A CHANGING LANDSCAPE “A
t Mannok we’ve always been a big supporter of NBG, all through our long- standing relationship with
them,” says Sales and Marketing Director Lee Gillman. “They have supported us through our growth and we like to think that we have supported them through their growth.” Some years ago, Gillman went to the Mannok board, asking for a new cement line because he knew that there was a market for the product. “They said yes, but understandably, only if I could be sure that there was a market. NBG were prepared to support me on this, and ensure that I had a guaranteed channel. It was risk for us and a risk for them, and NBG were prepared to take that risk with us. On the back of it, we had the exclusive deal with NBG, which worked so well that we extended it.
“Again, it is all about Partnership: I want to grow and NBG wants to grow, we want to grow together. Indeed, it has helped me to get a second cement line now as we needed the extra capacity, because of the way our sales with NBG have grown. That leap of faith paid off for both sides.”
Gillman says that both sides recognise that with the changing landscape for Suppliers and Partners, there may be times this year where the strong Partnership will be more important than ever. “We are all of us looking for stability - we came through Covid desperate for stability, and now we are looking for it because of the changes in the market. “As a manufacturer I need to be working with a group that is going to give me that commitment, because I have five factories, and they expect me to give them stability for 2023 and beyond. In a sense, I have two sets of customers: the merchants who buy my products and the employees who rely on Mannok to keep them in work”. At the moment Mannok are working very closely with NBG with a huge focus on the former’s mixed load offer. Gillman says it’s an educative project as much as anything else. “We have to engage with Partners to get them to see the economies of the mixed load offer. At the same time, we have to ensure at my end that they take the maximum opportunity available to them. The benefits are quite simple as the mixed load offer ticks a sustainability box for me. For Partners, there’s that, but we have also enhanced the offer with some savings for those Partners who take it up.”
Gillman says a major benefit for Partners, January 2023
GROWING TOGETHER
Mannok talks to BMJ about the continuing strong relationship between the building supplies company and the National Buying Group.
as well as the cost savings, is the continuity of one Supplier. “If there is a problem or a query, they know they can have one point of contact to sort it out. One of the biggest challenges that the Partners tell us they face is the complications from dealing with too many different Suppliers, who all do things a little bit differently.
“Equally, one of the challenges for us is treating the Partners the same, whether they have 20 branches in the south, or three or four across the north, so this offer helps us to be a bit more efficient across the customer base too.”
He says that there is a real benefit to Mannok being able to service the multi- product customer which is a growing part of its customer base.” We have four of our five key product lines in this offer: cement, PIR insulation, aircrete blocks and roof tiles. If the
Partners want to talk to us about anyone of those products, they talk to the same person. And that is a real benefit for them. “We are trying to get everyone to work a little bit smarter. In recent times it’s all got a little bit disjointed because there were times when merchants just thought, ‘Oh, I need stock. I’ll get it from there, now. Oh, I need that stock, so I’ll get it where I can.’ We all had no choice if the business was to keep flowing, but it was a step away from the tight way we used to work together. This helps to steer us back to the right path.”
Gillman says the key way that Mannok and NBG have of working together via committees works because there is a real balance. “It’s a balance of the different regions, different- sized merchants, even different personalities, that ensures that the deals we strike are the best deals. For us and for NBG.”
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