From Insight to Impact
Supplier Programme
Join our new From Insight to Impact Supplier Programme, designed to support Scottish food and drink producers to successfully enter and grow within three key UK routes to market; grocery retail, contract and event catering, and travel and leisure.
Offering a structured learning journey, the Supplier Programme will take participants from insight analysis right through to direct buyer engagement, with each producer taking part in a channel-specific, intensive workshop, which will include a guided visit to a retail or foodservice environment.
Discover more about the programme, including participant criteria for each of the channel Meet the Buyer opportunities, with the FAQs below.
Event details
Date
Tue, Jun 02, 2026 | 10 day event
FAQs
The From Insight to Impact Supplier Programme is a new commercial programme brought to you by The Academy and The Knowledge Bank, and has been designed to empower businesses to turn insight into practical action and commercial success.
The structed learning journey has been create tor ambitious businesses who aspire to grow their market presence in:
- Grocery Retail: Multiple Retailers
- Foodservice: Contract Catering and Events
- Foodservice: Travel and leisure
Commercial sales, key account and national account managers will benefit from 1:1 expert guidance and customised insight to help refine and build a compelling trade proposition.
The programme builds on our From Insights to Impact event, which took place in March, and each channel includes:
- A full-day, channel-specific workshop focused on commercial readiness, tailored to multiple grocery retail, contract and event catering, and travel and leisure.
- A guided experiential visit to a retail or foodservice environment (front and back of house, where possible).
- Practical tools and real-world exercises to assess your product and route-to-market fit.
- Tailored 1:1 support from The Knowledge Bank, which may include consumer research, category data and insight and proposition refinement support.
- An exclusive meet the buyer opportunity with relevant operators from Sainsbury’s, Sodexo, and The Restaurant Group.
In order to determine the best way forward post workshop, you will receive a 1:1 business consultation to discuss your aims and agree on objectives for your commercial insight support.
This could be match funded to up to £1,000 +VAT, if funds are required.*
Support options include consumer research, EPOS data, desk research, or advisory practical support to help build yourselling proposition.
*Terms and conditions apply. Scotland Food & Drink and The Knowledge Bank team reserve the right to make the final decision as to whether match funding is available. For absolute clarity, to be awarded, the funds (up to £1,000) must be matched (and evidenced) by the participating business.
Participants will develop a clear understanding of:
- What buyers are looking for and how decisions are made.
- When to engage, including category review cycles, NPD timelines and menu planning cycle.
- What “good” looks like in terms of product fit, pricing and positioning.
- The realities of packaging, logistics and operational requirements.
- How to build a credible, insight-led route-to-market approach
This programme is for Scottish food and drink businesses at varying stages of growth, and will bebeneficial for producers who:
- Are exploring entry or actively pursuing growth in UK retail or foodservice channels.
- Have a channel-ready product and want to develop a clear, credible route-to-market approach.
- Want to better understand what buyers are looking for in practice.
- Are open to challenge and feedback.
- Want to benefit from a data and insight-led approach to refine their selling proposition.
The supplier programme goes beyond theory – if you want to access tailored insight, learn fromindustry experts, and prepare for real buyer conversations, apply today.
The Grocery Retail: Multiple Retailers channel workshop will take place on Wednesday, 3 June at Langlands Depot, East Kilbride.
Supported by Sainsbury’s, the following criteria applies:
- Scotland opportunity, with national potential, subject to product and capability fit.
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities.
- All food and drink categories can be considered.
- Sainsbury's is seeking products with a focus on healthy NPD/Innovation and Reformulation.
The Foodservice: Contract and Event Catering channel workshop will take place on Tuesday, 2 June at Edinburgh Zoo.
Supported by Sodexo, the following criteria applies:
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities.
- Opportunities will be available in Scotland and UK subject to product and capacity/capability.
- Preferred route to market is via a wholesale partner currently in the Sodexo supply chain (Fife Creamery, Braehead, Mark Murphy or Brakes).
- Please note that alcohol is not in scope for this channel.
The Foodservice: Travel and Leisure channel workshop will take place on Thursday, 11 June. Tours will take place at Edinburgh and Glasgow Airports, with the group split between both locations, while the workshop will be held at Dakota Hotel Eurocentral.
Supported by The Restaurant Group, the following criteria applies:
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities; BRCGS is preferable.
- Preferred route to market is via a wholesale partner, e.g. Brakes Sysco.
- All food and drink category products are in scope.
Yes, applicants will be given the option of selecting a first, second and third choice channel on the programme. Places will be allocated initially based on first-choice preferences. Where additional capacity is available, participants may also be offered a place in their second-choice channel. Fees will apply for each channel attended.
