“When we entered the food business,” Dennis recalls, “the commitment we made was to move into the major leagues and compete with the national companies” like U.S. Foodservice, Performance Food Group and Sysco. To do that, he says, you offer the same services that huge companies do — and kick things up a notch. This means partnering with other independents to buy fresh products at good prices. It means training drivers to manage refrigerated trucks with three temperature zones, so they can help customers handle deliveries quickly and easily. And it means a little straight-talk about money. When food or fuel prices rise, for example, other distributors might try to recover those costs from independent restaurants. But the sales reps at Dennis Paper & Food Service respond to these pressures by turning into menu consultants, says Dennis, offering tips on plate presentation and blackboard specials, or using special software to help customers manage the cost-per-plate for each item. He believes this commitment to customer service is the key factor in his company’s six-fold revenue increase since 2002.
And there’s no plan to slow down any time soon. Dennis and his managers are deciding whether to expand the company’s freezer and double its Bangor facility to better serve a growing demand for frozen foods and broaden the company’s service area into the southern part of the state.
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