This annual plan analyses a company’s performance as a whole, through both internal and external assessments by group, region and brand.

The customer account plan delivers insights, and opportunities along with objectives, company strategy and action plans, all with measurable criteria.

It creates the “HOW”, identifying obstacles and defining what needs to be done to overcome them.

This 15 page document should be front and centre of every monthly review. It helps the customer team to remain focused on their accounts in order to achieve their planned objectives.

The customer management review template, also known as the key account review template, is designed to extract value for both the customer manager/key accounts manager as well as the buyer.

Taking into consideration the limited time available with a buyer, this template ensures that a direct and targeted review is compiled, identifying both shortfalls as well as opportunities. It also ensures that a proposed rectification plan is defined prior to leaving the buyer’s office.

The opportunities need to be measurable and identify the “Size of the Prize” .

Remember that a key account call ends with a shopper purchase and not on leaving a buyer’s office.

A comprehensive plan that provides international or local brands entering the South African market for the first time, with a clear and concise introduction to the retail market by region and by retailer.

• It identifies where the brand would be best positioned along with the competitor set.
• It identifies the true cost to serve, taking all trade costs into consideration.
• It identifies the optimal route to market for the particular brand, determining whether a direct to trade or a distributor model would work best. Suitable partners are also identified.
• In the case of a direct to trade model, the best third party logistics partners, as well as best sales and merchandising partners will be identified.

This ensures that you, as a brand owner, enter the market with your, ‘eyes wide open’.

A detailed step by step process which provides assistance to clients all the way from from initial concept to shelf.

The process includes the cost build, ensuring that all costs are built and factored into the brand offering.

Assistance is provided for the essential steps such as label legislation for packaging.

The process is completed when the correct commercial argument to take to trade has been put in place.

This is the most essential document required to ensure that a sound collaborative partnership is established.

Companies love to shout ‘partnership’ and then scorecard their agents or distributors. Consider, the same people would not scorecard their partners at home if they wanted a long happy marriage, so why their business partners?

Instead of a scorecard, the joint business plan sets the guidelines and agreed parameters for business deliverables to ensure joint accountability.

The agreed ways of working are identified, along with timelines, and are measured accordingly with measurable milestones.

Tear up your scorecard and let us assist you to establish true collaboration that leads to growth.

This is one of our core functions; we manage your brand in market in totality on your behalf.

We do this by implementing strategy for all functional areas:

• key accounts nationally
• managing sales and merchandising (or appointing the correct sales and merchandising partners)
• managing third party logistics (or appointing the correct third party partners)
• working together with the brand owner towards agreed upon, measurable outputs

We then work closely with all parties through our joint business plan tool to deliver the agreed growths and outputs.

Manufacturers and brand owners can run into unforeseen challenges beyond their control. Short term intervention is then required to quickly rectify problems.

We have extensive experience and knowledge in regards to implementing vendor changes for companies and brands within the trade, including managing the process.

Should label rectification be required when packaging arrives in South Africa, we are able to provide the required quick turn around solutions required to ensure that new labels conform to local legislation.

We can also structure and create third party distribution solutions and implementations, with limited turnaround time.

We don’t like to pass up a good crisis!