Putting "Partner" in Partnerships
The term "partner" is one of the greatest and also one of the most overused words in business, especially within distribution channels. In today's tumultuous business world, everyone wants to be your partner. It's one thing to say you're a partner and entirely different to actually pay off on it. It's all about walking the walk and talking the talk.
A bad economy is forcing distributors to act more like partners today. It is predicted that 15,000 restaurants will be shuttered during this recessionary period. These statistics have gotten the attention of Sysco in a big way. Good distributors are realizing that to be successful they have to connect and engage with their customers. Their bottom line is directly proportional to the success of the customers they serve.
The May 18th issue of Business Week illustrated how Sysco - America's largest distributor of restaurant supplies (to the tune of $37 billion in sales) - is elevating their suite of products to provide true value-added services to help customers through the current restaurant slump.
Sysco is now offering a free consulting service called Business Review. It's a comprehensive service that includes the likes of in-house design of menus, training of wait staffs (something sorely needed to improve the servers of today - lose the "hi guys" salutation) and on through to overall marketing counsel. This is coupled with the 200 chefs that Sysco employs across the country to teach new dishes and the holy grail of portion control. These chefs are also performing chef type business consultations. Business Review is a full fledged Sysco branded program that sets them apart from other food service distribution suppliers. It's a great sub-brand that reinforces the equity of the Sysco brand.
Whether this partnership retains current business and/or gains new customers for Sysco is open for debate. You can be assured that they'll see an uptick in sales of Sysco branded product, plus a sense of loyalty among customers that touch the Business Review arm. If it can help restaurateurs through this downturn, they'll be the ultimate in brand ambassadors for Sysco! Sysco has even extended the program to offering partnerships with companies who offer discount services through payroll processing and to background music. It is customer engagement in the truest sense. Sysco is transforming the way they work with their customers. Yes, it is driven by the economy and the need to protect their 16% market share from price erosion; but Business Review offers the opportunity to build share coming out of this deep downturn. It's an example of a great channel brand putting the essence of being a partner back into its partnerships. It's a winning strategy in the channel at its finest. What a partner should be!
