Wakefern to Offer Store-Brand Sourcing Program
Wakefern Food Corp. will host a Store-Brand Sourcing Program to meet with potential suppliers to discover new products on Thursday, May 17 at the New Jersey Convention and Exposition Center, in Edison, N.J. The one-day event will pair potential new vendors with Wakefern buyers and category managers in private 20-minute meetings.
Business process improvement company ECRM (Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing) will manage inbound product submissions from suppliers and facilitate all of the meetings for Wakefern.
The retailer-owned cooperative will focus on finding new products and store-brand opportunities in the grocery, frozen, dairy, meat, produce, beverage, foodservice, bakery, seafood, deli/appetizing, nonfoods and HBC categories
“Wakefern is looking forward to working with ECRM to find exciting new suppliers and products for our stores,” said Parag Shah, the co-op’s VP of grocery. “We continue to grow our existing private label portfolio with innovative and award-winning new brands such as Wholesome Pantry, and believe this summit will bring us exciting new opportunities.”
“We are excited to be working with Wakefern in their quest to enhance their own-brand assortment and find the appropriate supplier capabilities to grow sales and enhance value for their shoppers,” added Wayne Bennett, SVP at Solon, Ohio-based ECRM.
To apply, interested suppliers, companies and manufacturers can submit their product information online through Friday, April 13. Selected companies will be subject to a $500 participation fee and informed via email by ECRM of the time, date and location of their meeting with a manager of the Wakefern merchandising team.
The largest retailer-owned cooperative in the United States, Keasbey, N.J.-based Wakefern comprises 50 members who independently own and operate 348 supermarkets under the ShopRite, The Fresh Grocer, Price Rite and Dearborn Market banners in New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Virginia. Together with its member companies, Wakefern employs more than 70,000 people, and is one of the largest employers in New Jersey.