Sentinel Management Consultants

01/01/2024

How suppliers can create sustainable customer business plans - By David Sables - CEO Sentinel Management Consultants https://buff.ly/3HneTrv

01/01/2024

Joint business plans are often meaningless - By David Sables - CEO Sentinel Management Consultants

Suppliers are thinking “must get next year’s customer business plans agreed before Christmas”. Meanwhile, those customers are threatening to cancel the meeti...

19/10/2023

An open letter to the CMA: your profiteering accusations are damaging
By David Sables - CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants

https://buff.ly/492b4US

04/07/2023

I’ve witnessed misogyny in fmcg negotiations and it needs to stop - By David Sables CEO Sentinel Management Consultants

Prompted by the allegations behind the recent resignation of Tesco chairman John Allan, I believe it’s a good time to highlight what I consider unacceptable ...

06/06/2023

Suppliers are the latest scapegoat for high food prices. Let’s bust this myth now - By David Sables - CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants

Now the government has rightly moved its pointy finger away from retailers, Jeremy Hunt has directed profiteering concerns at suppliers. The concern is there...

11/04/2023

Suppliers, steer clear of Sainsbury’s talks over Lloyds Pharmacy space - By David Sables - CEO Sentinel Management Consultants

Sainsbury’s has entered talks with suppliers over the future of its Lloyds Pharmacy space. This is being described by Sainsbury’s as a mere investigation, sc...

28/03/2023

Suppliers, plan your cost price reduction strategy now - By David Sables - CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants

https://buff.ly/3nxmvAH

People think inflation is bad, therefore deflation must be good. Wrong. Unless it’s in relation to a Chinese spy balloon, deflation is bad in both macro and ...

10/02/2023

Sustainability, AI, people: the macro trends to watch this year - By David Sables - CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants

We are emerging from three bruising years, during which the industry has circled the wagons and played safe. In this next era, inflationary pressures will li...

14/10/2022

CPI issues dominated the GCA conference. Let’s stamp out the unfairness - By David Sables - CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants https://buff.ly/3eCQMKl

The GCA conference last week had all the usual themes: GSCOP drives huge improvement, fear of retribution has half of suppliers refusing to use it. But what ...

05/09/2022

The role of the GCA isn’t in doubt. But the code is up for debate By David Sables CEO - Sentinel Management Consultants -

Small business minister Jane Hunt by now has recognised her blunder in targeting the GCA role for efficiencies: the GCA office is funded by the 14 retailers ...

05/08/2022

Heinz and Mars won’t beat Tesco in a PR battle over price rises - By David Sables - CEO Sentinel Management Consultants -

The Tesco vs Heinz/Mars pricing spats jog memories of Marmitegate in 2016, when Unilever had its fall-out with Tesco. Before that, Heineken, and Walkers/Peps...

24/06/2022

Collaboration with retail customers is not easy when you need to raise the price every couple of months and there are no rules. - By David Sables - CEO Sentinel Management Consultants

When the GCSOP survey results are published, the industry coalface is momentarily transfixed. This league table of retailer compliance is the best thing the ...