Sainsbury's is naming and shaming suppliers whose performance is not up to scratch, by listing them for all rivals to see in the atrium of its Holborn HQ.
The embattled grocer is listing five hero and five villain suppliers on 5 ft Batman and Joker models outside the visitors' waiting room.
The five villains this week are Nestle, textile business Sara Lee Courtauld, ingredients firm Arkady Craigmillar, cereals supplier Dailycer and GE Lighting. The heroes are Procter & Gamble, salmon supplier Strathaird, potato supplier MBM, Breadwinner, and Van Den Bergh Foods.
Sainsbury's supply chain director Lawrence Christensen said: 'This will help to generate some healthy competition within the supplier base and will play a part in improving supplier service to Sainsbury's.'
A Nestle spokeswoman admitted to problems. She said: 'It would appear there have been a variety of issues across our seven categories and we are working with Sainsbury's to iron them out.'
The supply chain team pick heroes and villains based on delivery and availability performance and the list is approved by the grocer's trading team. The heroes and villains will change every week.
However, suppliers are backing King and Christensen to turn the grocer around. According to an IGD survey of 170 suppliers, 76 per cent believe availability will improve in the next three years, while 59 per cent believe customer service will improve. Some 50 per cent said they would devote more management resource to Sainsbury's in the coming year.
No comments yet