Q3 2024 Wholesale Outlook feat. Hawaii Foodservice Alliance LLC

Q&A with: Chad Buck
Founder, Owner,
Hawaii Foodservice Alliance

Disintermediation

Hawai‘i’s relentless rise in real estate and utility costs, coupled with a shrinking labor market, continues to exert pressure on conventional distribution operations. The combination has compelled many producers to reconsider their approach to moving products to our islands. As the expense of warehousing inventories on the island becomes increasingly prohibitive, HFA’s logistics arm continues to align with our customers to disintermediate specific categories of their business, to help them reduce costs and enhance fill rates. In practice, disintermediation requires significant transparency and data sharing, along with a shift from the conventional, transactional relationship between supplier and customer to a collaborative, meaningful partnership with aligned interests and common goals. While our tech team provides the data interface, HFA’s logistics platform furnishes the necessary capacity and frequency of shipments. HFA’s shipment frequency via ocean and air utilizes every sailing from every West Coast port and every air cargo carrier from California to Hawai‘i daily. Upon arrival, our statewide distribution operations handle the last mile, delivering directly to the store dock or shelf. Overall, the growing adoption of disintermediation is fueling innovation, helping to mitigate rising costs, and ultimately delivering greater value to both producers and consumers in Hawai‘i’s increasingly interconnected marketplace.

Robotics, & Lights-Out, Hypoxic Warehouses, and Artificial Intelligence.

While the entire world grapples with rising costs in commodities, materials, transportation, and energy, the foremost concern in wholesale operations across the U.S. and many other countries is the shortage of available labor to sustain operations. To address this challenge, many of our suppliers are increasingly turning to robotics for stocking and selection within their warehousing operations. Consequently, warehouse designs are evolving to accommodate these advancements, resulting in a decreased reliance on human labor. These new designs incorporate lights-out, hypoxic operations that are solely managed by robotics and artificial intelligence. With the absence of human involvement in the daily stocking and selection processes, these areas operate without light and with significantly reduced oxygen levels. This combination drastically reduces utility costs, as well as the expenses associated with the installation and maintenance of fire sprinkler and prevention systems. Simultaneously, AI-powered scanning and robotic selection eliminate selection errors entirely, which is especially important considering the cost of shipping from the continent to Hawai‘i – and back again, due to an error.

2720 Waiwai Loop, Honolulu, HI 96819
(808) 839-2004
hfahawaii.com