What are the standard fees for getting a spirits brand listed at major UK retail chains like Matthew Clark and Alchemist, and what negotiation room exists?

Matthew Clark charges **£500 per SKU per depot** for listings. With approximately 11 depots in their network, a full national listing typically costs around £5,000 total per SKU—though members report this can be negotiated down significantly depending on circumstances.

**Key negotiation tactics:** - **Commit to all depots at once** — committing to the full national roll-out gives you negotiating leverage to reduce or waive fees entirely - **Emphasise category need** — if you can argue the product is essential for those depots' ranges, you can push for no fee - **Use existing relationships** — members report obtaining listings "for free" when they had national account status or strong brand recognition (one member cited a Marco Pierre White listing that secured 2 SKUs across all depots with no charge) - **Contact** — Guy Dolden (Guy.dolden@hillsprospect.com) at Hills Prospect was mentioned as a useful contact

**Caveats:** Fees appear to be climbing and costs can mount quickly, especially when adding stock incrementally (one member noted Alchemist listings "costing us more and more"). The £500-per-depot figure is current as of the discussion but may have shifted since. Negotiation success seems highly dependent on brand strength and whether you're approaching as a new entrant or existing account holder.