”
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