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Mike’s experience as a buyer and head buyer across retail formats.
Road2Retail podcast
An Interview with Senior Merchant Mike Wilkins.
Senior merchant Mike Wilkins shares advice for small and emerging brands working with national retailers. Drawing on his experience as a buyer and head buyer across several retail formats, he discusses how brands should approach the relationship and where suppliers can encounter problems.
Guest
Mike WilkinsSenior Merchant
Watch the interview
Watch on YouTubeAbout this episode
Mike Wilkins joins Road2Retail to discuss national retail relationships from a merchant’s perspective. Over his career, he has worked as a buyer and head buyer at large retailers across multiple classes of trade. He uses that experience to consider how a small or challenger brand should think and act when working with a major account.
The conversation includes actions brands can take to support their retail business and areas where they can get into difficulty. Mike’s advice centers on the supplier’s conduct within the relationship, giving emerging brands a view of the expectations and concerns on the buyer’s side.
Topics covered
Working with national retailers
How a smaller brand should approach a major account relationship.
Supplier pitfalls
Areas where emerging brands can encounter problems with retail partners.
Presentation Review
Sharpen retailer sell-in presentations and annual line-review decks.