Route to Market & Supply Chain Blog

Is your Route To Market (RTM) network sluggish? Does your system frequently stall and cause frustration? Sales performance not going to plan? Competitors streaking ahead of you? Is your boss at Corporate HQ giving you a rough time? What can you do?…

You may well have another corporate buzz term for the getting your products onto shelves, into restaurants and into coolers but the title above is simple and succinct. You may use Route to Market, Go to Market or Distribution but they all have the…

Marriage is quite a project, isn’t it? You take a look at what is on the market and get to know a few possibilities. You may search for a long time to find the right partner who will sweep you off your feet and eventually carry you over the…

FMCG/Brewing/Pharma CEO Performance Appraisal Name: This Couldbeyou Location: Anywhere Role: CEO Sector: FMCG/Brewing/Pharmaceutical Summary of Performance The local economy continues to struggle in the difficult global economic climate and perhaps…

There is never a good time to go on a residential training course or put the car in for an overdue lengthy service or the annual visit to the in-laws or even English homework - why was the American cowboy series High Chaparral so much more…

Possibly the most jaw-dropping and least welcome question I will ever hear. A question that brings me to the depths of despair certainly, rapidly and without warning. A question that is worse than being asked to appear on Big Brother – well almost.…

Inevitable, I guess. Large parts of the UK have implemented a hose pipe ban due to lack of water in reservoirs. Almost from the minute the ban was activated the rain has not stopped and now many places are under water with houses and businesses…

Ok, I know I should not have gone there. It was a Sunday and well before the live football on the TV. The weather was cold and the air was full of drizzle and as I turned off the roundabout the scale of the folly dawned on me; the IKEA car park was…

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:…

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…

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…

Whether your business is summer seasonal, e.g. beer, ice cream or you enjoy a relatively flat demand profile one of your key challenges will be to reach your Traditional Trade (TT) consumers. Where TT remains sizable and therefore important, your…

Everyone involved in selling any type of beverage looks forward to those hot, hot days of summer when the sun is shining and drinks are moving quickly off shelves and out of coolers. This is a time when sales people can relax a little and let the…

The reasons and benefits for carrying out a professional review of your Distribution network are well documented. Most of the senior people I meet understand the value of such a programme but there is a sizeable minority holding opposing views.…

With Traditional Trade enjoying something of a revival due to the extended recession some savvy companies are sorting out their RTM distribution networks. This will provide an immediate advantage over competitors and once the recession cloud blows…