THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
69
A discussion with
WHS’s group MD
Plumbing Africa sat down with Gustav Mertz, the
recently appointed group managing director of
Wholesale Housing Supplies (WHS), in a Q&A session.
Gustav Mertz, group managing director of WHS.
Mertz joins the group with 24 years
of experience in the transport supply
chain, coupled with a wealth of logistics
experience. WHS’s Saffer division will
continue its primary role as break-bulk
distributor of plumbing supplies
to merchants.
Q. WHAT HAVE BEEN THE CHALLENGES IN
THIS AREA OF THE BUSINESS?
A. There is no denying that we are operating
under depressed market conditions. We find
that because the customer order value has
decreased, as well as reducing their stock levels,
we become the customer’s warehousing facility.
We then have to ensure regular and consistent
deliveries. Rising costs of distribution, including
fuel, means we need to operate smarter.
Customers believe that by going directly to the
manufacturer, they will see major cost savings,
but it is a short-lived option, as the cost-to-serve
is unsustainable for the manufacturer. For our
manufacturers and suppliers, on-time and in-full
(OTIF) has had a major impact on our fill rate to
our retailers/merchants.
Q. HOW ARE YOU ADAPTING OR CHANGING
TO OVERCOME THE CHALLENGES?
A. We are applying different strategies that will
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have a positive impact on our customers as well
as on our performance. Some of these strategies
include rationalising the diverse range of product
line items; introducing minimum order quantity
and pack sizes; better managing minimum
order values; educating customers around our
offering and linked to this, staff skills training;
sales staff assessments to improve and upskill
individuals; and looking to add more diverse and
complementary products to our offering that are
correctly positioned within the market to grow
our sales and, in turn, give our customers an
opportunity to grow their sales and profits.
Q. TO WHAT WOULD YOU ATTRIBUTE
THE MARKET ‘DOWNTURN’? IS THERE A
NOTICEABLE DECREASE AND IF SO, IN
WHAT AREAS OF PLUMBING/BUILDING?
A. There has been a noticeable decrease and
there are several reasons for this — some
within the ambit of our control as an industry
and others not. For example, bulk water supply
has reduced in all areas; entry and medium-
cost housing volumes have slowed down;
service delivery (that is, power, water, and
sanitation) has fallen behind badly; residential
refurbishment has decreased as people hang
on to their money; and, of course, the political
instability is not helping. The use of unqualified
October 2018 Volume 24 I Number 8