Customer Supply Group

Simply Supply Chain’s ambient membership groups work in partnership with FMCG suppliers to improve availability and service, whilst reducing waste and operating costs, in an ever-evolving sector that is seeing unprecedented cost increases.

The Customer Supply Group provides a forum to: share learning and experience to identify best practice; discover opportunities for logistics collaboration; and gather vital data that maintains the right level of pressure on retail reform.

Simply Supply Chain works closely with the Groceries Code Adjudicator (GCA) in support of their key priorities and to raise awareness of retailer practices that can drive cost, waste and labour into the supply chain. Our supplier working groups present evidence to the GCA which helps shape supplier and retailer guidance to tackle these practices and improve processes. Please view our subgroups below to find out more.For more information about the GCA and Groceries Code of Practice click here.

Events

Objectives

Identifying poor retailer processes and developing best practice
Building trust and understanding between suppliers and retailers
Continuing retail reform with the Grocery Code Adjudicator
Improving customer service and availability
Driving environmental sustainability
Reducing waste and E2E network cost to serve
Reducing the costs incurred from poor retailer forecasting
Working with Amazon to: reduce delays in payment, unsubstantiated claims and fines and receipting errors

Benefits

5 core meetings a year
Best practice subgroups (additional fees may apply)
Development of supplier and retailer best practice in partnership with the Grocery Code Adjudicator
Peer to peer benchmarking with anonymised data
Access to industry body professionals, including customs and logistics experts
Networking with industry peers
Working with retailers to improve processes

Previous Event Highlights

Ocado Site Tour and Review of Supply Chain Plans

8th May 2024

Guest speakers: Tim Walker, Ocado, Supply Chain Director and Geoff Tomlinson, Managing Director, FSEW

Mars & Nestle: Efficiency, Sustainability & Decarbonisation in Logistics

7^th February 2024

Guest speakers: Members from Mars and Nestle and Brian Moore of Nam News

Customs and Borders Best Practice Workshop: Making Imports and Exports Easier

January 24^th 2024

Guest Speakers: Robert Hardy, CEO of EORI (UK) Limited and
Ed Gilbert, Joint Head of Business Readiness Mission & Enablers Division, NI Directorate, DEFRA

Sustainability Today: Reducing the Carbon Footprint of the Logistics Sector

27^th September 2023

Guest speakers: John Bailey, Managing Director, Intermodal, Maritime Transport Ltd and Nick Winder FCILT , WIN Logistics Group

Latest Customer Supply Group Blogs

How Companies are Using the Advantage Survey to Improve their Customer Experience Performance

October 24, 2023

At our Customer Supply Group Meeting, we discussed how companies were reacting to their Advantage Survey Report feedback, exploring those elements which companies found hardest to influence...

Supplier-Retailer Collaboration: Persistently Challenging but with Opportunities to Deliver Real Value

July 18, 2023

In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, for many suppliers it feels like they’re re-starting their collaboration journey. Against a backdrop of CPI increases, retailer system changes and...

Suppliers collaborating to improve customer service AND reducing their cost to serve

April 9, 2021

At theCustomer Supply Groupmeeting last week, we reviewed how companies were progressing with their plans to improve and transform their Customer Service offering. We confirmed that for...

Our Expertise

Simply Supply Chain is a leading UK supply chain consultancy with over 30 years’ experience working within the industry. We use our expertise to partner with customers to apply best in class ways of working to improve supply chain effectiveness; with a particular emphasis on aligning and strengthening customer and trading partner relationships.

We facilitate regular collaborative FMCG supplier workgroups, enabling suppliers to exchange information, discover best practice and discuss the common challenges of delivering excellent service and availability cost effectively to the major grocery retailers. Our members testify to the huge benefit of being able to apply different perspectives, pioneer emerging technologies and integrate new ways of working back into their operations.

We have received much acclaim for the results our workgroups deliver, and are delighted to have received three awards this year for supply chain innovation and excellence. Our groups are endorsed by retailers, suppliers and industry bodies alike.

We are always happy to talk with FMCG companies who are willing to invest in challenging the status quo, and work in collaboration with the retailers and peers to help make a difference.

To find out more please contact:

Sarah Holmes

Marketing & Membership Manager

events@simply-sc.com.