Food procurement is a highly volatile commodity market. There are several reasons why food prices rise and fall, which include economic (exchange rates), legal (new legislation), the cost of raw materials (fuel, packaging), increased global demand for certain products (meat, dairy), weather conditions – just to name a few. Furthermore, buying products outside of an agreed list and being charged the wrong price are additional problems that will impact your budget/profit margin.
Not many organisations have the dedicated resources, time and specialist food market knowledge to manage supplier price negotiations, check invoice prices line by line and monitor contract compliance.
Post-tender price management is a key part of our bespoke professional procurement service. It is our job to limit any price increases, pass on price decreases and ensure that our clients obtain the best pricing for all their products for the whole duration of their contract.
Below are a few examples of how we helped some of our clients.
>>>CLIENTS REAL EXAMPLES
Ian Findlay, Bursar of Bradford Grammar School:
“After the first three months of our new contract coming into place with a fruit and vegetable supplier, they put forward a large price increase. Pelican rejected the increase as they could see they were not in line with the wider market place. The contract was reviewed and awarded to an alternative supplier, which we are very happy with. They managed this from start to finish – something that would have taken considerable time if we were to try this in-house.”
John Stirrat, General Manager from New Lanark Hotel and Visitor Centre, a World Heritage site in Scotland:
“We spend around £26K on butter annually (one of our top spend product) as we produce our own ice-cream which we sell to the public and distribute to other hotels and restaurants. With the recent price increases we were faced with an increased spend of £46k per year. Our Pelican procurement manager went to the market and sourced a butter of the same quality from a regional supplier. By switching products and suppliers, we were able to save £10K.”
Greg Hall, Financial Controller of Balhousie Care Group:
“Last year there was a significant increase in the market price of salmon – around 40%; Pelican was able to negotiate different products for us and suggest appropriate substitutes at prices similar to what we had been originally paying. Pelican does not just analyse price, but also nutritional elements to make sure that the right alternatives are provided which is key to the long term success of delivering what we need in a value for money environment.”
>>>HOW WE CAN HELP YOU
Minimise your price increases
Post-tender price management is a key part of our bespoke professional procurement service. It is our job to limit any price increases and decreases are past on and ensure that our clients obtain the best pricing for all their products for the whole duration of contract. In the contractual terms with suppliers and manufactures we will agree price review dates and notice periods.
Our extensive product pricing database (constructed from over 40,000 electronic invoices that we manage each day) enables us to compare any food prices against the market and other clients or suppliers, ensuring that any necessary price rises are fair, reasonable and as competitive as possible.
Our food procurement experts have detailed knowledge of the food market and foodservice supply chain. They manage all price reviews on behalf of our clients and provide detailed evidence to show price reviews are fair and just. They provide clients with impartial view – the facts of what is happening in the market.
They also provide advice on what actions should be taken to minimise any price increases e.g. switching products, brands or pack sizes, but not at the expense of quality.
Contract compliance monitoring
On top of all that, we help clients with contract compliance monitoring. We highlight all purchases outside of your agreed list. If any new products need to be sourced we will negotiate the most competitive price before adding them to the contract.
Invoice price checking
We will automatically check all your invoices (line by line) against your agreed contact price list to ensure you are not overcharged. We arrange credits on your behalf if prices differ.
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>>>CONTACT US
Please contact our procurement team to find out how we could assist your organisation with managing suppliers, price, quality and service – email hello@pelicanprocurement.co.uk or call 01252 705214.
