ShelfNow partners with Taste Of London to champion independent producers and buyers
ShelfNow is proud to announce its partnership with the largest food and drink festival in the UK, Taste of London. From Wednesday 7th - Sunday 11th July and Wednesday 14th - Sunday 18th July, the online wholesale marketplace will be hosting VIP tasting sessions with 10 of its artisan producers. Hosted by chef, presenter and award-winning author Steven Lamb, each 20-minute session will be dedicated to one of ShelfNow’s producers. From tonic and spirit pairings with Double Dutch and non-alcoholic drink tasting with Pentire to healthy snack tasting with Well &Truly and condiment tasting with Pico Sauces to name a few.
Set in Taste of London’s VIP Lounge, the event cements ShelfNow as the leader in digital disruption of food and beverage wholesale. Next to household names including Laurent-Perrier, ShelfNow empowers the 10 producers through the introduction of their brands to an influential audience of foodies, retailers and trendsetters.
Connecting Producers and Retailers
Taste of London is a celebration of food and culinary excellence and therefore the perfect fit for ShelfNow. The company is excited to showcase its artisan brands and how it connects fantastic products with independent retailers through its AI-powered marketplace, ultimately empowering consumers to access higher quality food.
Championing people and their businesses is at the heart of ShelfNow, facilitating trade and disrupting traditional wholesale models, enabling a closer connection between producers and the independent buyers of their product. ShelfNow handles all the payments and invoicing so producers and buyers can do what they do best, producing and selling great products from across the UK and Europe, whilst reducing their costs of distribution. Since launching in 2019, the brand has partnered with hundreds of food and beverage brands and buyers to enable them to expand their sales within the UK independent market.
The Pandemic’s Effect on Wholesale
Throughout a difficult year, ShelfNow supported brands, buyers, their families and local communities and helped to ensure their continued success. As lockdowns led to food shortages, many people supported their local independent stores. The Whole Sale Company latest trends report indicates 50% of millennials can now see a time when they no longer visit the supermarket and convenience retail has grown from 20% to 28% over the last 12 months compared to supermarkets. Meanwhile, the Guild of Fine Food survey also found that 71.8% of retail respondents had established relationships with new suppliers in the UK.
Restrictions on fine dining led consumers to turn to local retailers for artisan food and beverages. ShelfNow witnessed an increase in artisan sales to independent retailers as demand grew. The company is proud to have built relationships with new buyers and producers, facilitating trade and increasing routes to market during this time.
ShelfNow Champions Accessibility
ShelfNow connects the top food and beverage brands from across the UK and Europe with buyers in the UK. The brand is dedicated to ensuring that artisan food and beverages are accessible for all and that European brands aren’t restricted from British buyers.
ShelfNow is dedicated to fostering a fairer food supply chain and provides a more affordable wholesaler for small brands without the storage costs of traditional wholesalers. The option of buy now, pay later for ShelfNow’s retail buyers equally can ease pressure on much-needed cash flow for qualified small independent buyers.
Philip Linardos, ShelfNow co-founder commented, “We are very excited to be partnering with the UK’s biggest food festival. Taste of London has a reputation as one of the most respected places for brands, restaurants and food lovers to exhibit at, and we are proud to be able to offer this opportunity to 10 of our producers.
“We’re passionate about disrupting the outdated wholesale model to allow small and medium-sized producers and buyers the opportunity to scale their businesses. We enable direct relationships for buyers and producers and facilitate fairer trading, something that traditional wholesalers have kept closed for many years.”
“The past year has shown that it’s now more important than ever for wholesale practices to be transformed and modernised to support independent businesses.”