Fascia Guide: Booker

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Premier

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Criteria for becoming a member: Stores need to be a minimum of 600sq ft and retailers must spend a minimum £4,000 a week , support the Premier promotional programme and operate EPoS, which is free to stores joining the group.

Costs of becoming a member: Free to join, but stores would need to meet the Premier criteria.

What financial packages or credit terms do you offer? There is a range of leasing and financial packages to help with capital expenditure and also commercial mortgages for Premier members. Credit terms are agreed as part of the sign-up process.

Minimum length of contract: Three years

Do you offer a trading area agreement? If so, within what radius is a member assured exclusivity? Each store is assessed on an individual basis, taking into account catchment area and local competition.

Minimum drop requirement: The minimum drop value is £1,000, excluding tobacco.

What options do retailers have for ordering goods? Online through Booker’s website or through the retailer’s EPoS.

How many own-label lines do you have listed and what are the own-label ranges? We offer more than 1,000 own-brand products in Euro Shopper, Happy Shopper and Farm Fresh, along with a host of alcohol brands. We have also introduced new lines across fresh pizza, cooked meats and ready meals with our quality Discover the Choice range.

What arrangements do you have for fresh produce and chilled and frozen foods? We offer a full range of fresh and frozen products that can be delivered from the local Booker branch direct to customer’s stores.  To maximise availability, the full Booker fresh and chilled range is always available in-depot for customers to collect. We can offer the Londis Fresh range and customers should pick up with their local retail development manager to understand more about this.

How many of your retailers have EPoS and how do you encourage them to take on new technology packages?The ma jority of Premier stores have EPoS and we also offer a free-of-charge system for retailers.

Do you invest in consumer advertising? Yes, we produce more than 3.5 million consumer leaflets every month and our Mega Deal promotions are advertised on TV. Social media is also being used for consumer advertising, with new and improved animations available for Premier retailers to use.

What promotions do you offer? We have a package covering chilled, frozen, BWS, healthy living and everyday low pricing running every four weeks. This is supported by free leaflets for retailers to distribute in their area and full point-of-sale, including posters, shelf-barkers and stack cards. We have worked hard to improve retailer profit-on-return (POR) on our promotional package.

Our Mega Deals are designed to drive footfall and deliver a POR of more than 15%. Most of our core deals now deliver at least 25% POR. This will help our retailers offer great deals to their shoppers but also protect their profitability. We now include one “Wow” deal in addition to our Mega Deals on the front page of the Premier leaflet that is designed to drive repeat purchases.

What category management help can you provide? Booker’s merchandising teams will design a store layout, with current trends, growth categories and local products all being considered. We also support with the re-merchandising of the store to ensure the range maximises sales for our retailers.

What other support measures for retailers have you introduced recently and what do you plan to introduce in the near future? Regional WhatsApp groups to improve communication and ensure we respond to customers in a timely manner.

Why should an independent retailer join your group? The package is 100% free and retailers get fantastic local support through Booker’s network of 200 branches and more than 100 colleagues in our sales and development team. We offer market-leading promotions and delivery at cash and carry prices.

RETAILER PROFILE

Owner: Jaz Singh, Ajay Singh and family

Store name: Premier Morley Convenience Store    

Location: Morley, Leeds

Number of years as a member: 20 years

Turnover before and after membership: Store was originally taking £5,000 a week and this doubled after joining Premier. Further development in December 2019 saw a full store refit, with initial sales averaging £20,000 each week. This has continued to grow to a current average of £45,000.

Opening hours: 8am to 10pm.

Main advantages of membership: Market-leading promotional activity supported by great marketing. Fantastic everyday low pricing across the all areas of the store, especially in fresh, with the additional benefits of Spend & Save. Great retail development manager and branch team, who have always been there over the years to support me and my store in an ever-moving market.

Why did you choose to join this group rather than one of its competitors? The  Premier package really suits my business, with market-leading prices and zero costs to me as an independent retailer joining the group. The whole Booker and Premier team provide great guidance and support in developing my business, so I know I will be trading for many years to come. The Premier brand is always forward-thinking to maximise sales and profit for its retailers.

CONTACT

Fascia name: Premier

Address: Booker, Equity House, Irthlingborough Road, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire,

NN8 1LT

Telephone: 01933 371000

E-mail: premierenquires@booker.co.uk

Website: www.premier-stores.co.uk

Twitter: @mylocalpremier

First contact for potential members: 0808 178 8644

FACTFILE

Average store size: 1,300sq ft

Average store turnover: £15,000 a week

Number of UK retail members: more than 3,500

Names of all UK fascias: Premier, Premier Express