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In today's podcast we hear from VxP's Bud Dunn and Brad White. VxP is a tool that can help your beer business substantially improve gross profit. We dig in on this important question: Why are we afraid to show a gross profit to our sales reps?  Basically, all other industries do it, why not beer wholesalers? Key Topics Most common reasons why owners in the beer industry are hesitant to share gross profit information with their sales reps Beer company's that have successfully implemented a program to share gross profit information with its sales team How sales reps can use knowledge of gross profit margins to make better decisions about pricing, promotions, and other sales-related activities Resources Learn more about how VxP can transform your sales team Sign up for the free beer finance newsletter

In today's podcast we hear from Lester Jones, Chief Economist and VP of Analytics for the National Beer Wholesalers Association.  Lester's job is to track everything quantitative, economic and demographic about the beer industry. And today he shares what happened in 2022 and his outlook for 2023.  Key Questions Asked and Answered How did beer do last year?  What's the outlook for 2023?  What is the data telling us?  How can beer wholesalers use this information to increase sales? Key Topics Total beer consumption  On / Off Premise trends Sales growth by product segment Inflation, cost pressures, and supply chain issues Resources Check out the Beer Purchaser's Index Get the beer wholesaler financial training newsletter

Today we hear from Bart Watson, Chief Economist for the Brewer's Association. Bart breaks down 2022 beer data, shares trends, volume and market share on the beer industry. Key Topics Beer data and trends to watch On premise vs. off premise volume and growth Trends in pack counts, sizes, formats Brewery openings and closings Bart's forecast for 2023 Resources Learn more about Bart's work with the Brewer's Association Get the free wholesaler financial training newsletter

Today we hear from Everlance CEO Alex Marlantes.  Everlance helps beer wholesalers modernize their vehicle program and lower costs without creating an administrative burden. If you have a vehicle reimbursement program, you'll want to hear what Alex has to say about how to re-claim the tax waste for your business and your employees.  Key Topics Common mistakes beer wholesalers make with vehicle programs Tips to automate painful everyday tasks, and help people save time and money The high cost of tax waste and how you can get it back How Del Papa Distributing saved money with Everlance Resources Learn how Del Papa saved money with Everlance Calculate the tax waste associated with vehicle programs Learn more about how Everlance helps beer distributors Sign up for the beer industry financial training newsletter

Today we hear from Todd Grote and Rick Flagg from OnTrak Software, who give a demo of POS marketing software management tools for Beer Wholesalers. Ten of the Top 20 Beer Wholesalers depend on OnTrak solutions every day. In this podcast you'll learn how they do it.Key Topics Tools to closely monitor your investments in POS marketing assets How to significantly reduce costs while increasing accountability with suppliers and customers How to verify draught system compliance and measure tap handle market share Resources Learn more about OnTrak Software Get the finance newsletter for beer wholesalers

In today's podcast you'll hear the audio version of our recent webinar on How to Build Your Beer Wholesaler Financial Plan. We'll review how to put together your sales plan, gross profit, operating expenses and bottom line. Key Topics Financial planning best practices Budget pitfalls to avoid 6 Steps to build your financial plan Tips to overcome the 'overwhelm' when preparing a budget Spreadsheet models and tools to get you started Resources Learn more about the Beer Wholesaler Financial Professionals association Get the free finance newsletter for beer wholesalers

In today's podcast you'll learn about a new organization called Beer Wholesaler Financial Professionals. Beer Wholesaler Financial Professionals is the ONLY national network created specifically for those driving and ensuring your business financial performance. It’s an organization of financial pros, like you, looking to improve financial results, increase profitability, connect with peers, and share best practices. Resources Learn more about Beer Wholesaler Financial Professionals    

In today's podcast we hear from Bud Dunn from VxP Tech and hear about financial metrics for beer wholesalers. What numbers should you track? Who should have key metrics? How do you automate the reporting process?Key Topics 5 Best practices to design your KPIs 5 Watch outs (pitfalls) with tracking and measuring KPIs Bud's Favorite KPI metrics for beer wholesalers Resources Watch the webinar replay: Financial Metrics Dashboard for Beer Wholesalers To schedule a demo of the dashboard software: Email Bud@VxPTech.com Sign up for the finance newsletter for distributors

In today's podcast we hear from Brad White from VxP Tech.  Brad  shares a proven and profitable compensation program for distributor sales teams.Topics covered: The key drivers of financial performance: Gross profit, volume and finished product loss How to link these key drivers to sales compensation How to automate compensation programs using technology Resources Learn more about VxP  Listen to our first podcast with Brad: How to Pay Your Sales Team on Gross Profit Sign up for the finance newsletter for Beer Wholesalers

Craig Purser is President and CEO of the National Beer Wholesalers Association. Today we hear his perspective on the state of the beer industry, get a recap from the recently concluded legislative conference, and learn more about the Next Generation Leadership Conference for emerging leaders. Key Topics Craig's perspective on the state of the beer industry Highlights from the NBWA legislative conference Next Generation Leadership Conference for emerging leaders   Strength, resilience, innovation, evolution amid intense competition and challenging market forces. Resources Learn more about the BREW initiative Sign up to receive the finance newsletter for beer professionals

NBWA economist Lester Jones joins the podcast today with an update on 2022 beer sales trends to help you prepare for the summer selling season.Key Topics Early beer sales trends for 2022...and what they mean for your business Lester's expectation for the beer summer selling season How to combat the headwinds: inflation, supply chain issues, labor challenges... Learn about the NBWA compensation and benefit study Resources Learn about the Beer Purchaser's Index Sign up for the finance newsletter for beer industry professionals

