Suppliers hail the very best buyers in the beers, wines and spirits category. The star is Sainsbury’s Melissa Draycott
The Grocer spoke to beers, wines and spirits suppliers this month to find out which buyers were most respected in the trade. Our second Star Buyer, following the Six of the Best’s relaunch last month, proved very popular, with by far the most nominations.
Sainsbury’s spirits and fortified wine buyer, Melissa Draycott, was praised for her passion, enthusiasm and knowledge.
Her pacey commercial agenda and drive, combined with approachability, efficiency and fairness impressed her nominators.
And like our first Star Buyer last month - CJ Antal-Smith from Asda - Draycott has appeared on these pages before. She was one of the best of the speciality buyers in September 2003.
Another Sainsbury buyer, Ben Wheeley, also made it into our top six. His professional outlook, enthusiasm and ability to build good relationships secured his nominations.
Morrisons’ senior wine buyer Suzie Cornwell was always at hand to respond to our suppliers’ queries and was said to be a very skilled and fair negotiator.
It was Waitrose BWS buyer Giles Fisher’s dogged approach to improving the supermarket’s spirits offering that earned him praise.
And the combination of strong negotiation skills and flexibility helped him achieve optimal solutions.
Not only was The Co-operative Group’s category buyer for wine Maria Gallop charming, according to one supplier, but she also had good vision for the range. She is a skilled taster and has a genuine passion for fair trade and the Co-op brand.
Tesco’s John Wootton who was senior buying manager, spirits until becoming a project manager recently, was always available for conversation, was a good negotiator and always delivered on promises. One supplier said that he always knew where he stood with Wootton.
The Grocer spoke to beers, wines and spirits suppliers this month to find out which buyers were most respected in the trade. Our second Star Buyer, following the Six of the Best’s relaunch last month, proved very popular, with by far the most nominations.
Sainsbury’s spirits and fortified wine buyer, Melissa Draycott, was praised for her passion, enthusiasm and knowledge.
Her pacey commercial agenda and drive, combined with approachability, efficiency and fairness impressed her nominators.
And like our first Star Buyer last month - CJ Antal-Smith from Asda - Draycott has appeared on these pages before. She was one of the best of the speciality buyers in September 2003.
Another Sainsbury buyer, Ben Wheeley, also made it into our top six. His professional outlook, enthusiasm and ability to build good relationships secured his nominations.
Morrisons’ senior wine buyer Suzie Cornwell was always at hand to respond to our suppliers’ queries and was said to be a very skilled and fair negotiator.
It was Waitrose BWS buyer Giles Fisher’s dogged approach to improving the supermarket’s spirits offering that earned him praise.
And the combination of strong negotiation skills and flexibility helped him achieve optimal solutions.
Not only was The Co-operative Group’s category buyer for wine Maria Gallop charming, according to one supplier, but she also had good vision for the range. She is a skilled taster and has a genuine passion for fair trade and the Co-op brand.
Tesco’s John Wootton who was senior buying manager, spirits until becoming a project manager recently, was always available for conversation, was a good negotiator and always delivered on promises. One supplier said that he always knew where he stood with Wootton.
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