The word "broker" often evokes mixed emotions across the supply chain. For many, it’s a term laden with skepticism and doubt. Brokers ask brands and manufacturers to trust them as loyal, effective sales agents. This trust can be challenging when brokers serve dozens or even hundreds of other brands, and their success depends heavily on their team's relationships with retailers. Moreover, within a single food brokerage, performance can vary greatly. But can we do better as an industry? Absolutely.
Let’s explore the value brokers bring to the supply chain, especially within the natural food and CPG (consumer packaged goods) industries.
Why Brokers Are Essential
Brokers play a crucial role in helping brands navigate the complex world of retail sales and the natural channel. Their key functions include:
- Selling products, line extensions, and programs to category managers at retail stores.
- Supporting supplier and product setup processes at both retailers and distributors.
- Crafting promotional programs that drive shelf velocity.
- Streamlining communication for category managers who lack time to meet every brand individually.
- Providing brands with valuable feedback to improve their market performance.
Without brokers, brands would need to shoulder the monumental task of identifying the right retailer contacts, presenting their products, and managing every aspect of setup, promotion, and distributor coordination. While this is possible, it’s often frustrating, distracting, and leads to slower growth. Food brokerages create efficiency and open doors for CPG brands, allowing them to focus on innovation and scaling their businesses.
Defining the Modern Broker
To deliver maximum value, modern brokers must evolve and operate at a higher level. Here’s how:
1. Focusing on Core Strengths
Modern brokers must clearly define their scope of coverage. Will they specialize in key retailers, a specific region, or the entire natural channel? Will they focus on certain categories, like perimeter-only products, or represent brands across the whole store?
For example, when I started Vdriven, we attempted to cover 4,000 retailers right out of the gate. We quickly learned that focusing on top retailers with the highest growth potential made us more effective for the brands we represent. Specialization ensures better results and stronger partnerships.
2. Operational Excellence
A successful food brokerage isn’t just about selling—it’s about getting products to shelves on time and in compliance with retailer and distributor requirements. From handling endless forms and systems to managing distributor setups, the operations side of food brokerage is critical.
A dedicated, skilled operations team can make or break a broker’s success. When evaluating a broker, brands should prioritize understanding their operational capabilities.
3. Building a Stellar Team
The backbone of any brokerage is its team. Modern brokers must hire “A” players who are humble, hungry, and people-smart. These are the characteristics that define high-performing teams:
- Humility: Awareness that there’s always room to grow.
- Hunger: A relentless drive to fulfill commitments and deliver results.
- People-smarts: Empathy and strong interpersonal skills.
- The Right Tools: Equipping team members with the knowledge and skills needed to succeed.
While skills can be developed, humility and hunger are qualities that take a lifetime to build. Brokers must foster a team culture rooted in excellence and accountability.
The Brand-Broker Partnership
A successful broker-brand relationship relies on mutual respect and clear accountability. While brokers act as valuable partners, brands ultimately own their success.
Brands should carefully select brokers who align with their goals and hold them accountable for performance. Brokers, in turn, must validate the brand’s hypotheses about pricing, packaging, and product-market fit. Honest, constructive feedback from brokers is often the key to unlocking a brand’s growth potential.
The most effective partnerships are built on positive tension—brokers provide expertise and feedback, while brands take ownership of their decisions and adapt based on retailer input.
Leading the Future of Food Brokerage
Modern brokers are more than sales agents; they are trusted partners in the CPG and natural food industries. As brokers, we must lead with respect, excellence, and a commitment to driving value across the supply chain.
At Vdriven, we embrace the responsibility of helping brands thrive in the competitive retail landscape. From the natural channel to mainstream retail, our mission is to support brands in achieving their full potential. We recognize that the world is changing rapidly, and we’re ready to adapt, innovate, and lead.
Ultimately, brokers play a vital role in keeping shelves stocked and consumers fed. It’s a privilege to dedicate our work to this incredible industry—and we are perpetually grateful for the opportunity to serve it.
Ready to Take Your Brand to the Next Level?
At Vdriven, we specialize in helping emerging and mid-size CPG brands navigate the natural food and retail landscape with strategy and purpose. Whether you’re looking to grow in the natural channel or streamline your retail sales, our dedicated team is here to help.
Contact us today to learn how we can partner with you to unlock new opportunities, drive growth, and bring your vision to life.
Luke Abbott
Luke is a Senior executive, consultant, and entrepreneur with experience in raising capital, accounting, CEO coaching, and retail domination best practices. As the President of Monterrey Provisions, he scaled and grew the company from $32M to $250M+ in revenue, and launched 3 startups along the way. His academic contributions as a Professor of Supply Chain at the University of San Diego have enriched his students with practical insights, preparing them as future business leaders. Currently, as CEO and Coach at Vdriven, Luke helps emerging brands in all aspects of retail.
