Agricultural Retailers: ‘We’re on to 2020’
January 1, 2020 On Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2014, New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick stepped up to a press conference microphone to deliver what would be an iconic line that has been adopted and adapted through speeches, parodies, and memes to this day.
The previous Monday night, his professional football squad was thoroughly dismantled by the Kansas City Chiefs, 41-14. I remember the game, watching with glee and hoping that maybe, just maybe, the dynasty was coming down.
So, how would ol’ Bill react in the aftermath of what appeared to be an absolutely debilitating defeat?
“We’re on to Cincinnati.”
Every question about the Monday night debacle was answered pretty much the same way — we’re looking ahead, and absolutely, positively NOT looking back. We should have expected nothing less.
This came to mind while working on a couple of stories for the January CropLife issue. In my interviews, I did my best to keep the review of agriculture’s largely nightmarish 2019 season as short and to the point as possible before delving into projections for the year ahead.
And while I think there were some lessons to be learned from the difficult season that was, retailers are inclined to agree with Coach: We’re on to 2020.
A lot of the specific challenges and opportunities have been laid out in the last two issues of CropLife, and many of them will apply to your particular business at different levels of importance and priority. So my intention here isn’t to deep dive into any one issue or trend. For the year ahead, my thoughts are focused on the pressure to commoditize the services retailers provide. And, just as importantly, how do retailers NOT allow that to happen.
At the top of the list are grower-focused programs from the basics that reward loyalty and exclude product choice — thus limiting or eliminating the agronomist’s trusted advice. Fortunately, farmers in general continue to demand access to options. But these programs continue to bubble up and make generating independent recommendations outside of the lure of loyalty rewards increasingly difficult.
The thing you have on your side is that growing a crop is NOT getting less complex … by a long shot. The 2019 season, the plants, replants, re-replants, and, for some, plant protect demonstrated the critical need for boots-on-the-ground support, from agronomics and crop planning to financial services. Retailers can wield a lot of power — power we should not be shy to use.
This upcoming season will be a good year to evaluate supplier partners and agreements and engage with those who will help you sustain your business. To evaluate the customer base and focus on those who value service and with whom you can have a significant positive impact.
It’s also a great time to focus internally — do I have the right staffing, with the right training, and a clear vision of my business plan so that we are all pulling in the right direction?
While we need to face the truth that this is a truly challenging time for our businesses after a historically difficult season, value-focused retailers are in a place of strength.
And now, we’re on to 2020 …
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