Wholesaler Harlech Foodservice has launched a raft of measures including a new rewards app and a price comparison scheme.
Harlech, one of Wales’ leading independent foodservice wholesalers, says many businesses have been dealt a “real body blow” by controversial Budget measures, including the increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions.
The My Harlech loyalty app, unveiled at Harlech’s annual trade fair Expo 25, held at Venue Cymru in Llandudno on 12-13 March, rewards customers with a rebate of up to 10 per cent on what they spend with them each year.
They’ll qualify for a further 5 per cent rebate for the additional spend with Harlech compared to the previous year.
The company, which has bases in Cricieth in Gwynedd, Chester, Carmarthen, Merthyr Tydfil and Telford, has introduced the Harlech Top 50 price comparison scheme, with the prices of 50 of the most popular lines being benchmarked against Booker and published on the website every Tuesday.
Harlech has also launched its latest version of its Trust Our Prices campaign, with more than 300 prices locked down until June 7.
There’s also a return for its Mega Deals initiative with what it describes as “massive discounts” on popular brands and own branded products.
“We have very deliberately gone about disrupting the way foodservice companies have operated in the past,” David Cattrall, managing director of Harlech, said.
“For far too long there has been a common practice of announcing inflated prices and then going through a ritualistic charade to ‘negotiate the prices down’.
“That’s why we launched our hugely popular Trust Our Prices strategy because we are conscious that many of our customers are trading in an extremely difficult environment.
“Times are tough. After the nightmare of Covid, the Budget measures which come into force in April are a real body blow.
“The 1.2 per cent rise in Employer National Insurance contributions and a cut to the Secondary Threshold to £5,000 will add significant extra costs in terms of staff.
“What we’re trying to do with the My Harlech app and the other cost-saving initiatives is to ease the financial burden for our customers in hospitality, social care and education to help them ride the economic storm.
“We also want to make life a lot simpler for them with very competitive, transparent pricing – no hassle, no haggle – backed up by excellent customer service.”
Harlech, which last year acquired rival company Celtic Foodservices, services customers throughout Wales, the North West and the Midlands.
