You know, our business and yours are more alike than you may realize. We both have customers and we both have vendors (suppliers). Our success is tied to our reputation, providing value and delivering on our promises. Sound familiar?
Your vendors are primarily floor covering manufacturers, distributors, importers, ad agencies and digital marketing companies. Our vendors range from paper suppliers to printing companies to digital marketing firms. And you know what? Any one of those vendors can be fired if they are not living up to their promises and obligations. There is no vendor that you can’t live without—whether or not you or they believe it.
Let me tell you a little story. As a print publication, our two most important needs are paper and printing. (What a revelation!) The U.S. Postal Service is also critical, but we have no options there. We rely on our printer to print our publication, bind it and get it in the mail within three days. A failure in any of those steps is problematic.
The printing industry in not unlike the flooring industry. There has been a great deal of consolidation. Consolidation can be good and bad for customers. Take the airline industry, for example. Fewer choices can be bad for customers. Maximizing economies of scale can be good for customers if price advantages are passed through the channel. But when companies consolidate and cannot appropriately service their customers, it is bad. Very bad.
Once upon a time we were using a printer called Cadmus. Cadmus was purchased by Cenveo, which, in turn, was purchased by a much larger Pennsylvania-based company called Intellicor. No problem in the beginning. But soon we realized Intellicor had bitten off more than they could chew. We had to fight for our press time. There were instances when the publication mailed much later than it should have. Every so often there was a color issue. And then… their rep paid us a visit informing us of a price increase. Sort of like someone shooting you and then asking you to pay for the gun. Surprisingly, the rep left the visit with no broken bones or bruises. Not surprisingly, the rep left the company two weeks later.
In this case, consolidation worked against the customers. For whatever reason, Intellicor decided not to run three shifts despite the increase in business. In fact, they reduced their workforce, which diminished their capacity. It became apparent they could no longer accommodate our business. Every time it was the same response: “We’re doing the best we can.” So we did the best we could for our customers—our readers and advertisers: We fired them.
There’s a reason I tell this story. No lone vendor/supplier you have in your store is beyond being terminated if they do not deliver. Every ounce of your floor space is precious real estate. Make your suppliers earn that real estate.
So how do you make them earn it? What should you demand so they do not get fired? It begins with product. Make sure every display on your floor contains products that are sellable. I know you may have special relationships with some reps, but if no one is buying the products, the relationship is not benefitting you. Fire them.
If you are not getting the best possible service from your rep, if he or she isn’t visiting regularly, if he or she is not updating the products on their display, if the company isn’t appreciative of your business, fire them.
If the vendor/supplier is difficult to deal with, particularly as it relates to claims, fire them.
If the pricing is prohibitive to the point where customers are opting for different brands or you are unable to make a suitable margin, fire them.
If delivery is constantly delayed to the point where it creates a problem with customers, fire them.
If 90% of the products are on back order, fire them.
There are so many solid products and companies in the flooring industry. They all should be vying for and earning your business every day. It’s not like that episode of “The Flintstones” where Fred has to organize two parties one hour apart—Pebbles’ first birthday party and the Water Buffalo Stag party, and the caterer gets mixed up and sends the clown to the Buffaloes and the dancing girls to Wilma’s house. His response: “What do I have to lose? I’m the only caterer in town.”
There are many caterers in the flooring industry. Choose the best.
