Page 28 - HW February 2020

sales agents
AFTER A WELL-deserved break, the sales agents we spoke to
in the New Year reported being busy picking up the threads of 2019 and gearing up for fresh opportunities. Those
that weren’t driving desks or camped in boardrooms were between store visits or at the coalface, pacing hardware aisles, as it should be.
Among the bigger players, Storelink, which maintains strong sales and merchandising arms, reports a growing presence in hardware.
In the words of General Manager, Angie Samuel: “A
lot more people in our business are getting exposed to the hardware channel and better data is allowing them to make recommendations and actually have an impact on retail sales for our customers.”
From a merchandising perspective, Storelink counted 25% more clients in 2019 compared with 2018 but used double the number of merchandisers to do the work in the hardware channel.
And their efforts, Angie Samuel notes, frequently lead
to knock-on business: “Very often a client will ask us for merchandising and we do a good job, build credibility there, and that gives us the opportunity to start looking at taking over the sales as well.”
In fact Storelink’s Business Manager – Sales, Tony Puppyn, says the recent trend for the company has been towards a greater emphasis on sales and there’s capacity for more hardware clients.
Whatever, business is increasing, says Tim, and the market is definitely changing with more emphasis towards third-party support, thanks to new retailing activities that are taking staff away from their traditional tasks like click & collect.
“From what we’re seeing, a lot of businesses are also looking to reduce their head count and overall costs and look at alternatives,” he adds.
Retailers often regard Strikeforce people as an extension of their team, which is great, says Tim, but has its own issues: “I know a lot of our staff get asked to do work outside of our client base because we’ve got a good relationship in-store.
“That’s challenging to manage – we have to be very clear around expectations from us and also around our clients, and it can be a fine balancing act.”
DISTINCT AGENT ATTITUDES
Moving to the independents, Christchurch-based Director of PD Sales, Peter Duffin, has likewise noticed a growing reliance on third-party services, which he puts down to “rising costs and a margin squeeze at every level”.
The hardware channel accounts for at least 60% of PD Sales’ overall business and he shares three agencies with son Russell to offer more momentum and better representation for certain brands. Their geographical reach is growing, with Russell acting as the NZ agent for Oliveri.
In terms of attitudes to sales agents, Peter Duffin believes
“Those sales agents that weren’t driving desks or camped in boardrooms were between store visits or at the coalface, pacing hardware
aisles, as it should be”
there are two “factions” and you’re either in or you’re out: “There are some companies who would never use a sales agent because firstly they can afford to hire their own people, or there’s sufficient margin, or there are sufficient volumes going through the business, and we’ve had this spelled out to us many times over the years.”
In the last four years, Storelink’s sales business has doubled: “In fact, we get more opportunities than we can take on because clients would prefer to not have competing brands in the portfolio, or their products might be so technical that they require specialist teams.”
TACKING IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION
Strikeforce Country Manager, Tim McKibbin, paints a gently contrasting picture, describing a pronounced shift for the company, from sales towards merchandising, in a business where the split is 40% hardware and 60% in other channels, predominantly grocery.
As at Storelink, Tim McKibbin says more Strikeforce staff are now exposed to hardware. “We’ve picked up a few new clients over the past 12 months and the work we’ve been doing in hardware has been more involved, certainly around new stores and refits.
“We’re being used more extensively in that space and becoming more proficient. And it’s good because it gives us a clear understanding of the store from the very start.”
However, he is quick to add: “The overriding reality is because we are rewarded financially by our own efforts, we do work harder, we do work more diligently, we make sure that we’re very well informed, we attend the same sales conferences and carry out the same function as a key account manager or sales representative.
“And our services are affordable for someone who is not a large corporate but wants good regular representation and reliability.”
Stephen Edlin runs Central Region Sales out of Wellington and insists motivation is a key advantage that sales agents have over waged staff.
“A sales agent needs to be enthusiastic and able to offer in-depth product knowledge, whereas that’s not a merchandiser requirement.
“Product knowledge can be a casualty when the retailer is driving down the wage bill and most of the businesses are too busy to micro-manage what staff they have.
“An agent who can commit a bit of time to the people on the floor can really make the difference as so many consumers go by the recommendation of the team member.”
26 NZHJ | FEBRUARY 2020
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