The Meet the Buyer opportunities are being scoped for August and October/November, respectively, and we will confirm further details soon.
Places are normally limited to one participant per business, per channel. If a business is selected for more than one channel, a different individual may attend the workshop for the second and third-choice channel, respectively.
The From Insight to Impact Supplier Programme is a new commercial programme brought to you by The Academy and The Knowledge Bank, and has been designed to empower businesses to turn insight into practical action and commercial success.
The structed learning journey has been create tor ambitious businesses who aspire to grow their market presence in:
- Grocery Retail: Multiple Retailers
- Foodservice: Contract Catering and Events
- Foodservice: Travel and leisure
Commercial sales, key account and national account managers will benefit from 1:1 expert guidance and customised insight to help refine and build a compelling trade proposition.
The programme builds on our From Insights to Impact event, which took place in March, and each channel includes:
- A full-day, channel-specific workshop focused on commercial readiness, tailored to multiple grocery retail, contract and event catering, and travel and leisure.
- A guided experiential visit to a retail or foodservice environment (front and back of house, where possible).
- Practical tools and real-world exercises to assess your product and route-to-market fit.
- Tailored 1:1 support from The Knowledge Bank, which may include consumer research, category data and insight and proposition refinement support.
- An exclusive meet the buyer opportunity with relevant operators from Sainsbury’s, Sodexo, and The Restaurant Group.
In order to determine the best way forward post workshop, you will receive a 1:1 business consultation to discuss your aims and agree on objectives for your commercial insight support.
This could be match funded to up to £1,000 +VAT, if funds are required.*
Support options include consumer research, EPOS data, desk research, or advisory practical support to help build yourselling proposition.
*Terms and conditions apply. Scotland Food & Drink and The Knowledge Bank team reserve the right to make the final decision as to whether match funding is available. For absolute clarity, to be awarded, the funds (up to £1,000) must be matched (and evidenced) by the participating business.
Participants will develop a clear understanding of:
- What buyers are looking for and how decisions are made.
- When to engage, including category review cycles, NPD timelines and menu planning cycle.
- What “good” looks like in terms of product fit, pricing and positioning.
- The realities of packaging, logistics and operational requirements.
- How to build a credible, insight-led route-to-market approach
This programme is for Scottish food and drink businesses at varying stages of growth, and will bebeneficial for producers who:
- Are exploring entry or actively pursuing growth in UK retail or foodservice channels.
- Have a channel-ready product and want to develop a clear, credible route-to-market approach.
- Want to better understand what buyers are looking for in practice.
- Are open to challenge and feedback.
- Want to benefit from a data and insight-led approach to refine their selling proposition.
The supplier programme goes beyond theory – if you want to access tailored insight, learn fromindustry experts, and prepare for real buyer conversations, apply today.
The Grocery Retail: Multiple Retailers channel workshop will take place on Wednesday, 3 June at Langlands Depot, East Kilbride.
Supported by Sainsbury’s, the following criteria applies:
- Scotland opportunity, with national potential, subject to product and capability fit.
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities.
- All food and drink categories can be considered.
- Sainsbury's is seeking products with a focus on healthy NPD/Innovation and Reformulation.
The Foodservice: Contract and Event Catering channel workshop will take place on Tuesday, 2 June at Edinburgh Zoo.
Supported by Sodexo, the following criteria applies:
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities.
- Opportunities will be available in Scotland and UK subject to product and capacity/capability.
- Preferred route to market is via a wholesale partner currently in the Sodexo supply chain (Fife Creamery, Braehead, Mark Murphy or Brakes).
- Please note that alcohol is not in scope for this channel.
The Foodservice: Travel and Leisure channel workshop will take place on Thursday, 11 June. Tours will take place at Edinburgh and Glasgow Airports, with the group split between both locations, while the workshop will be held at Dakota Hotel Eurocentral.
Supported by The Restaurant Group, the following criteria applies:
- All suppliers must be SALSA accredited as a minimum for opportunities; BRCGS is preferable.
- Preferred route to market is via a wholesale partner, e.g. Brakes Sysco.
- All food and drink category products are in scope.
Yes, applicants will be given the option of selecting a first, second and third choice channel on the programme. Places will be allocated initially based on first-choice preferences. Where additional capacity is available, participants may also be offered a place in their second-choice channel. Fees will apply for each channel attended.
The Meet the Buyer opportunities are being scoped for August and October/November, respectively, and we will confirm further details soon.
Places are normally limited to one participant per business, per channel. If a business is selected for more than one channel, a different individual may attend the workshop for the second and third-choice channel, respectively.