How to choose your suppliers

When it comes to choosing your suppliers, we believe that its about quality over quantity. Take the time to evaluate what a supplier can offer as well as their past experience to reduce inventory stress.

For anyone who is looking at new suppliers, we encourage you to consider the below six points before placing your orders.

1. Innovation
   You want to be working with vendors that believe in the benefits of change. Look for those that are keen to experiment, learn and adapt but also have the capacity to teach and implement new practices in your own company.
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2. Deep pockets
   You don't want to be committing to anything before completing a financial health check on a potential new supplier and this stands especially true for smaller ones.
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3. Diversity
   In the same token that you should have a diverse supply chain, you want the same from your vendors. Try to get your hands on as much information as possible on their supply network and foresee any potential risks you could mitigate and prepare for.
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4. A global presence
   This can help to protect against the impact of local supply shocks and support your own expansion plans.
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5. Tech
   You want to be working with suppliers who are using tech based solutions to make processes, updates and interactions as smooth as possible. Imagine a world where there was automated order processing and real-time order status…
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6. Sustainability
   No longer a tag line, sustainability should be a top of the list priority for all retailers and should be front of mind for your suppliers too. Find vendors who are enthusiastic about working towards these goals and helping to implement the infrastructure to making these a reality.

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