Gone are the days of being the “Vendor Overlord,” where you hovered over their comings and goings like a hawk ensuring they maintain their contracted level of service. Retail vendor management involves technology that puts their products at your fingertips and a level of flexibility, the likes of which have never been seen before. One aspect of that technology and flexibility is the ability for businesses, event specialists, and project managers to search online for vendors that meet specific criteria; that is what 4URSPACE is all about.
Communication is the foundation of all good relationships
If you have a good relationship with your vendors, you probably also have a good flow of two-way communication to keep each other informed before things become a problem. Whether you are looking for confirmation a purchase order has been received by them or where your ordered inventory is in the shipping process; the fact is when your vendor is transparent and openly communicates with you about the things that directly affect your business you are more at ease with them in general.
The anatomy of retail vendor management
If your retail location is the center or heart of your business, then you can think of your distribution centers as the limbs and your vendors as the fingers that bring products to nourish your business. Don’t think of your vendors as separate entities, but more as an extension of your business; finding vendors that work with your business rather than around it. The internet and technological tools serve as the eyes and ears of your logistics and supply chain management; automatic ordering, virtual purchase orders, even the ability to track shipments in progress are vital to maintaining open communications and building good vendor relationships.
Finding vendors and evaluating their work before signing them on
When you know what kind of vendors you need and where you are going to need them, the next task is finding vendors that meet those needs. It can be very time consuming just finding vendors, add to that the time it takes to review their portfolios and scope of their work, and pretty soon you find yourself staring down a completion deadline that could put you over budget.
If your business is new or you’re new to a particular industry, you may not know the best place to start a vendor search. Usually you have to start by making connections in your new location, ask for referrals, or even just search online. But this is time consuming, and if you don’t have the connections, you have to turn to friends of friends of friends before finding what you need. Can you really trust the referral of a third or fourth level connection?
You could hire someone else that knows the area to do the heavy lifting, but what if you could save money for the actual project and still save time in your search by using 4URSPACE? We connect you to vendors who are showcasing their work provides you the opportunity to check them out before contacting them, so you can decide whether or not you think they can deliver what you need; adding them to a list of quality prospects based on your specific priorities.
Quotes, proposals, and references
Finding vendors is a daunting task to be sure, but once you have your list of potential vendors be sure you look behind the window dressing. Have a purchase plan ready so you can request a quote, ask about delivery methods and times; if your needs are more planning and building, discuss the project and ask if they can provide a proposal for your project to include estimates on design and material costs and completion times.
Don’t be afraid to ask for customer references, and when you get them be sure to follow up with all of them. Ask them specifically what they liked about the vendor, what they didn’t like, if there were any issues or problems and how they were resolved. Be sure to check financial references wherever possible; you don’t want to partner with a vendor that is struggling to meet their fiscal responsibilities or you could find yourself struggling to maintain quality or quantity should they fail to uphold their end of an agreement.
Bringing it all together
When all is said and done we end up back where we started the conversation: Communication is the key. You need to effectively communicate your needs and expectations with your vendors and they need to communicate openly and honestly about what they can and cannot deliver for you. Retail vendor management is more than just finding vendors; it’s about creating a core group of reliable vendors that deliver what you need, when you need it.