Following last week’s announcement that Jempson’s have agreed to a partnership with Morrisons, I contacted Jempson’s managing director, Stephen Jempson who kindly agreed to an interview to explain how this decision had been reached and what we can all expect in the future.
As a family business Jempson’s have been hugely supportive of local charities and organisations, particularly the Rye Foodbank and some readers are wondering if this may now change. There have also been questions raised as to what effect this new partnership will have on prices, range of products and future opening times. These and other points were raised with Stephen in our discussion as detailed below.
Jempson’s have enjoyed a long standing relationship with your suppliers Nisa, why change course now?
“As a company we review our supply chain (where we purchase the bulk of our goods from) on a very regular basis. Jempson's joined Nisa in 1982 and for over 40 years Nisa have served Jempson’s very well. I had the privilege of serving on the Nisa Board for nine years and as deputy chairman for five years.
“However, in 2018 Nisa was sold to the Co-op. Most of the larger independent retailers in the country had sold out to the multiples (eg. supermarket chains), and the buying group was no longer sustainable on its own. The Co-op purchased the group and retained the contracts for supply of goods to the Nisa retailers.
“There were many things about the Co-op acquisition which aligned with our thinking, namely we would become part of a bigger group (Co-op £5bn turnover) and it would give us access to a more extensive own label range.
“Whilst we have tried to counter this it has become increasingly obvious with our larger stores that this will not work for us. I have been negotiating with Morrisons for nearly five years and have also had long discussions with three other supermarket chains as to which is the best route for Jempson's to take in the future.
“One major plus, that drew me to Morrisons was the fact that, of all the major retailers in the UK, they are the only one that own their own farms, nurseries, bakeries and even trawlers! This control of the supply chain is a great supplement to our existing network of small, local and artisan suppliers.”
What happened to your Heritage range of products?
“Many will remember the old Heritage range, which only had 450 lines making it very difficult for us to compete against the big own label ranges of the food stores.
"The Co-op range of 1,800 products gave us a great platform to begin to counter the competition, and it has been very well received by our customers. Over the last four years the Co-op’s focus has been very much on the smaller convenience stores. This has been reflected in the smaller range of goods available, with unsuitable pack sizes for our stores and most importantly a focus on convenience pricing. I am not saying that this policy is wrong, it simply in my opinion does not provide a neat fit for Jempson's stores.”
What benefits will your customers see?
“This is a win-win situation.
“Firstly, customers will see a greater range of Morrisons own label including their own Best range. This range is around 8,000 lines, and reflects Morrisons servicing larger stores. Traditionally, own label lines represent excellent value for money.
"Secondly, the prices in our large stores ie. Rye, Peasmarsh and Battle and others, will align with the prices in large Morrisons supermarkets.
"Thirdly, there will be a greater range of products that are more suited to the weekly family shopper.
"And finally, fourthly, our home delivery service will feature the Morrisons range as well. There will be a range of over 10,000 products to choose from and have delivered to your door.”
Will your stores remain closed on a Sunday?
“Yes, I passionately believe that all our people need a rest. Our stores are open up to 96 hrs a week giving our customers an extended choice of opening hours. Do you know we have one of the lowest staff turnover rates in the industry? We regularly get requests from prospective employees who long to spend their Sundays at home with their loved ones. I do realise that there are some trades and duties (medical) that have to work and they should be supported and remunerated accordingly."
As one of the area's largest employers will this merger produce further employment opportunities?
“Nick, I would stress that this is not a merger(!), it is a contract to supply the bulk of our goods. We have not been bought out. I do believe however, that like the huge decision 40 odd years ago, this will be transformative for Jempson's.
"If there is one thing that keeps me awake at night, it is looking after our people. I won’t make empty promises, we intend to grow at a steady pace, that is affordable. We have some exceptional young colleagues working in the business now, and I want them to see a career path from the small stores to running large stores and also aspire to perhaps store planning or trading functions.
“If you will allow me to, I should add here that with our Jempson's model (completely unlike the major national chains), we will continue to deal with our local and artisan suppliers for the long term such as egg farmers, apple producers, potato growers, strawberry farmers etc etc. Many of these companies have grown with us and I would like to think they will grow their business and company further. Last year, the expenditure with these suppliers was just under £5m. This initiative saves thousands of food miles annually and creates hundreds of local jobs. All this grows the local economy and as such our people, our families and our businesses prosper, which hopefully allows our infrastructure to develop sustainably alongside. I know I will be accused of bias, but this is what is so necessary to build long term, sustainable and viable communities.
“I can announce also, that we will be opening two new small stores, along with major plans for some of our existing sites. Undoubtedly there will be further employment opportunities in the pipeline.“
What other initiatives can your customers expect?
“Our Click & Collect service is currently available at Peasmarsh, but we do want to roll this out to other stores, and finally for this year, hopefully(!) we have Scan & Go app which is about to launch – the IT department will be mad at me letting this out of the bag!"
What message would you like to pass onto your customers?
“This is a huge change for us as a business. We are currently planning the conversions. The plan is to start with Peasmarsh and then do the other six sites at three to four week intervals, with completion around mid-November. I expect every store to have to be closed a few days before the launch.
“I would ask for your understanding whilst our colleagues work through all these changes. We are favoured to have an exceptional band of loyal local colleagues who are working tirelessly to ensure that the changeover is as hitch-free as possible.
“Finally, I would like to thank all our customers for their continued loyalty, support and interest – it is a pleasure to serve you.
"If any of your readers or anyone interested would like any further information please don’t hesitate to let me know on mail@jempsons.com."
