On a periodic basis, NAC Director of Education Shelley Feldman will be posting short articles on NAC Online relating to concessions issues. If you have a particular question for Shelley, you may email him at info@NAConline.org, attn: Shelley Feldman.

The Relationship Between Operator and Supplier

More and more today, we find food service supplier companies seeking ways to improve their relationships with customers and operators. As part of their customer service efforts, they want to know how to raise the level of customer service in these days of intense competition.

Over the years NAC has been promoting the Concession Manager Certification course as a way to teach supplier salespeople and executive personnel how a concession manager operates within the environs of a foodservice operation and thus see "how the other half lives and works." Several corporations have taken advantage of this opportunity by either holding a corporate program for their personnel, or by sending some of their employees to attend a certification course. The results have been very good and many who attended have told of how their newfound knowledge helped in their sales calls and in obtaining a closer relationship with their customers.

In addition to learning how a foodservice manager uses facts, history, assumptions and computations to manage his or her operation, suppliers need to brush up on their use of the English language in communicating with their customers. The proper use of phrases can change the perception of the person and the company. Below are some examples from Leland and Bailey in an article on customer service:

Knowledge is power, so seek and you shall find. Language can be the key in developing and maintaining a mutually beneficial relationship between supplier and operator.

Shelley Feldman