Choosing a distributor discussion: Gordon Food Service

Today’s hospitality managers have many options when choosing a purchasing distributor for their business. These distributors range from large distribution firms that carry anything a hospitality company needs to small niche suppliers that specialize in a specific category of products.

For this assignment, you will choose one (1) major food / equipment distributor from the list below and conduct an in-depth research study.

List of U.S. broadline food service distrubutors, select one (1): GORDON FOOD SERVICE

1. Gordon Food Service

Write a four to six (4-6) page paper in which you:

1. Choose one (1) distributor company and provide a brief overview including:
   1. a history of the company
   2. the geographical areas that they serve
   3. a high-level list of supplies they offer (by category)
   4. the main competitors
2. Choose one (1) competitive distribution company and compare and contrast five (5) similar products (offered by both firms) in the areas of price, quality, and value. Create a table to represent the data.
3. Provide an overview of this company’s payment policy including:
   1. the objective of payment policy
   2. the costs of paying early
   3. the costs of late payment
   4. the mechanics of bill paying
   5. discounting
4. Determine whether or not to choose this distributor as the main supplier for the restaurant chain you selected in Assignment 1. Explain the decision by discussing the following items:
   1. The impact of this distributor’s purchasing policy on the supplier selection.
   2. This distributor’s ranking based on the supplier selection criteria outlined in Chapter 12 of the Feinstein and Stafanelli textbook.
   3. The most important supplier selection criteria for this distributor.
   4. The comparison between this distributor and its competitors based on the most important selection criteria identified in number 4c.
5. Use at least three (3) quality references. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not quality as academic resources.