SHELF TALK Wholesaler consolidates ambient and chilled in new warehouse move Capital, while massively consolidating into full vans, so benefiting both customers and the environment. Its proximity to the M25 also allows quick access to the rest of the country.” Lisa Pearson, customer relations director, said the move was made in response to customer feedback, and that it will help the distributor serve the 584 new customers it has taken on during the COVID pandemic – 95% of which are independent retailers. “Through reviews of our service, we uncovered a desire for more delivery options whether that be turnaround time, delivery day, or multiple deliveries a week across both ambient and chilled models,” said Pearson. The move was part of Cotswold Fayre’s environmental strategy, positioning the distributor nearer to a significant number of its customers, reducing delivery mileage. Dave Truscott, commercial director, said: “Synergix’s own environmental credentials were a major part of our decision to move to them. “More than 50% of deliveries will be made using Synergix’s vehicles, providing better control of the delivery experience and an increase in capacity, enabling the potential for multiple deliveries a week across both ambient and chilled categories.” The move came as Cotswold Fayre reported that the distributor had delivered more than one million cases of ambient and chilled goods so far this year – a 54% increase on the same period in 2020 – and year-on-year growth of 45%. cotswold-fayre.co.uk
By Tom Dale
Fine food distributor Cotswold Fayre has combined its ambient and chilled ranges under one roof for the first time, consolidating the two channels that until now were operating independently. Citing growth and environmental factors as reasons for the move, the wholesaler’s new warehouse in Iver, near Slough, has capacity for more than 6,000 pallet spaces, which will house the 1,340 new SKUs it has added to its portfolio since the start of the pandemic, and allow space for further expansion, said a spokesperson. Cotswold Fayre worked with its previous ambient logistics partner Synergix on the move. CEO Paul Hargreaves said: “The location, with its proximity to London, will enable us to offer more deliveries into the
WHAT’S NEW Award-winning journalist and food broadcaster Dan Saladino has penned a tome to the world’s rarest food & drink. Eating to Extinction explores the foods around the globe threatened with extinction, and examines what this means for both humanity and the future of the planet. vintage-books.co.uk Edinburgh’s Holyrood Distillery has just launched its Brewer’s Series of new make spirits – the clear, flavourful liquid which is formed long before single malt whisky develops. The range comprises Brewers X Distillers Yeast, Crystal Malt, Chocolate Malt and Made By Edinburgh New Make Spirit. All have an RRP of £34.95. holyrooddistillery.co.uk Supplier of loose and individually portioned frozen foods Fieldfare last month launched its first-ever consumerfacing advertising campaign. The #ChooseLoose highlights that the brand can help consumers cut their food and plastic waste. field-fare.com
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Counter points Pickles & ferments
Fine food brand owner and distributor RH Amar, has launched an e-commerce platform, enabling its B2B customers to order products online for the first time. The website offers the wholesaler’s full catalogue, and features live stock availability and pricing, customer order pads for quick ordering, and previous order history for easy repeat purchases. The secure site accepts credit card payments, as well as payment on account, and customers can order at any time. rhamaronline.com 48
November 2021 | Vol.22 Issue 9
Food writer and former deli owner Glynn Christian offers up some category-specific conversation starters to sharpen your sales technique.
• A pickle can mean any vegetable preserved in acid or salt with little or no sugar. • A chutney is usually based on fruit and contains sugar. • The US particularly enjoys sweet pickles. •In the modern culinary style fresh fruit or vegetables are pickled by soaking in vinegar only for a short while. • Ferments means vegetables preserved by lactic acid. • Vegetables can be pickled without lactic fermentation in a 15% brine solution. • Some vegetables need both salt and vinegar to
Make chutneys smooth and you have sauces, and ketchups control their unique microorganisms. • Onions are pickled in hot vinegar; add vegetables and you get spreadable pickles; add fruit and sugar and you have chutneys. Make chutneys smooth and you have sauces, and ketchups.
This is an extract from Glynn Christian’s book Taste!, published by Grub Street
