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Most Route to Market (RtM) improvement projects start with ambition and end in frustration. But a select few not only succeed—they transform entire commercial ecosystems.
What a carry on! British cinema goers of a certain age may notice I have based the article title on Carry On Chloe, one of many cheesy comedies of the 60s and 70s. However, there is often nothing to smile about when considering FMCG inventory, whether it be too high or too low.
Login Home About us The Enchange way of working Clients & Results Industries we’ve worked in Testimonials Services Route to Market & Distribution Supply Chain Transformation Supply Chain Analytics Supply Chain Talent Hub Case Studies Career Blog 20 Steps to RtM Excellence Posts Supply Chain Excellence Posts Our Bloggers Contact Us Route to Market & Supply Chain Blog Distributor Management – Top 5 Do’s and Don’ts for FMCG Principals Posted by Michael Thompson on Tue, Jun 10, 2025 Twee
Supply Chain nuts & bolts Last week I looked at some basic definitions of a Supply Chain and what Supply Chains are designed to achieve. After enjoying the wet UK Bank Holiday, one of my first meetings was with an established FMCG CEO. No names of course, but this is a medium sized player with a broad European base. I have disguised the identity to protect us both but their product range contains nuts which I think is rather apt in the circumstances.
In an earlier blog this year I covered the subject of Joint Business Planning. This particular blog came after a discussion with a fellow RtM professional and senior commercial manager.
A long, long time ago. I started my career in the late 1970s studying chemistry and working as an R&D type helping to bring FMCG Homecare products to the market. At that time, people working in R&D were largely silo based and did not really know how a carefully crafted innovation made the transition from bench top development, through pilot plant testing and eventually onto supermarket shelves.
Chasing Air Miles I have travelled widely over the years and tried to add one new country each year until I stumbled at just under 50 locations. Many were holidays but the majority were business travels with few opportunities available to actually explore the places. Oh, you must be so lucky to travel so much said so many people, but no, it really is not fun these days but I do recall some notable flights.!
Feeling good? On a daily basis the amount of care we give to the human body is remarkably little. When you are feeling good the best the body can hope for is a shower, a brush of the teeth and a slap of moisturiser. What else? Haircut and manicure perhaps oh, and possibly a check on your weight on the scale that must be faulty.
Shrinkage? The term 'shrinkage' covers a multitude of possibilities e.g. damage, theft, administration errors and even variable supplier integrity. All these and more inevitably lead to missing stock, extra cost and ultimately, poor Customer Service. If you and your systems think stock is available and you provide a promise to factories or customers then finding (or not finding) the required materialsk will not le ad to a 'Happy Bunny' situation.
S&OP, is it for me? Sales & Operational Planning (S&OP) has been used in FMCG companies for many years as the planning process that provides 'one set of operational numbers' for the organisation. In many countries and cultures S&OP in its common format works extremely well and brings considerable benefits. However, many companies shy away from implementing S&OP as it is considered a financial and resource burden despite the well documented improvements.
Networking I recently met the CEO of an FMCG beverages company at a charity fund raising evening and both being fans of the foaming ale, we settled on a canape-fuelled discussion on all things beer. At this event I was not wearing my Supply Chain consultant hat so the conversation was very open and informative in a way that formal, office-based meetings seldom allow.
Who let the dogs out? If you lived in or visited Bucharest about 10 years ago you will have seen one or two stray dogs hanging around the city. Actually, a lot more than one or two, there were hoards of them. In 2010 a proposal was made to organise a proactive and wide-spread cull of the stray dogs but a certain Brigitte Bardot was outraged and the plans went permanently onto the back-burner.
Your call is important to us. Previously, we looked at how some companies are economical with the truth when it comes to measuring Customer Service. Today we take a look at how your telephone face to the customer can be helping or hindering your business.
Service with a smile? Do FMCG companies delude themselves on Customer Service (CS) performance? I think some companies are guilty of this but may or may not know it is happening! Whatever service related Key Performance Indicator (KPI) you measure, the objective is to see how you are performing both internally and at a retailer or outlet level and importantly, against peers.
A diet beckons? Have you been brave enough to step on the bathroom scales yet or are you trying to ignore the inevitable weight gain? You may well have overindulged in chocolate during the holidays but do you still crave more? Get yourself and a large blue IKEA bag down to your local supermarket as chocolate is likely to be very heavily discounted. If you are planning in the medium term horizon, Valentines Day and Easter are not far away so why not save a little cash and stock up now - sell/use/
Morning woes I have just had one of those mornings. I missed the alarm and the 10-minute snooze and from then on everything went downhill. Jumped in the shower for a brief cleanse but then once waterlogged I realised there was no soap, not even a hotel-like sliver. So, soaking wet I get out, but can I find anything remotely soapy? There was no time to waste so the yellowed William & Kate souvenir tablet had to be sacrificed.