What if you could pay your frontline sales reps based on what really matters to your business?In today's podcast, you'll learn how.Brad White from GP-Analytics joins us to explain how to use the VxP Compensation System to build a comp plan based on the key drivers of profitability in your beer business: Gross profit, volume and FPL (finished product loss).  Key Topics Traditional wholesaler compensation programs Common problems with comp plans, and how to fix them How the VxP Compensation System is different The key drivers of financial performance: Gross profit, volume and FPL Resources Learn more about the VxP compensation system Contact Brad White to learn more: brad@vxptech.com Get the finance newsletter for beer industry professionals

In today's podcast we hear from Lester Jones, chief economist for the National Beer Wholesalers Association. Lester provides a recap of 2021 and his outlook for the beer industry in the year ahead. In our conversation we dig deep into the data and review the key topics for beer wholesaler owners and managers: Total beer consumption in the US Packaging trends, and the outlook for cans, bottles and draft Forecast for on-premise business Past, present and future of seltzers Lester also shares his favorite beer industry reads, and provides tips to use US Census data, labor statistics, and TTB reporting to better analyze your market. Subscribe to Beer Business Finance. The Weekly Finance Newsletter for Beer Wholesalers.

Today we are going to talk about goal setting and New Year's Resolutions. We'll talk about a framework you can use to create goals that stick.We'll look at systems, models, and techniques you can use to set your goals and achieve them in 2022.Key Topics Business Plan Goals...Start with your Core Values (what do you stand for?) Financial Plan Goals SWOT Analysis Process vs. Outcome Goals The 3 Step Secret Weapon for 2022 (Eliminate, Automate, Delegate) Resources Learn more about the book Re-Work by Jason Fried from Basecamp Tim Ferriss on a technique to become more productive in 2022 Sign Up for the Free and World Famous Beer Business Finance newsletter

In today's podcast we hear from Kim McKinnish, CFO and SVP of the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA).Kim and I talk about a wide range of topics including the mission of the NBWA, membership benefits,  NBWA's Next Generation Leadership Group, and the newly launched BREW initiative, Building Relationships and Empowering Women.We also discuss the current state of the beer industry, best practices and business lessons learned during the COVID-19 pandemic.  Key Topics How wholesalers can use financial skills to navigate challenges in the market The BREW Initiative: Building Relationships and Empowering Women Industry consolidation: Key factors behind wholesaler acquisitions Resources Learn more about the BREW Initiative NBWA Membership Benefits Nex Gen Leadership Conference Sign Up for the World Famous (and FREE) Beer Business Finance Newsletter

The single best way to improve profitability in your business is to measure and manage your gross profit margin. In the podcast we’ll take a deep dive into the key drivers of gross profit so that you can improve this critical number.  Key Topics Covered in the Podcast: Gross profit fundamentals: Calculations, what’s included/excluded in cost of goods sold Cost of delivery: Practical application of this calculation Monthly variations in gross profit percentage...and what it means How to reconcile the gross profit reports to the income statement Forecasting gross margins to drive more profits to the bottom line Resources Check out the book: Beer Business Finance: A Handbook for the Next Generation Learn more about Beer Business Finance training for your wholesaler business Listen to the podcast and learn the keys to improve gross profit in your beer business. Sign up for the Free and World Famous Beer Business Finance Newsletter

Inventory is a huge asset for beer wholesalers, and it consumes a lot of cash. In today’s podcast, we’ll review how to use numbers to measure and improve your inventory management plan.  Key Topics Covered in the Podcast: How to calculate the total carrying costs of inventory (and cost spreadsheet model) One page inventory count process checklist How to create an inventory scoreboard to quantify inventory key performance indicators Resources Check out the book: Beer Business Finance: A Handbook for the Next Generation Learn more about Beer Business Finance training for your wholesaler business Listen to the podcast and learn how to build an inventory management plan for your beer business. Sign up for the Free and World Famous Beer Business Finance Newsletter

Gross profit is one of my favorite topics. In this podcast, I share the audio from my webinar titled How to Improve your Wholesaler Gross Profit.  Gross profit measures how much of each sales dollar is kept by the wholesaler. The math works like this: Sales minus cost of goods sold equals gross profit. On average, about 75% of the sales dollars goes to the supplier, freight carrier and the tax man. So, it pays to pay attention to your gross profit.  Key Topics Covered in the Podcast: Key drivers of wholesaler gross profit and how to improve them Common mistakes wholesalers make with gross profit Tips and tactics to increase gross profit in your business Resources Check out the book: Beer Business Finance: A Handbook for the Next Generation Learn more about Beer Business Finance training for your wholesaler business Listen to the podcast and learn how to efficiently improve gross profit in your beer business. Sign up for the Free and World Famous Beer Business Finance Newsletter

In this podcast we’ll review tips, tactics and strategies to help you build a profitable sales plan. The goal is to create a plan with actionable steps to achieve your sales goals.  Key Topics Covered in the Podcast: Sales planning fundamentals: Team, timing, and tools to use Open book management sales planning techniques How to align the sales plan with the business plan One page checklists and models to create your sales Resources Check out the book: Beer Business Finance: A Handbook for the Next Generation Learn more about Beer Business Finance training for your wholesaler business Listen to the podcast and learn how to build a profitable sales plan for your beer business. Sign up for the Free and World Famous Beer Business Finance Newsletter

In today's podcast we hear from Guy Amisano, the Founder and CEO of Salient Management company.  Salient created a software solution that puts tools and data in the hands of reps in the field. Salient allows managers to overcome the major barriers to making business activity coherent, transparent, and controllable so that they can determine where to invest time, money and energy for the greatest possible financial return. Topics covered: Using the 'Goldilocks Effect' to get just the right amount of data How to put the power of data into the hands of the user to get more done in less time Key drivers of value: Profit x Growth Resources Learn more about Salient Management Company Sign Up for the FREE and World Famous Beer Business Finance Newsletter