Meijer announced that it will expand its third Supplier Diversity event to include diverse-owned service providers, as well as retail-ready products for its shelves. The March 29-31 event will give diverse-owned businesses nationwide the opportunity to showcase their offerings for interested Meijer buyers and procurement teams, said the company.
Certified minority -LGBTQ, woman, veteran, and disability-owned businesses with products or services in the listed categories can apply by Monday, Feb. 7 for consideration.
“Our supplier diversity efforts reach beyond just the brands’ customers see on our shelves,” said Peter Whitsett, Meijer Executive Vice President of Merchandising and Marketing. “We aim to support diverse-owned businesses throughout our stores, from the products we offer to the signage we hang and the services that keep the stores running. That’s why we’re excited to include a broad range of business categories in this event.”
According to the supermarket chain, diverse-owned brands with merchandise in the following retail categories can apply for the event on the website www.rangeme.com/meijerdiversity:
- Beauty and personal care
- Over-the-counter and wellness
- General merchandise
- Grocery
In addition, through the meijer.starssmp.com web page, the retailer is accepting proposals from service providers of various types of companies offering the following goods and services: :
- Inbound transportation carriers
- Skilled trades for construction and facility maintenance
- All business services (Marketing, HR, IT and Financial)
- Supplies, packaging, MRO and signage
- Environmental, real estate and new site services
- Store fixtures, manufacturing and warehousing equipment
Meijer is partnering with ECRM and RangeMe, to host the retail products portion of the event through the company’s ECRM Connect virtual platform. Suppliers of non-retail goods and services will register through STARS, an application hosted by Viva, another third-party partner.
Once applications for the event are submitted, Meijer teams will review and select the vendors they would like to meet online. Suppliers not chosen for the event will still be accessible through the RangeMe or STARS registration tools. They may be reviewed by Meijer buyers and business teams again in the future as business needs change.
“As we continue on our supplier diversity journey, we’re pleased to grow this event to be inclusive of all the kinds of businesses we partner within our stores,” said Jamie Akemann, Group Vice President of Indirect Procurement and Supplier Diversity.
Meijer is a Grand Rapids, Michigan-based retailer that operates 241 supercenters throughout Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and Wisconsin. A privately-owned and family-operated company since 1934, Meijer pioneered the “one-stop shopping” concept and has evolved through the years to include expanded fresh produce and meat departments, as well as pharmacies, comprehensive apparel departments, pet departments, garden centers, toys, and electronics.