Jon Faber, CEO of Envoy B2B, and Mike Massy, Founder and CEO of Locally, join Rick Saez of The Outdoor Biz Podcast for an episode centering around how brands can better support their specialty retailers. They cover topics including how Envoy B2B and Locally help brands and retailers get smart with local consumer product trends, keeping up with the competition, supporting their retailers, and more.
We’ll cover a few of the major beats, but to hear the full story, listen to the episode by clicking the play button below!
The integration between Envoy B2B and Locally is a game-changer for brands, reps, and retailers alike. The integration aligns local consumer demand with local availability, empowering retailers to delight their customers and proactively replenish their inventory.
“We bring the retailers’ on-hand inventory from Locally into a brand’s B2B portal through Envoy B2B. This allows the brand reps to use this information to sustain their retail accounts,” stated Jon. “Secondarily, the integration helps brands get the right product in the right store by using something we like to call ‘consumer product demand intelligence’.”
“What that means is that we can show brands which of their products are trending in different dealer management systems (DMS) or market areas,” Jon explained. “Then we cross-reference that data with the products that retailers are actually carrying.”
Reps can see trending products from Locally that consumers are interested in through their retail partners. This powerful insight enables reps to get their retailers on-trend so they receive more of the popular “shop online, pick-up in-store” business. Reps are able to support their retailers by proactively offering replenishment recommendations and increase sell-through by keeping popular products in stock.
To learn more about the power of Envoy B2B and Locally, click here.
Ultimately, there are two ways for brands and retailers to keep up with their competition:
As stated in the podcast, “Engaging with your community is everything.” In today’s market, brands and retailers get smarter by participating in a community and gaining knowledge from them.
Retailers can tap into local shoppers for a reliable, constant stream of feedback. But, they also have the business community coordinating with the current brands, and the software community providing them with the tools to work more efficiently. Overall, there are all of these different communities that retailers can participate in, and the more a brand participates within that same community, the smarter and stronger they will be.
Using technology, retailers can leverage their available tools to facilitate better consumer experiences and bolster growth. However, many specialty retailers fear they will lose their independence by embracing technology. But, Mike and Jon say that is not the case.
Retailers are able to use Envoy B2B and Locally to identify and track local consumer demand. This enables them to stay on-trend and ensure they carry high-demand products. This increases visibility with consumers and gives retailers the chance to fulfill shop online pick-up in-store opportunities.
It’s the same from the perspective of brand availability. Having the technology to share what's available or what’s coming up next is highly important. It's all about forging this kind of data-centric relationship with the retailer in order to move forward.
Jon: “The community will engage with the new kinds of technologies that you bring to the table. They're ready for it. And they want it. And in fact, they understand now more than ever why it's valuable to them.”
When it comes to the local and specialty retail space, there can be a lot of noise. But, Mike points out which space is really emerging for these retailers.
Mike explains that when you look at almost every industry (from travel, to dining, to entertainment) you're going to see a group of consumers shopping online and physically (either through local pick-up or same-day delivery). He provided examples of food delivery services like GrubHub, Airbnb bookings for vacations, and online ticket ordering through Ticketmaster.
“But the challenge and resistance for retailers has been the resistance to some type of shared standard of exchanging data,” he stated. However, a specialty retailer can (and should) exchange that data with their consumers while also being able to provide additional services like fitting, advice, same-day pick-up, and local delivery.
Jon added, “There's this beautiful thing happening with a lot of specialty accounts that I'm talking to that are leveraging the shop online, pick-up in-store, or same-day delivery type of deal. That concept has proliferated across such a larger part of a consumers’ day that now they expect it. This will be sticking around.”
The podcast covers a lot of different ways brands can support their retailers, but Jon has a clear frontrunner – people working together.
“Our brands need to acknowledge that they made it, they're currently making it through this. It wasn't a trade show package. It wasn't a new virtual reality experience. It wasn't a bunch of these things that get thrown at you. It was you and your retailers really doubling down on your relationship and working together,” stated Jon.
But, it’s important that brands don’t digitally overcompensate with virtual reality experiences. It’s important to find new ways to get in front of your retailers. The reality is that they like to see your product, hold it, and experience it in person. Overall, finding a way to forge a meaningful and strong supportive relationship with their specialty retailers is something that needs to be done.
Jon goes on to explain that brands need to continue to work with their retailers in a more data-centric way and to focus on the availability of products. Making sure that they have enough merchandise on their store shelves and keeping their availability up to date is critical.
Mike followed up by saying “The best thing a brand could do at this point is take a more global and holistic view of how they partner with local retailers. Local retailers still represent almost 90% of total retail sales. It's a critical part of every brand's solution.” he explains. “Making sure that your brand is truly partnering with local retailers and using tools that empower them, rather than creating various silos that treat local retailers as a competitor, is a really smart tactic for every brand.”
Want more great insights, tips, and advice on how to streamline your wholesale channels and support your specialty retailers? Make sure to listen to the rest of the podcast by clicking here.