Expert Input on Successful Selling.

Drug Store News: Who should attend and why?

Kathy Steirly: From Walgreens’ perspective, everybody wants to find the newest, latest, greatest niche item, and when you’re dealing with an organization the size that some of the top retailers are today, it’s very confusing and very difficult getting in the door for the first time.

We are very excited to be able to partner with [NACDS] and to create what we’re calling the new vendor day action for people that have new products, perhaps they’re already in smaller regional retailers, or maybe they’re selling through television outlets and are trying to get into more distribution opportunities for brick and mortar.

It’s a huge opportunity for education because the first part of the day, the Walgreens day, will feature some short presentations from people inside the organization as it pertains to “How do I find the vendor Web site?” or “What can I expect from accounting?” and “How do I get information?”

DrSN: Will Walgreens.com be there as a buying force?

Steirly: We do have category managers for the Walgreens.com program specifically, and they cover their own assigned categories. They obviously work hand-in-hand with the purchasing category managers for the stores but it is a tremendous opportunity. We’ve had some really exciting success stories. We’ve actually started programs and products online only, and due to the success of those programs have since rolled them out throughout the stores.

DrSN: Is online the only opportunity for new vendors?

Steirly: We’re going to talk about a lot of different opportunities which would involve not only testing, but ways to get displays kind of “Walgreenized.” We call it our toolbox. Ways to test, ways to advertise, ways to introduce new products. That’s what we’re intending to cover during the morning session on the Walgreens day.

DrSN: How does a small manufacturer prepare for a meeting like Successful Selling?

Steirly: One of the biggest frustrations that we run into is the fact that [new vendors] don’t understand we’re 6,000 stores and growing so, yes, you have to potentially deal with 12 [distribution centers]. It’s a tremendously complex process, which is why we’re so anxious to help out with some of this education. We do make the meeting times, once they are established, as efficient as possible.

DrSN: What opportunities do new companies have beyond Successful Selling?

Rich Swanson: The ORBD is made up of five chairs, but a lot of the committee members are comprised of volunteers we contacted after the Marketplace educational sessions [on Successful Selling]. So, besides presenting to the audience of attendees, those attendees then start to participate and help model the presentation and the data that is being presented. It’s another working experience.

Walgreens and Kathy’s team brought [these] members of our products-to-market team out into the stores and then had an excellent one-on-one session. We did that last year with five different retailers. This year is something new in that we have had more store visits to see how marketing and merchandising and processes are working at the store level. [Participants] also get that education first-hand with the retailer. That’s like a secondary step in participation in “Successful Selling II,” then they can sign up and be part of the business modeling of our committees [where] we have monthly conference calls, one-on-one sessions with our retailers [and] face-to-face meetings with the smaller groups within the committees who are working on specific assignments. It’s very interactive.

DrSN: How does a small manufacturer prepare for a meeting like Successful Selling?

Swanson: First and foremost, in my opinion, they’ve got to get into stores.We interviewed and we spent time with five retailers last year, and there wasn’t one meeting [where retailers didn’t report] that many of the people who call on them have never been in their stores. So, visit stores, look at your competitive segments and categories…what are the elements you need to even have a vision of bringing products to the food, drug, mass classes of trade?

DrSN: Can you lay out a roadmap about what happens between Successful Selling in February and Marketplace in June?

Swanson: We’re working on a mentoring program to really bring the new members [up to speed] and educate them about how to prepare for Marketplace. That starts on day one. We made phone calls to every new member of NACDS last year and kind of walked them through the processes. And we had retailers make those phone calls, as well.

I have strong feedback that there’s been a lot of interaction between third-party groups [who are] in the process of building strategic business plans [for participants of] Successful Selling I and Marketplace [last year]. You’re going to see a build in 2008 [of new companies coming to market], because they’re doing all the preparation work.

DrSN: What should first-time participants expect?

Swanson: The biggest surprise of any new vendor coming into Marketplace is the cost of entry. They’ve miscalculated the cost of entry. But we outline the diligence that is necessary for a vendor to do that work first, and if they have part of that done, there are groups that can help bring them over that hump.

There are some companies, I would say the majority of them if they have the financing behind them, that can make that hurdle from a February time period of Successful Selling this year into that June Marketplace. Not necessarily to have their major launch, but to go out there and present their position and gain the retailer’s feedback.