Retail supply
Supply under an agreed programme. Produce ready for acceptance.
A supply programme for a retail chain: sourcing, quality control, preparation to your specification, logistics and handover at the distribution centre (DC) — one contract and one accountable counterparty.
Who this is for
For the category manager and the buying team
You are accountable for three things at once: the item is on the shelf, the batch passes acceptance, the truck hits its time slot (the DC acceptance window). The programme is built around these three tasks: the specification is agreed before the contract, preparation happens before the truck leaves, the route is built around the acceptance slot.
- 01Federal and regional chains
- 02Buying departments and category management
- 03A chain's own import operation
- 04Private label (own brand of the chain)
- 05Distributors working for a chain
The task we solve
Why acceptance fails
A chain works with dozens of fresh produce suppliers. Each is accountable for its own segment — goods, transport or documents — and none is accountable for acceptance as a whole.
Part of the imported batches arrive without preparation to the acceptance standard: mixed calibre, damaged units, packaging and pallets that do not match the chain's requirements.
Acceptance becomes harder: partial acceptance, a returned batch, a dispute over liability between supplier and carrier. While the dispute runs, the shelf stands empty.
One counterparty is accountable for the specification, the preparation, the delivery and — in case of deviations — for quality recovery in accordance with the terms of the contract. Handover at the DC becomes a managed process with clear areas of responsibility.
Preparation
Produce is prepared to your acceptance standard
Sorting, calibration, repacking, labelling and palletising are arranged through partner infrastructure. Produce is handed over prepared to the contract specification: quality checked, packaging and pallets to the standard, documents in a set whose composition is fixed by the contract.
Specification — before the contract
Variety, calibre, class, defect tolerances, remaining shelf life at acceptance, packaging standard and palletising layout are fixed before signing, not argued at the gates.
Preparation — before departure
Sorted, packed and labelled to the agreed specification — before the truck arrives.
Mixed pallets
If the assortment matrix requires several items in one truck, mixed pallets are built to your merchandising layout, not to the convenience of the warehouse.
Documents and data exchange
The composition of the set and the exchange format are agreed before the first delivery. If the chain works through EDI (electronic document interchange with the chain), the format and the set of messages are agreed there too.
How it works
From the chain's specification to the shelf
- 01Specification
- 02Preparation
- 03Time slot
- 04Acceptance at the DC
- —Quality recovery
The fifth node is a branch, not a step: it is triggered only when deviations appear at acceptance.
Slots at your DC are planned and monitored: departure is calculated backwards from the slot, arrival falls into the agreed window. A missed window means a turned-away truck, a penalty and an empty shelf, so the slot is counted first and the route second.
If a batch is not accepted
Quality recovery
Where produce is found not to conform to the buyer's requirements, we can arrange pick-up of the batch, re-sorting and rework, removal of unusable produce, restoration of the marketable batch and re-delivery to the buyer in accordance with the terms of the specific contract.
How quality recovery worksCategories
What can go into the programme
The core category of the programme is fresh produce: four countries of origin, a seasonality calendar and preparation to the acceptance standard. For the other groups of the catalogue we build the programme on the chain's request.
- 01Fresh produce — Turkey, Iran, Egypt, Israel
- 02Agricultural products — grain, flour, sugar, vegetable oils
- 03Industrial and non-food goods
- 04Private label — production under the chain's brand
Private label: we are ready to arrange production under the chain's brand to your technical brief — specification, composition, packaging and artwork are agreed before the contract, while the procedure and timing for providing samples before the production run are fixed in the contract.
Documents
A set for your acceptance standard
- 01Shipping documents: invoice, packing list, consignment note or CMR
- 02Food safety: EAEU declaration of conformity, phytosanitary certificate — by category and country of origin
- 03Quality: producer's quality certificate; laboratory test reports where the specification requires them
- 04Origin: certificate of origin, form ST-1 for the EAEU
- 05Batch traceability and shipping by shelf life (FEFO) — where the chain's standard requires it
The composition of the set depends on the category, the country of origin and the Incoterms delivery basis — the exact list is fixed in the contract before the first shipment.
How to start
Send us the chain's requirements
To assemble a programme we need your requirements, not our price list. Six points are enough for a first calculation.
- 01Categories and items of the assortment matrix
- 02Volumes and delivery frequency for each item
- 03Acceptance standard: calibre, class, remaining shelf life, defect tolerances
- 04Packaging, palletising and labelling standard
- 05DC geography and the time slot regime
- 06Requirements for documents and the exchange format
In reply you get a programme with a quotation for the items we are ready to take, a delivery calendar and a preparation scheme. The price holds for the period stated in the offer and does not change within that period.
Send requirementsScope of supply
What one contract covers
SourcingQuality controlPreparation and packingLabelling and palletisingLogisticsHandover at the DCQuality recovery
Instead of several unrelated contractors — one counterparty with end-to-end responsibility fixed in the contract. We arrange and coordinate; specialised operations are performed by engaged partners.
Let us start with a trial delivery
A trial delivery is one truck to your specification: we agree the requirements, prepare the batch and arrange handover within the agreed acceptance window. After acceptance the decision is yours. Name the categories, the volumes and the DC geography — we will come back with a calculation and a calendar.