Jarrod Swaine, General Manager for National Marketing, speaks after 36 years at Ritchies Stores about relationships, rewards and respect with Retail World.
Jarrod Swaine
When did you first come to Ritchies? What have your roles in business brought about?
I first came to Ritchies as a casual worker 36 years ago and worked in our shop on Towerhill Road in Frankston, Victoria. From there I switched to management and then had a supervisory role, which then briefly turned into a part-time purchasing and monitoring function before I finally took over full-time purchasing as our business numbers grew.
When I started there were only eight stores in Ritchies. As we continued to grow, the role expanded to take on marketing, business development and more recently energy efficiency. Today, Ritchies owns and operates 76 supermarkets, most with liquor stores, on the east coast in three states. This year Ritchies is celebrating its 150th birthday.
How did you ensure that ritchies evolve over time?
Through the personal active participation in all new shop and renovation designs as well as in goods, we were able to develop and create concepts in cooperation with suppliers and to introduce new concepts from overseas and inland quickly and in line with the current trends.
What were some of the biggest challenges along the way?
From a purchasing perspective, one of the challenges we are constantly dealing with is the constant changes in supplier account management. Indies are inherently a difficult business for any supplier, so they usually use us as a training ground for the chains. This often results in account managers working less than two years. This then affects our business while the new account manager needs to learn about the ropes and their own limitations. Where we have had a relationship manager for many years, their understanding of our business is much higher and they can generally achieve superior results.
Government regulations have raised challenges on the road to compliance, and while they always seem substantial at the time, they simply become the “norm” over time.
The relationship between Metcash and retailers was until recently the most discussed challenge between retailers and suppliers. We are in a unique situation in the world where the wholesaler owns our banner but not the shops. This creates many challenges that we deal with every day. Whenever two companies have to work together, but share the "cake", there will always be arguments about who should receive which "slice" size. After working with this model for decades, you will learn to use it to the best of your ability.
Last and last should be COVID-19. I have never seen anything like it in 36 years and I hope we will never do it again. Although all supermarkets have achieved significant additional sales, the effects at home and abroad are enormous and the full impact is not yet felt. Our hearts go out to everyone who has lost a loved one or has lost a job or closed a business as a result of this unprecedented event.
We continue to try to source high-demand products and ensure that our teams and customers practice social distancing to protect themselves and their families during this global crisis.
How would you describe your leadership style and way of working with Ritchies stakeholders?
I have always encouraged the members of my various teams to think about problems and find solutions to their problems before I bring them to me to solve them. Encouraging the team to think for themselves pays off when management may not be around to give them an answer. If you weigh the cost impact of your decision and can weigh it against the outcome, you will generally make smarter decisions in the long run.
Given the long tenure of the entire senior team at Ritchies, we interact very well and respect each other's skills and abilities. We don't have management levels that block decisions so we can respond quickly to market changes. We still have different opinions on different topics and do not always agree, but respect that everyone can only argue based on their individual business areas and the main goal is to get the best result for the company.
Ritchies has a reputation for offering a variety of products, including many smaller local brands. What do you pay attention to when considering new ranges and how can brands attract your attention?
Yes, Ritchies has always looked for differences outside of the mainstream area available through Metcash. This has been reinforced since the introduction of the Fine Food and Wine concept, in which we have expanded our range by almost 4,000 new lines. This is usually the opposite of our chain colleagues who are always looking for ways to reduce their reach.
The types of lines we are looking for are tailor-made and unique lines, be it locally made or a desirable ingredient for a meal or a recipe. Lines that are of a first-class nature and not widely used in the chains play an outstanding role in our Fine Food and Wine Stores.
Ritchies has been recognized nationally and internationally for its business. What role have you played in the design of the business and where do your ideas come from?
The design of all of our new and refurbished stores was one of my favorite parts of my varied tasks every day. The design of these stores was the culmination of many excursions overseas and domestically, examining what others were doing, developing products and concepts, and combining them into one store.
Interacting with our fresh food teams has also allowed them to develop their roles and play a key role in these designs so that they can bring in their own knowledge and be adventurous.
Some of these new concepts worked very well, while others did not live up to expectations. The key is not to be valuable, to identify those that are underperforming and either modify them or remove them from future designs while being open to other emerging trends.
What's next for you and Ritchies?
The further expansion of our Fine Food and Wine model is high on the agenda. Another five new and renovated stores will be closed under this premium branding over the next 18 months. Ritchies is always looking for new business opportunities. Regardless of whether there are existing operators who want to sell greenfield sites, all options are carefully considered.
We currently have a lot to do to deal with the COVID-19 virus, which affects the market and evolves daily. The immediate future is unclear, but one thing is certain: we continue to evolve in the course of the current challenges and come out at the other end as a much stronger and closer knitting business that concentrates much more on each other.
Personally, I love Australia and have made several long trips through this great country. I had planned another trip, a 10 week 4WD trip with my wife Lynette who works next to me in the shop, but unfortunately this was canceled due to border closures. I will now postpone this to another time when things return to normal.
