AHOLD USA VIEWS ITS TRADE FAIRS and other industry events tied to supplier diversity a key tool in its effort to have a diverse supply base.
This year, the company hosted several of these trade fair events in each of its various operating areas in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic, and was scheduled to have a presence at about two dozen more affiliated with various nonprofit groups.
This year for the first time Ahold hosted a companywide Local/Diverse Business Opportunity Fair, in Hershey, Pa., that attracted more than 140 vendors. More than half of those, the company said, were based within Ahold USA's geographic footprint.
“These shows speak to our commitment in this area, because these suppliers are guaranteed an opportunity to speak with the buyers,” said Jodie Daubert, senior vice president, sales development, Ahold USA. “They don't show up and hope that someone approaches them. We arrange it so that every single company that attends has an opportunity to speak with a buyer.”
At another recent event in Massachusetts exclusively for the Stop & Shop chain, Ahold attracted 109 vendor companies.
“We take a more proactive approach, rather than waiting for those guys to come to us,” said James Sturgis, director of supplier diversity and trade relations, Ahold USA.
Sturgis and his team also regularly attend the conferences of various trade groups affiliated with women- and minority-owned businesses, such as those hosted by the Women's Business Enterprise National Council and the National Minority Supplier Development Council. Sturgis himself is also the chairman of the Maryland/District of Columbia chapter of the NMSDC.
“It starts with getting the word out into these communities,” Daubert explained. “Then, once their foot is in the door, it's about providing the information and the resources and the coaching to help them navigate the system.”
The trade fairs hosted by Ahold have proven to be a resource not only for reaching women- and minority-owned businesses, but for small, local vendors as well, helping satisfy consumers' demands for more locally based offerings.
One such company that got its foot in the door through the trade fairs was the Appalachian Brewing Co., a Pennsylvania-based microbrewery which offered its root beer first through Giant of Carlisle's PA Preferred displays, and has since expanded at Ahold.
