VOW is reporting facilities supplies sales 10 per cent higher than last year after investing £500,000 in that part of its business during 2017.
The leading business product and facilities supplies wholesaler said some of the money has been used to recruit additional personnel, including two specialist business development managers, who work directly with resellers to increase their product sales.
VOW says the investment has also enabled it to improve marketing support for resellers, offer a more complete product range, deepen its stock holding to aid availability, and instil a better understanding of the facilities supplies marketplace among staff across its business and in the reseller community.
The company now offers over 5,000 facilities supplies products, in areas such as catering, janitorial supplies, premises management and health and safety compliance, and has direct relationships with over 100 major manufacturers.
VOW says its most popular facilities supplies lines so far this year have been mainly in the cleaning and catering categories. They include hygiene and janitorial products, such as chemicals, mops, buckets, cloths and wipes. Also in-demand have been white goods, beverage and vending machines, cups, cutlery, napkins, sugar and drinks, such as tea, coffee, cola, water and fruit juices.
Adam Noble, managing director of the Derby-based national business services provider Irongate Group, said: “There’s been a step change from VOW this year in the facilities supplies area, a really important growth category for Irongate. They’ve clearly introduced increased price flexibility and seem to have really listened to their customers over broadening the range of products they offer.”
Explaining the reasons for the £500,000 investment, VOW managing director Adrian Butler said: “We knew that our resellers were making purchases of facilities supplies products from providers other than us. We also realised we could help resellers increase revenue, through supplying an enhanced level of expertise in areas such as sales and merchandising, and improve efficiency, by enabling them to make multiple purchases on single orders. I’m pleased to say this decision is proving successful.”
Adrian said a major contributor to the performance was VOW’s high-quality overall service, based on a consultative approach.
He said: “Our next day delivery contrasts with many of our competitors only supplying in three to five days and, alongside the rest of our service, this means we now offer a genuinely stockless solution, avoiding resellers having to buy in bulk. In addition, we provide thorough training and marketing support to resellers and deliver an after-sales service that’s second-to-none.”
Adrian added that VOW’s exclusive 2Work range of cleaning products, designed to provide superior solutions at affordable prices, was another key reason for the success.
VOW’s support for some resellers this year has included using their purchase ledgers to help them optimise pricing structures and therefore attract more revenue. VOW says it would encourage other resellers to partner with it in this way.
Adrian said: “The £500,000 investment and enhancements following it reflect the fact that our strategic vision includes adding real value for our resellers and helping them to grow their businesses.”
Facilities supplies and sales training is available to resellers in VOW Venture, the company’s enhanced partner accreditation programme. The next such event is being held on 13 September at the Village Hotel Club, Solihull, West Midlands. Resellers can discover more details by emailing marketing@voweurope.com.
Resellers wanting more information about, or to order, VOW facilities supplies products should call the sales office on 0844 980 8000 or speak to their account manager.