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General As the warm weather of summer comes along with the chance to enjoy the outdoors more and look forward to the festive season ahead, it is normally and ironically enough, a manic time in our industry. This is the time to maximise sales & focus on the traditional upswing, so here at Rothfords we have been working hard to ensure that our clients products are on shelf, well promoted and have the best opportunity to sell at optimum levels. At the recent annual FGC Conference that I attended a number of speakers talked about the changing environment we now trade in - from the "I want it now" theory of marketing and required speed to market expected by the trade & consumers to the perpetual drive for efficiencies, it can be anticipated that the coming years will be testing for all. But everyone has to eat - so irrespective of the state of the econonmy the food industry will continue to roll on. At Rothfords we have this year focussed on our ability to efficiently harvest sales from the trade in the various formats available, gather and analyse market information and grow sales via all channels available. The recent PDA implementation that automated our order collection processes and ability to gather market data has proven very successful and in 2011 our new telemarketing project to reach the route trade in a focussed and professional manner will assist in growing our clients sales into areas that have had little or no focus previously. We also have an ongoing focus on staff development and training in keeping with our HEART values and vision to have the best people. Staff News It is with regret that I accepted the resignation of our Foodservce Manager - Gareth McDonald - the other day. Gareth is moving on to new things with Fonterra and I would like to formally recognise the invaluable contribution Gareth has made to the development of our Foodservice offerring. Gareth will be sadly missed, but it has given us the opportunity to reflect upon the Foodservice business and how we can best meet the challenges of this segment of the market. Rothfords has been one of the few - if not the only - brokerage houses that has established an effective representation model in the Foodservice area nationwide and it is an area we would like to further develop. So watch this space as we revise the format of our Foodservice structure to better grow our clients' business in this channel. As we reflect on the past year I would like to also acknowledge the efforts of all our staff who have done a fantastic job in what has been a very testing year. Well done to you all and thank you. I also would like to thank our partners in business - our clients - who have shared the ups and the downs of the past twelve months and I look forward to developing enduring partnerships going forward. As the retail and foodservice sectors continue to mature the relationships we have with the people in the trade will continue to be crucial in understanding the requirements of our customers and how we can best be a part of making their businesses grow and prosper. So I would also llike to thank the many people in the supermarkets and foodservice channels that we deal with on a day by day basis. Summary The past couple of months have been so very busy - so like everyone I am looking forward to the post Christmas Eve period where for a few days we can kick back and enjoy that lovely quiet time between Christmas and New Year. Even if you are working (as I am this year - bring out the violins) it always has that holiday feel to it and on behalf of everyone at Rothfords I would like to wish you and your families a Happy and Safe Christmas and New Year. Tony Trilford News & Views » Dec News & Views Dec News & ViewsGeneral As the warm weather of summer comes along with the chance to enjoy the outdoors more and look forward to the festive season ahead, it is normally and ironically enough, a manic time in our industry. This is the time to maximise sales & focus on the traditional upswing, so here at Rothfords we have been working hard to ensure that our clients products are on shelf, well promoted and have the best opportunity to sell at optimum levels. At the recent annual FGC Conference that I attended a number of speakers talked about the changing environment we now trade in - from the "I want it now" theory of marketing and required speed to market expected by the trade & consumers to the perpetual drive for efficiencies, it can be anticipated that the coming years will be testing for all. But everyone has to eat - so irrespective of the state of the econonmy the food industry will continue to roll on. At Rothfords we have this year focussed on our ability to efficiently harvest sales from the trade in the various formats available, gather and analyse market information and grow sales via all channels available. The recent PDA implementation that automated our order collection processes and ability to gather market data has proven very successful and in 2011 our new telemarketing project to reach the route trade in a focussed and professional manner will assist in growing our clients sales into areas that have had little or no focus previously. We also have an ongoing focus on staff development and training in keeping with our HEART values and vision to have the best people. Staff News It is with regret that I accepted the resignation of our Foodservce Manager - Gareth McDonald - the other day. Gareth is moving on to new things with Fonterra and I would like to formally recognise the invaluable contribution Gareth has made to the development of our Foodservice offerring. Gareth will be sadly missed, but it has given us the opportunity to reflect upon the Foodservice business and how we can best meet the challenges of this segment of the market. Rothfords has been one of the few - if not the only - brokerage houses that has established an effective representation model in the Foodservice area nationwide and it is an area we would like to further develop. So watch this space as we revise the format of our Foodservice structure to better grow our clients' business in this channel. As we reflect on the past year I would like to also acknowledge the efforts of all our staff who have done a fantastic job in what has been a very testing year. Well done to you all and thank you. I also would like to thank our partners in business - our clients - who have shared the ups and the downs of the past twelve months and I look forward to developing enduring partnerships going forward. As the retail and foodservice sectors continue to mature the relationships we have with the people in the trade will continue to be crucial in understanding the requirements of our customers and how we can best be a part of making their businesses grow and prosper. So I would also llike to thank the many people in the supermarkets and foodservice channels that we deal with on a day by day basis. Summary The past couple of months have been so very busy - so like everyone I am looking forward to the post Christmas Eve period where for a few days we can kick back and enjoy that lovely quiet time between Christmas and New Year. Even if you are working (as I am this year - bring out the violins) it always has that holiday feel to it and on behalf of everyone at Rothfords I would like to wish you and your families a Happy and Safe Christmas and New Year. Tony Trilford 
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