One stop shopping

From interactive online digital platforms to mobile apps with intuitive search features, cash and carry brands have embraced new technologies in recent years to make life even easier for its customers. ShelfLife looks at the top players in the Irish market and what new services they can offer their customers

Brand Central

23 October 2023

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Ireland has an exceedingly strong network of cash and carries dispersed throughout the country. Many are now open seven days a week with extended opening hours, click & collect capabilities, and nationwide delivery.

Although value is first and foremost for most customers, it is important to offer more than this to keep them coming back. They are looking for innovative and unique food experiences and it is not uncommon to see live cooking demonstrations with in-house chefs happening across venues. The availability of quality, local and specialist products enable cash and carries to respond to the many trends happening within the food industry.

Technology has played a big role in changing how cash and carries do business. Although they love to see customers come through the doors, this is not essential anymore with customers able to access all services through their mobile phones. Dedicated apps are making ordering easier with customers fulfilling orders at the click of a button. Once it is ordered the cash and carry is looking to deliver in as short a time frame as possible with some offering same day deliveries. We look at Value Centre, Musgrave MarketPlace and Stonehouse to see what these main players are doing to keep their customers content.

Bringing value home

Fact File

Name: Value Centre, 4 Aces, Better Deal

Number of branches nationwide: 21

Number of customers: 20,000+

Number of lines in product listing: 13,000+

Tagline: Value Centre – Your local wholesaler

Ordering options: Online with ShopLink.ie, telesales, in-branch and dedicated sales developers

Typical opening hours: 8am – 4.30pm Monday to Friday and 9am-1pm Saturday. Online ordering available 24/7

Retail partners: XL and Gala

Size-range of outlets: 12,000sq ft – 60,000sq ft

Business made easy

Fact File

Name: Musgrave MarketPlace

Number of branches nationwide: 9

Location: Dublin (Ballymun, Robinhood, Sallynoggin), Cork, Galway, Limerick, Waterford, Belfast, Derry

Number of customers: 45,000

Number of lines in product listing: 14,000+

Tagline: Business Made Easy

Ordering options: Online, app, collect, delivered, click & collect, telesales, business development manager

Typical opening hours: 8am – 6pm

Size-range of outlets: 35,000 – 75,000sq ft

Thomas Morrison, head of retail sales, Musgrave MarketPlace

Q: How have you worked to make your offering as convenient and flexible for your retail partners as possible, so they can always place and receive orders right when they need them?

A: At Musgrave MarketPlace, we are continually looking at ways to improve the overall shopping experience for our customers. In 2022, we made significant changes – digitally transforming the business. Through our online digital platform, customers have access to a one-stop-shop for all their business needs. We stock more than 14,000 products available for delivery – the largest online ordering service for retail, SME, and foodservice sector on the island of Ireland.

We also recently launched our new mobile app – giving their customers an additional method to order in a fast, efficient, and easy way. With features like intuitive search, a barcode scanner allowing customers to scan a product and add it straight to their cart, plus access to order history, the app will give customers instant access to the full range of products at their fingertips.

In addition, branches are now open seven days a week with extended opening hours, click & collect, and nationwide delivery routes. We want to make sure our customers can shop at a time that suits them. With the strongest fulfilment capability of any retail and foodservice supplier in the market, we can respond quickly if our customers need urgent support.

At a time when businesses are facing many challenges, we are focused on building the strongest service proposition in the market – whilst providing the most extensive range at the best value. Our new brand positioning or strapline as it’s commonly called, Business Made Easy, which we unveiled earlier this year brings all these commitments together.

Q: Value has become more important than ever as the cost-of-living crisis continues. How are you ensuring you deliver competitive pricing and promotions?

A: We are acutely conscious that consumers’ pockets have been stretched by the cost-of-living crisis. It is very important to us that we offer a good value, high-quality, competitive offering to our customers.

In these times of economic uncertainty and increasing costs, we have introduced a Price Cuts campaign delivering market-beating prices on the products that matter most to our customers. In addition, a Switch & Save campaign highlights our own-brand Musgrave Excellence range which is quality approved, endorsed by a panel of chefs and promises to be at least 15% cheaper than the branded equivalent.

We have invested significantly in our own-brand offerings to provide a greater range of choice and value to customers. Our retail customers can get up to 50% savings by shopping our own brand ranges.

Q: What makes your offering stand out within the marketplace, particularly in terms of helping your retail partners to drive innovation within foodservice/their in-store offering during the past year?

A: We have a culture of innovation and constantly monitor the market to keep up to date with consumer trends. We bring our customers into this process, through initiatives like our state-of-the-art food emporiums, which offer them a space to be inspired and learn from our teams of development chefs while at the same time affording them the chance to see, smell and taste new products.

Our customers are looking for more innovative and unique food experiences. For us, it is very important to be able to offer choice and diversity in products and ranges that allow them to thrive. Quality, local and specialist products enable us to meet the needs of our customers and the constantly evolving trends within the food industry.

Our in branch and product specialists in Alcohol, Fruit & Veg, Meat, Coffee and Non-Food Ranges are always on hand to offer reliable, trustworthy advice and expertise to our customers.

Recent expansion in our range has included more vegan and healthy ingredients; a scaled alcohol business under the Musgrave MarketPlace brand; Butchers Prime, a premium Irish Hereford meat range; and Brewdoo Coffee bean-to-cup and barista coffee proposition for the hospitality sector.

Customers can now also buy from our Extended Range – a specially curated range of products which trusted suppliers can sell directly to Musgrave MarketPlace customers on our e-commerce platform The range includes everything from artisan Irish food and beverage products to restaurant furniture, packaging, and equipment. The platform supports small Irish producers by providing them with a way to bring their products to market with the ambition to have over 12,000 Extended Range products on the platform by 2024.

