The FMCG Retail industry has undergone significant transformation since 1999 when Efficient Consumer Response Australasia (ECRA) was established in the Australian and New Zealand markets.
The meet the changing needs of the sector it is time to evolve ECRA and re-energise our organisation to continue to meet the needs of the retailer, supplier and ultimately our joint consumers.
From today ECRA will be represented as the Trading Partner Forum.
The Trading Partner Forum (TPF) is the meeting place for suppliers and retailers focussing on end-to-end value chain efficiency.
A recommitment from Australian Food and Grocery Council, New Zealand Food and Grocery Counil and leading supermarket retailers: Coles, Foodstuffs, Metcash, Progressive and Woolworths will establish the platform for a broader reaching, stronger and more cohesive body as is required to deliver efficiency and improved availability across the shared end-to-end value chain, and that will ultimately provide great outcomes for our shared customer - the shopper.
We recognise that we work in a challenging and highly competitive environment and need a strong and cohesive body to address many of the issues and pursue opportunities we face across the value chain. The Trading Partner Forum will become the new meeting place for suppliers and retailers focussing on making this happen.
In markets the size of Australia and New Zealand we strive to align and standardise processes on non-competitive issues to provide the most efficient value chain operations possible, delivering benefits to the industry participants and to the shopper.
The Trading Partner Executive