Ask the Collective
The questions independent drinks founders ask most — answered. Distilled from years of community knowledge so the good stuff never disappears in the feed again.
What are the contact details for buying teams at major UK retailers, food halls, and pub chains?
Members have shared specific buying contacts for several major retailers and venues. Here's what the community has on file: **Retailers & Food Halls:** - **Diverse Fine Food** — Mark (mark@diversefinefood.co.uk) and Nicki (Nicki@diversefinefood.co.uk), both Directors - **Planet Organic** — Issy Turney (issy@planetorganic.com) for RTD/spirits - **Wholefoods** — Alice Fishman (Alice.Fishman@wholefoods.com) for RTD/spirits - **John Lewis Food Halls** — Uses the same buying structure as Waitrose for each category; GBExchange / Fells handle alcohol route to market to JLP - **Waitrose** — John Vine is the buyer; Lucille Kavanagh runs special event style launches and may be relevant for compelling stories - **Partridges** — Carlo is the drinks buyer (wines@partridges.co.uk or wine@partridges.co.uk); note that Partridges stock through HT Drinks and Enotria, and Carlo prefers in-person visits over email. He's often in store. **Pub Chains:** - **Urban Pubs and Bars** — Adam Donnelly (adam.donnelly@urbanpubsandbars.com) for spirits range decisions **Clearance/Closeout:** - **Heley International** — Nick L (NickL@heley-int.com) buys close-to-expiry or clearance stock **Important caveat:** Members noted that some buyers (notably Partridges' Carlo) do not respond to email and require in-person contact; visiting in store is the recommended approach. SSP and WHSmith contact details were requested but not provided in the community discussion.
How do you get products into arena accounts and major retail chains through wholesale distributors?
Getting into arena accounts typically requires going through major wholesale distributors. Members' experience: **Matthew Clark (MCW)** — The primary route for many arena accounts; note that Bibendum is part of the C&C group, so MCW listings may be necessary. Be aware that the new listings process is notoriously complex and slow (described as "kafkaesque" by members), and contact points may change frequently. **Majestic** — Members have had success getting replies and pursuing listings directly. **Harrods** — Responsive to direct approaches; one member successfully leveraged a personal connection (former team member who previously worked there) to get a conversation. **Key tactic:** Personal connections and referrals can be valuable—mentioning shared history or mutual contacts may improve your chances of getting through to the right person. **Caveats:** Contacts at major distributors change regularly (one key contact was noted as leaving in January), so expect timelines to shift and relationships to need rebuilding. The process is slow and can feel unresponsive at times.
How do you locate retail buyer contacts and secure an initial meeting with major grocery retailers to pitch your product?
Getting buyer contact details and securing initial meetings with major retailers is notoriously difficult; members report a "ghost town" of unanswered emails. **Known contacts:** - **Whole Foods** — Alice Fishman is listed as a buyer (previously assistant buyer), though members note she is not responsive to outreach - **Winerack** — spirits buying may be handled by store managers or centrally; members recommend confirming the decision-making structure before approaching **Getting a first meeting:** Members shared several tactics (some tongue-in-cheek) for breaking through: - Members report that traditional email outreach to buyers often goes unanswered, making it difficult even to present your full proposition - One member mentioned that £30k in listing fees could facilitate an introduction via a contact named John Vine - The consensus is that direct buyer contact is extremely challenging and requires persistence beyond standard email campaigns **Key caveat:** The community acknowledged that cracking initial buyer meetings remains one of the hardest parts of retail sales, with no silver-bullet solution shared. Networking and warm introductions (rather than cold outreach) appear to be more effective than email alone.