Top Shelf: Marketing execs rank the best grocers and food companies.
The big are getting better.
Major packaged goods companies and retail chains are earning each other’s respect by improving strategy and execution. That’s one finding of Cannondale Associates’ third annual PoweRanking survey, in which manufacturers and retailers rate each other’s marketing skills.
Some giants, such as Wal-Mart and Procter & Gamble, always get high marks. Others including Kraft Foods and Safeway improved this year’s scores by spiffing up business fundamentals.
Part of the reason, of course, is that the big are simply getting bigger (especially retailers) and have more resources than smaller competitors. Westport, CT-based Cannondale calls that “an emerging caste system” based partly on size.
But size alone doesn’t assure success, the consultancy notes. Cannondale lists six “pillars of the new caste system” that companies should invest in: technology, consumer insight, brand strength, training, organization design, and positioning.
Manufacturers predict Wal-Mart, Kroger, and Ahold will be power retailers in 15 years. The study is based on a survey of 250 executives and follow-up interviews. Charts at right and on page 39 offer more results.
