Route to Market & Supply Chain Blog

I have always thought it a little strange. The “green “ movement is all about saving the Earth yet the same colour is used for “green” house gases (GHG) that are far from green and moving us towards unavoidable planetary oblivion, apparently. Now,…

Never easy. Never pleasant. Never going to happen? Never believe your factory is safe! From a UK perspective if you had a job in a factory in the 1970’s you expected to have a job for life as long as you kept your nose clean and performed…

“I like trucking, I like trucking, I like trucking and I like to truck.” Those of you who have not been on the planet very long and people who like hedgehogs will not be familiar with this Not The 9 O’clock News ditty from the UK in 1979-82. The…

Not since Margaret Thatcher has a woman been so feared. Steely cold eyes and a grin that makes the Mona Lisa look like she is having a good old guffaw. Jet black clothes contribute to her oozing superiority complex and an image of someone certainly…

The ink is dry on the deal, the celebratory corks have been popped and the lawyers have gone off to bank a small fortune. The projected negotiations to thrash out a deal to buy or merge with another FMCG or other sector company are finally over.…

Same small table, same two blokes, same close up camera shot. In the last RTM talking Heads episode we ended with Jeff hurriedly departing for the corner shop to see if the M&Ms Route To Market was intact or in trouble! Mal: Why the long face? Jeff:…

Interim Management is an approach used by companies to “make things happen” within a clear budget and without the headaches of recruiting an full time employee (FTE). The benefits are numerous but initially…… Immediate access to expert supply chain…

Small table, two blokes, close up camera shot. Mal: RTM. Jeff: What’s that then, Malaysian TV station? Mal: No. Jeff: Oh, it’s the IATA code for The Hague airport where they send all the war criminals. Mal: Er, no. It’s the business. Jeff: What…

The “Famous Last words” of people can be intriguing, rude and frequently very, very funny just as much as they can be complete nonsense. In the context of Supply Chain, “Famous Last Words” are usually uttered just before something disastrous or…

The EU has not welcomed any new member states since Bulgaria and Romania joined the club in 2007 but there is quite a queue knocking on the door and expecting the ok over the next few years. The hopefuls include a number of Southern European Balkan…

Some FMCG, Brewing, Pharmaceutical organisations are comfortable with the idea of using consultants while others avoid them like the plague. Having been on both sides of the fence with respect to supply chain consultancy services I can appreciate…

In a recent post I took a brief look at the use of Balanced Scorecards in FMCG, Brewing and Pharmaceutical businesses but in fact they are entirely appropriate for any business. Whatever your business size or offering you will benefit from knowing…

Sacred blue, mon petite pois, bonjour as Del Boy would say. Against all odds, a very young and experimental England rugby team defeated France in the 2012 6 Nations. Add in the fact that this match was in France and the home team had not lost there…

Just a short blog today for a little bit of fun but with a serious message. If you have not studied your Route To Market (RTM) deployment recently then now would be a good time. What was appropriate even a few short years ago can be wholly out of…

The merry-go-round continues in English football. Few will have been shocked by the sacking of Les Parry by Tranmere Rovers but the appointment of Ronnie Moore as his immediate replacement is a surprise. Having been sacked by Tranmere a few years…