Musgrave MarketPlace is extremely proud of its partnership with FoodCloud to reduce food waste

Q: In recent years, many retailers and their cash and carry partners have strengthened their sustainability credentials. How have you further built on this progress during the past year?

A: Across Musgrave Group, we are dedicated to supporting sustainable solutions for the good of the planet and our communities. We’re playing our role and leading by example. Whether by reducing food and plastic waste, driving down carbon emissions, safeguarding human rights or supporting our communities, we are committed to making a real difference.

We are extremely proud of our partnership with Foodcloud to reduce food waste, which has delivered over 1.2 million meals, with an estimated value of over €1.5 million, to amazing charities all over Ireland. The donations have also saved 520 tonnes of food from going to landfill and 1665.92 tonnes of CO₂-equivalent emissions from entering earth’s atmosphere.

As part of our commitment in helping customers reduce their food waste, Musgrave MarketPlace recently held a Food Waste Workshop. Expert panellists shared invaluable insights and ideas on how to reduce food waste and cost and we’ll continue to support customers to reduce their food waste over the coming months with a series of online resources.

We are installing solar panels at our locations around Ireland to reduce emissions from our electricity use – our Galway branch will be the first to install solar panels, 100% LED lighting and electronic shelf edge labels.

79% of the packaging we sell is either compostable, recyclable or reusable. 85% of our own brand packaging is either compostable, recyclable or reusable – this will increase to 100% by 2025.

We know we have a role to play and firmly believe that together we can build a more sustainable future for generations to come by helping to look after the planet we share.

Q: How extensively are you supporting local, Irish producers?

A: Musgrave MarketPlace is the only 100% Irish owned national foodservice wholesaler. We are committed to supporting Irish jobs, Irish businesses and the future of the foodservice industry across the island of Ireland. That’s why we work with over 800 Irish suppliers and stock over 3,500 Irish products across our range. We are committed to providing our customers with the most extensive range of products and supporting local Irish suppliers is extremely important to us. Our recently launched Green Shoots initiative brings these two commitments together.

In collaboration with Bord Bia, the Dragons Den style initiative invited pitches from local Irish businesses with the opportunity for their product to be promoted and sold across Musgrave MarketPlace branches and online platforms – providing access to over 45,000 customers. Five companies were selected after presenting to a panel of foodservice experts and are now being promoted across our channels and in branch.

Q: What are your plans and goals to expand your brand further during 2024?

A: The wholesale and foodservice market is growing, and we are now accelerating our own plans to grow organically and by acquisition in Ireland and the UK. We think significant growth opportunity remains in Ireland, but we are also open to opportunities to acquire businesses outside of Ireland. In the recent weeks, we have announced two exciting acquisitions in the premium market in the UK, Ritter Courivaud and Town & Country Fine Foods, as well as a great Irish business – Doyle’s Veg Prep. Our acquisitions are part of Musgrave’s wider strategy to grow a world class food and beverage business. We will continue to explore acquisition opportunities that fit with our strategy.

All our plans for 2024 will be focused continuing to respond to customer needs – from ease of ordering, service and delivery to innovating new food offerings to delivering the best value possible but firmly alongside this, is a strong commitment to doing our business in the most sustainable way.

Looking after the independents

Janice Gibney, chief operations officer, Stonehouse Marketing Ltd

Fact File

Name: Stonehouse Marketing Ltd

Number of branches nationwide: 21

Number of customers: Over 7,500

Number of lines in product listing: Over 10,000

Tagline: Ireland’s leading group for the independent wholesaler.

Ordering options (website, telephone orders etc): On-line, in depot, telesales, sales representatives.

Typical opening hours: 8am to 7pm

Retail Partners: Fresh Today, Applegreen and Gala

Size-range of outlets: 40,000 to 45,000 sq ft

Q: How have you worked to make your offering as convenient and flexible for your retail partners as possible, so they can always place and receive orders right when they need them?

A: Stonehouse carries a full range of ambient and frozen products to meet our customer’s needs, we constantly review our offering and engage with our customers on their requirements and encourage them to try new products and concepts to develop their business.

The extent of our reach ensures we can service customers in every part of the country, and we deliver to most areas daily.

Q: Value has become more important than ever as the cost-of-living crisis continues. How are you ensuring you deliver competitive pricing and promotions?

A: Our own label and generic brands play an important part in our strategy along with implementing an aggressive branded promotion plan with our key suppliers.

We pride ourselves on our relationships with our suppliers and we challenge them constantly to ensure we remain competitive.

A: We believe our service levels combined with our pricing structure to our customers represent the best value in the market. We react quicker to ensure product can be listed at depot level and therefore offered to our customers, we consistently challenge our suppliers as regards innovation and concepts.

Q: How extensively are you supporting local, Irish producers?

A: Our preference is to support local producers and the Irish distributors, but we must always be aware of the pan European market as regards innovation, trends, and pricing.

Q: What are your plans and goals to expand your brand further during 2024?

A: We have had a lot of change in Stonehouse over the past 24 months and while some members have departed, we have opened our doors to new members.

We are delighted that Applegreen, Freddie Hamilton Wholesale, Tullys Wholesale, Conaty Food & Catering Supplies and Gerry Ellis & Sons have joined to group, they each bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to Stonehouse and expand our nationwide reach even more. Our new members will help grow awareness among the consumer of our brand and will aid us in our negotiations with suppliers.

Our focus for 2024 will be to expand our Homestead brand further at retail level in conjunction with developing our foodservice offering, which will drive additional distribution and sales.

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