Recondite complexity? I recently discussed how complexity negatively affects cost and service including how a floppy SKU tail inhibits growth. Do you understand the impact unnecessary SKUs have on FMCG success? CEOs should be seeking leaner and performance-focussed SKU portfolios but how do you approach this ongoing challenge?
Stealth? What made me think of that word? Do you remember that playground game called Statues ? One person is the 'Museum Curator' and stands at the end of a field or yard. Everyone else stands an agreed distance away and the aim of the game is for a 'Statue' to touch or tag the Curator without being seen moving.
Time for action? If you have been dithering about making change for FMCG success, now is the time. With so much chaos around the world and COVID raising its ugly head once more, you will (hopefully) never have such a strategic discontinuity opportunity. What you change for the better now can have a profound effect on the future of your life and business.
Summary Some of the above KPIs can be combined – e.g. On time in full (OTIF). There are also other KPIs to consider that may be important for your business. Your KPIs will provide a balanced and comprehensive view of distributor performance, focusing on financial outcomes, customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and long-term growth. This categorisation helps producers prioritize the areas that are most critical to their success.
Once More Unto The Breach You could hear the groans around the room when the FMCG CEO announced to the company that they had decided to implement Sales & Operational Planning (S&OP). After months of prevarication and toing and froing, a decision had finally been made! Enchange was tasked with facilitating the implementation - no, the groaners were not groaning at Enchange!
Do you want fries with that? People who work in fast food outlets – I really cannot bring myself to label them as restaurants – must have specific training in dealing with non-standard orders. Can you imagine the temptation to audibly groan when in a crowded outlet someone asks for a Muck Chicken Burger but without the usual mayo, salad and gherkiny stuff?
Blinkers? While you are tackling the day to day routine of crises, meetings, strategy and more crises while fending off the results pressure from global/regional HQ, you can lose a grip on the reality of how your company is operating. Creeping inefficiency can become the norm as you are so engrossed in driving the business forward and rightly focussed on the longer term.
The dictionary definition of a Catalyst is: An agent that provokes or speeds significant change or action. Using ourA-B-C of Route to Market model, the Catalyst Phase is when we execute or as we sometime call it ‘How to Win’. For distributor selection , it is when we engage our chosen distributor. And it’s not just about the contract. As a reminder, my previous post on Distributor Selection covered: · TheAssessment Phase · TheBlueprint Phase To reiterate a previous assertion, it is vital to use
Too Little Too Late? Imagine Manchester City needing to score 5 goals in the last match of the season to win the English Premier League yet they do not start attacking with any intent until the 80th minute. Or the England cricket team needing to take 6 wickets to win a Test Match but bowl gentle underarm until the last over of the day.
Distributor Selection: how to develop a detailed strategy & plan for identifying, evaluating, and engaging with potential distributors to deliver growth.
Plan, Plan and Plan Again! All major companies run some sort of ERP to support their business whether they are FMCG, pharma, brewing or indeed anyone who “makes stuff” for Joe Public to buy. Many blue-chips have invested in big name software packages while others may have chosen a cheap and cheerful locally built product. The big name offering is not always the most user-friendly solution but then the made-to-measure option also has drawbacks, usually support and lack of flexibility.
In my last Article and Post I presented a Simple Guide to Selecting and Engaging Distributors using the the A-B-C of Route to Market. As a reminder of the A-B-C of Route to Market , my aim is to simplify the world of RtM into a series of three steps that any RtM practitioner can execute. I would like the message to be actionable by all professionals be they small business owners trying to find new export markets, commercial heads of large multinationals or RtM management consultants.
In my last Post & Article I presented a new Route to Market (RtM) model, the aim of which was to bring together our RtM work in the last 5 years or so.
In successful FMCG and other companies, Sales & Operational Planning (S&OP) is the flexible glue that holds numerous processes together ensuring demand and supply are balanced along the chain and most importantly, everyone operates to the same set of unambiguous sales, volume and financial numbers. Without such a process in place, it is highly likely you will be experiencing a number of issues that will be holding your business and your career back.
Myself and Enchange colleagues have written 100’s of posts and articles about Route to Market for well over five years. It is fair to say that our message has spread far and wide and attracted a lot of attention in the RtM and commercial world. I want to bring this work together in the form of a simple new model. I will call this model the A-B-C of Route to Market.
If you do not specifically agree on what is expected between two parties before you start a relationship then anything and everything but success is likely.
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