Identify the Pain Points

In most cases, foodservice operators are just fine doing what they are doing.  They become accustomed to the same grind that does not make huge incremental moves towards expansion, and so long as they don’t hit a speed bump life goes on.  However, they will eventually hit that bump and then the scramble begins. It typically starts with an upward shift in food costs or a reduction in customer traffic (slowing sales). Because all of that means a strain on cash flow, the first move is to cut costs. You have to get them to see around the corner before they hit that bump, and monetize what the impact of that bump would look like if action does not occur before a date certain.

Understanding the Law of Aggregation

At first glance, the customer would look at this and say “Oh, I can just combine my spend with others and save money”.  Well, that is only a small piece of this law. The Law of Aggregation is not only about aggregating your purchases, but including in that aggregation your behaviors, supply chain strategy, and several others to arrive at the right solution.  Driving sales is the typical “go to” solution when business gets impacted. But what most customers fail to consider, especially independent operators, is that sales have a cost that is driven by your margins. If you don’t manage all the way down through the P&L, the result will be a long run for a short slide.

Give a Little and Get A Lot

Most operators find it very difficult to give up a little control.  If you think about control, not in a negative sense, as taking all of the cats out of the yard and putting them in a fence then would you will agree that it is much easier to control their direction.  In this example, being on the fence is not a negative, but it is harnessing power through aggregation. This is the area that gets the most attention and creates the greatest amount of angst. However, the outcome bears a great deal of fruit if you are open to this idea