Archived Vendors Who Don't Give a Crap

[NitroKing2110]

Does anyone else's store have vendors who don't give a crap? Today, two of our vendors, frito lay and Pepsi parked all their stuff not in an aisle like they're supposed to, but in a line that completely cut off access to the baler and compactor. My ETL-GE was back there making bales and compacting stuff and he turned around and was unable to exit the area. He basically had to play "your authority is not recognized in fort kickass" until someone came along from the walkie to move the stuff.

How do your stores deal with such things? My CTL and reverse logistics guru set clear expectations of the vendors to ensure that both them and us can do our jobs unhindered, yet they still seem to ignore it. Vendors will block off entire aisles to stock 4 sections of product (and take their sweet time), and will oftentimes demand a TM drop everything they're doing to help the vendor, regardless of if that TM is qualified to do so (backroom certified).

 

[Guest]

Nitro, vendors are like that at my store. They can be very annoying and needy. You're right about blocking the pathway in the backroom. And they get so bent out of shape when you need to get by. I also love how the soda vendors leave their pallets on the line and never wrap their product. And they act like a minion backroom team member is supposed to know where all of their shit is and that I'm the one that signs their papers.

 

[Backroom81]

If you can get away with it, refuse their trucks. Sales reps for grocery vendors are paid based on what is shipped to a store. When you start turning away their freight, they will straighten up real fast. However, many ETLs won't play hardball like that because it can affect brand.

 

[NitroKing2110]

Nitro, vendors are like that at my store. They can be very annoying and needy. You're right about blocking the pathway in the backroom. And they get so bent out of shape when you need to get by. I also love how the soda vendors leave their pallets on the line and never wrap their product. And they act like a minion backroom team member is supposed to know where all of their shit is and that I'm the one that signs their papers.

Yes. The Pepsi vendor started going off on me for using a pallet jack to move one of their pallets "this is vendor product and is not the property of target therefore you aren't allowed to touch it, period. I will be talking to your supervisor." Like dude, I have a call button going off, I'm not waiting for you to get off your phone to get out of my way. Later, my ETL said the vendor complained that I refused to accommodate his responsibilites, and I had a very fun conversation with her about the obstacle course he made me and how if there was an emergency I couldn't have gotten out. I hope he got a red score for that.

If you can get away with it, refuse their trucks. Sales reps for grocery vendors are paid based on what is shipped to a store. When you start turning away their freight, they will straighten up real fast. However, many ETLs won't play hardball like that because it can affect brand.

Oooh, justice! Man do I wish my ETL-LOG and CTL would consider something like that, alas my ETL-LOG's no-nonsense attitude applies only to the TMs.

 

[Guest]

I think wine and beer vendors are the worst. Another thing I love is how some soda vendors show up at 6pm and start moving shit. And of course, I get off at 730pm so I have to wait for them to finish so I can clean up their mess.

 

[oath2order]

I remember the previous ETL-Logistics, back when he first started the position, I vaguely remember him yelling at the Pepsi vendor to "keep his goddamn pallets off the floor when we're open"

 

[Guest]

Lol, my store used to be a lot stricter on vendor pallets. We would have to have all of the pallets put up if there was a truck day. Now we just have to make sure the pallets are off the line. There's usually no room to put them up on the steel. And I'm not gonna waste 10 minutes wrapping their shit up.

 

[oath2order]

If you can get away with it, refuse their trucks. Sales reps for grocery vendors are paid based on what is shipped to a store. When you start turning away their freight, they will straighten up real fast. However, many ETLs won't play hardball like that because it can affect brand.

This is what I imagine Jack would do as an ETL.

 

[mrknownothing]

Two words: Vendor Scorecard.

 

[NitroKing2110]

Two words: Vendor Scorecard.

Can anyone fill one out or does it have to be CTL or RevLog?

 

[Guest]

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

Can anyone fill one out or does it have to be CTL or RevLog?

