Last updated on March 25th, 2021
Valu Merchandisers Co. (VMC), a wholly owned subsidiary of Associated Wholesale Grocers Inc. (AWG), hosted its Fall 2018 Trade Show earlier this month at the Overland Park Convention Center in Kansas.
“The VMC show is a great way to connect and network with valued members, vendors and broker partners, VMC sales and merchandising teams and the Associated Wholesale Grocers division team members,” the company says. “VMC’s focus is to help drive sales and profits for (our) members.”
The fall 2018 show’s theme was “VMC Open: Driving Sales and Profits,” intended to resemble a golf tournament’s name. There was a scorecard that retailers used to visit the nine holes of the course, while checking out all of the deals in each section. To create additional excitement, there was a golf simulator on site for retailers to play for a chance to win some prizes.
Two new and improved opportunities were created to benefit VMC’s members and implemented during this year’s show. One new feature was to have solo truckload savings pricing available on the show floor. Product is shipped directly from the manufacturer to the retailer, saving on freight and a percentage of the mark up, better known as the “solo allowance.”
The second new opportunity included at the show was the learning lounge. During learning lounge sessions, industry experts educated members about different relevant topics such as trends and growth categories.
“It was a great show, I like being able to connect and engage closer with customers and explain what our brand is really about,” said Isaac Curiel, area sales manager of Bauducco Foods, a Florida-based marketer of baked goods.
Each year, VMC recognizes vendor partners for outstanding sales; innovative programs and execution; achieving exceptional results; and driving growth and customer satisfaction for members by presenting them with Vendor of the Year awards. This year’s winners are:
- Health & Beauty Care—Unilever
- Private Label—Raritan
- GM—Energizer
- Specialty Foods—Nestle Waters
- Natural/Organic—Newman’s Own
- Hispanic—Novamex
- Dollar—Delta Brands
Other highlights from the show included the new item showcase and extreme show prices (ESPs). The show also incorporated a detailed health, beauty and wellness area, which included VMC’s five pillars of health concept, the VMC pharmacy program, best choice deals, HBC category initiatives, and a WinCap endcap program. In the natural, organic and specialty food area, VMC highlighted the clearly/clearly organic program, Blue Buffalo pet food, new specialty water, an Asian planogram, and the “best in class” dollar program. As a part of seasonal savings, the show included a 2019 spring/summer program, and last minute Q4 holiday deals for members to take advantage of.
“The show provides good access to the vendors of the companies that are represented there. It helps me learn about new items and trends in the market, and it helps me get all of that at a good cost with different show deals such as ESPs,” said Rick Bhandari, director of pharmacy at Woods Supermarket in Missouri.
“The show was very organized and had many great deals. The members come to a one stop shop where they purchase their promotions for the next six months, have one-on-one time with the manufacturers/brokers, and see new innovations,” said Heather DeSoto, sales manager at VMC in Kansas City.
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