Page 2 - Inform December 2019

Group CEO
Letter Welcome to the new look, online Inform!
Thanks to a suggestion submitted through Ideas Lab we will only print a small number of hard copies for communal areas in our production sites - and we encourage you to feedback any further improvements.
At the end of an exceptionally busy year there is plenty to celebrate in this edition. Many of you will have been impacted by intricate planning for a Brexit yet to happen. The reprieve is welcome and we are as ready as we can be - sincere thanks to all who have expended time on plans and preparation.
Despite challenging market conditions and fierce competition we have ‘fought the good fight’ in many of our Divisions and categories. Exceptional performances include British Pepper and Spice driving the UK’s herbs and spice category, Standard Brand’s relentless innovation in its mature markets and our Inform featured launch WKD Pink - which is the number 1 RTD NPD launch of 2019 after only 4 months
of trading. We cannot forget the day our world turned orange when SHS GB, Corporate Services and SHS Ireland teams on-boarded
Terrys Chocolate (Carambar) - an outstanding example of teamwork and our values in action. We look
forward to continued growth next year - good luck to SHS Ireland who have retained the Reckitt Benckiser business and to Meridian who are preparing for an exciting brand relaunch in Q2.
Operational Excellence, a key pillar of our Vision 21 strategy, was achieved across all production sites, evidenced by numerous audit accreditations throughout the year. Our production and technical teams consistently fulfilled operational objectives with our key retailers and regulatory bodies - we truly appreciate and value your hard work and diligence in meeting ever exacting standards and regulations. Recognition from Britain’s biggest retailer has been accorded to Condiments & Sauces for Best Service level at Tesco’s recent conference and to our Customer Service team in ARW for their proactive management of Shloer Christmas volumes and Terry’s Chocolate Orange display units - fine examples of an invincible supply chain delivered by teams who go the extra mile. Congratulations also to BPS who managed a seamless warehouse transition in an extremely busy year of growth and capex projects and to the ARW Customer Service & Logistics teams who designed and implemented a world class suite of activity based costing trackers and reporting.
Our Business Transformation Programme Gazelle continues at pace. Throughout Q3 & Q4 extensive process and systems training has been delivered to SHS Drinks demand planning & commercial
teams and Corporate services functions in preparation for a Q1 2020 ‘go-live’s’. We still have some hurdles to overcome
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