For Buyers, Category Managers, Marketing, Merchandising, Operations and Purchasing – all who are Involved with Category Decisions

This week’s AWMA Show Spotlight is on a topic of great importance to distributors – Category Management.  AWMA has retained the services of Impact 21, a firm that works closely with the c-store industry on a wide variety of strategic areas to improve performance and profits.  Below is a sneak preview of this program—available to all distributors who register for the Show—at no additional cost!  Mark your calendars and plan to attend this value-added program:

When: Tuesday, February 8, 2011
Where: The AWMA Show – The Paris Hotel, Las Vegas
Time:   10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Note:   Space is limited for this session—be sure to register early to reserve your spot.

Interview with Lesley Saitta, Managing Partner, Impact 21 Group

Executive Update:
Impact 21 Group has a long history working with the convenience and petroleum retail industries and we are very excited that you and your colleagues will be presenting and facilitating a 5-hour program on Category Management during AWMA’s upcoming Show in Las Vegas.  Given that the audience for this session will be largely comprised of wholesale distributors to the convenience and grocery industries, will you share some specifics about the focus and how the audience will benefit from attending?

Lesley Saitta:  The focus of the Category Management session will be in three key areas:
1) how Category Management principles can improve your business,
2) how to deliver value added insights and capabilities to your retail customer partners; and
3) how to work with and leverage manufacturers to support your business.
Our main goal will be to provide relevant and actionable Category Management solutions to the key business issues facing every wholesale distributor attending the conference.

 Executive Update:
As is the case with the convenience industry overall, the audience at this session will be quite diverse—from the largest national distributors to mid size regional and smaller local companies.  Further, many of these companies are at different stages in terms of their knowledge and adoption of category management principles.  How will your team ensure that the program delivers value to all who attend?

Lesley Saitta:  We recognized this up front and have done a couple of things to ensure that the program delivers value to all attendees.  First, we sent out a survey earlier in the year to  AWMA members asking them about their views on Category Management, how it’s practiced in their organizations and areas they would like to learn more about.  We received a strong response from the membership and shaped our agenda around their feedback.  Second, we are also tailoring our curriculum around providing support for the “Targeting the Core” initiative, which has emerged as one of the key priorities within the AWMA.

Executive Update:
How will this session help distributors work more effectively with their retail customers and the supplier/manufacturer partners?

Lesley Saitta:  
It is clear to us from our experience and from the feedback from the AWMA membership that we must help the wholesale distributors bring incremental value to the relationship with their retail customers.  A large portion of the agenda will be dedicated to category management tools and solutions geared to key issues, such as “fixing the mix” and retail shelving solutions. Also, to gain a better perspective on the supplier/manufacturer relationship, we have asked a major manufacturer to this channel to present at the session.  They will provide attendees with a unique look at the type of information, insights and resources that a manufacturer can provide wholesale distributors, as well as, how to leverage it with your retail customers.

Executive Update:
Impact 21 Groups also works with many companies on other key management areas beyond category management.  What are some of the other areas of expertise available from your company?  

Lesley Saitta: Impact 21 Group’s vision is to be an end to end supplier of services and solutions to the petroleum/convenience industry, so we are working with our clients across a multitude of areas.  While retail automation and category management are the cornerstones of our business, new emerging technologies and business processes are driving also our business today.  Loyalty, payments, social media, mobile marketing projects are all taking center stage as retailers drive to differentiate themselves not only from other convenience stores but from grocery, drug and other retail channels.  

Additionally, we are working with many clients on their category management and reporting needs, as most c-store are scanning and some are even at item level inventory and computer assisted ordering.  Therefore, managing days on hand as well as out of stocks have been a critical component of our consulting and analytical services

We continue to help our clients define their strategic direction and build plans that will accelerate their growth and meet corporate objectives.  This includes building new retail platforms (infrastructure) and cultures, managing competing priorities, improving business alignment, providing project management support, creating learning & development programs and curriculum and developing go to market strategies for both retailers and suppliers to this channel.

For the full educational line up, a complete list of the more than 200 exhibiting companies, to register and to secure hotel accommodations, be sure to visit www.AWMASHOW.com.

SUPER SAVER REGISTRATION EXPIRES ON DECEMBER 15, 2010 – SAVE 50% ON FULL SHOW REGISTRATION!