Let your ctl know about the issues. They will give them a flaming red for it.

 

[zoned2deep]

Apparently the Nabisco vendor at my store never FIFOs anything, ever.

 

[Backroom22]

If any vendors leave pallets or product on my dock I throw in in their pallet spaces or shelves in a way that will make them want to take care of it next time. Also, we do pay vendors for their product so we can move it if we need too.

 

[AdItemOnly]

Apparently the Nabisco vendor at my store never FIFOs anything, ever.

"These aisle strips said Reverse! I thought that meant the dates too!"

 

[Patty]

Jack, what the he double hockey stick is that scary thing that is coming on May 1? He needs to get the h eck going and come already!

 

[RetailWorld]

Level set expectations and ensure they know what behaviors they need to change. Fill out the survey every week

If you have 4 weeks of continued red scores, partner with your STL. They will escalate this to the appropriate field leader. Develop a Red Vendor Action Plan.(Search workbench)

If 2 more weeks go by with zero improvement, mySupport it. Include all conversations, scores, emails that the STL has sent, a copy of the action plan, and violations that occurred after the action plan was delivered. The mySupport will then be forwarded to the vendors higher ups. Every vendor I've had issues with has been solved this way. Typically your current vendor will just get rerouted, or if they've had other issues, fired.

 

[Jack of all Workcenters]

It gets fun when you call your vendors boss, or in one particularly shitty case, you call the corporate number and have the salesman appear an hour later.

 

[POGguy]

We have strict dock hours of 6am-Noon, Monday-Friday. Vendors can come in from 6am-noon on weekends to stock but there isn't anyone to receive their order. Our receiving guy is pretty laid back but even then his vendors don't step outside that line.

Didn't know it was such a problem at other stores.

 

[Mister Bulky]

The situation I run into with vendors, coming from an overnight logistics perspective, is having to move all their pallets to set up for the truck unload. We routinely have to move 8-10 pop pallets and the Nabisco and Keebler pallets out to the floor to set up each night and then bring them back in after the unload is done. It has gotten better, though...a few years ago we had to move 20-30 a night (the most ever was over 50...we had pop pallets in the backroom because we ran out of floor space in receiving for that one). Our new STL's goal is to make it clear to them that we are not their free warehouse space and to deliver only what you need daily.... I wish her luck on that. We used to have vendors that would Jenga their pallets (take stuff haphazardly from the middles and sides) which would cause them to collapse when moved them each night. If I had more then the 30 minutes I'm allotted for setup, I'd rewrap every pallet we get in, but...
Fun story: we had a team member who dumped 3 pop pallets in one night bringing them back in...he was put on FW for that.

 

[signingminion]

Yeah we rarely have such issues. Biggest issue is them over pushing into areas...or the bread vendors refusing to stock the pb&j endcap cause it's a back endcap...we do let the soda vendors bring their pallets on the floor after open but they are normally in and out before 9am.

 

[sigma7]

Yeah, you have to reign vendors in when they get like that. Give 'em and inch and they'll take a mile. We vendors have too much product we let them know we'll refuse future orders until they get their product worked out and credits processed. And we follow through on that. Also, I'll score them red if they're red.

 

[RetailWorld]

There's a best practice for how much space a vendors gets for your workchart. Should also be on workbench. Mark them red for backroom organization if they go over that.

 

[anathema]

Vendors are some of the worst people I've had to interact with. They're all lazy, incompetent, and do not care about the mess they make, be it on the sales floor or in the backroom.

It's work that's perfect for morons that just learned how to use their opposable thumbs and can just manage to string together a coherent sentence before drooling all over themselves.

 

[semantics]

Didn't know it was such a problem for other stores our venders pretty much don't cause problems. The only issue we have is that they spill or break something they don't tell anyone and just leave when they are done. Else they keep to doing their job like they are suppose to, FIFO making sure not to block an aisle, get in the way of the backroom for long periods of time, etc.