Industry was left stunned in March this year when leading retail figure Victoria Lockie announced her abrupt departure from Nisa’s Head of Retail position. After all, having spent over a decade at Nisa, much of it leading from the front, Lockie had become a formidable presence, embodying the brand with her strong leadership and even stronger voice.
Her exit left many wondering what her next move would be. It didn’t take long for the answer to emerge.
Just a few months after leaving Nisa, the retail world was buzzing again with the news that Lockie had taken up a crucial new role at the UK’s largest buying group.
In early September, Lockie was appointed as Retail Director at Unitas, where she is tasked with driving the group’s retail and wholesale growth initiative as well as further development of its own brand range. Considering her experience in retail that spans more than three decades, starting from ground zero and rising to the top, bringing her on board is clearly a brilliant move by Unitas.
In an industry-first exclusive interview, Lockie talked in detail with Asian Trader about her strategy for navigating the evolving landscape, the challenges, issue of gender diversity, and how she plans to ensure Unitas stays ahead in all respect in an increasingly competitive market.
Lockie said, “The role of retail director has been created to further grow Unitas Wholesale’s retail offer and capabilities. Working with the wider team, I will be leading the retail and commercial agenda, which will not only shape the ‘Plan for Profit’ category management scheme, but also support the growth of our members’ symbol store development programs, the group’s retail and wholesale promotional programs and the continued roll out of the Local Living own brand range.”
Her new task is as challenging as it sounds exciting, but she has no illusions about the magnitude of the work ahead. The new role will also require her to focus on providing support for Unitas’ retail wholesalers to improve the proposition and execution in depot.
She said, “I will be supporting Unitas members to have the right products at the right price at the right time, executed well in depot so it actively engages retailers and drives sales and delivers ROI for our suppliers.”
The role of Retail Director also comes with a specific focus on strengthening the support that Unitas provides to its members in the ever-evolving digital landscape.
“I will also be working with the Unitas team to drive forward the digital agenda to ensure our members and their retailers can access our industry-leading support in the ways that are most accessible and appropriate for them,” Lockie notes, reflecting her commitment to embracing technology and modernizing Unitas’s retail strategy.
A kick start
With a recent successful conclusion of the Unitas conference that saw the attendance of record number of member businesses, Lockie seems to have hit the ground running.
Lockie’s arrival at Unitas coincided with the group’s four-day annual conference, and it proved to be the perfect launch pad for her new role. The timing couldn’t have been better.
She said, “Since joining Unitas Wholesale, my first few weeks have been a blur of activities, and I have loved it. I have immersed myself in the group and its membership, and the conference was a fantastic opportunity to meet so many in such an engaging and positive environment.”
The conference took place in Vilamoura, Portugal from September 20-24, creating quite a buzz among wholesalers and suppliers alike.
Smashing its earlier records, the conference was attended by a record number of member businesses, representing “more than 95 per cent of Unitas Wholesale turnover along with a record-breaking 900 one-to-one member and supplier meetings”.
At the heart of the conference, which was themed around “Inform, Inspire and Engage”, were in-depth and thought-provoking presentations by industry leaders, including figures such as Leon co-founder and author Henry Dimbleby, economist Paul Johnson, Lumina Intelligence’s Jill Livesey and Ed Stibley, TWC’s Tanya Pepin and DGA Group’s Katherine Morgan.
Members also took to the stage to share their stories with the suppliers in the room to aid insight and awareness of the opportunities in the channel which everyone found beneficial.
Lockie herself was the key part of a panel session focused on the future of retail.
She revealed, “It was a real privilege to take part in a panel session focused on the future of retail, where I was able to share some of my experience and outline some of my plans, such as how we will be supporting our members’ retailers to create stores that are industry leading, relevant and innovative by embracing the latest technologies, and Unitas’ retail expertise.
“This will ensure our members’ stores will best serve the communities that rely on them with what they need, when they need it.”
Reflecting on her first few weeks, Lockie said, “What a start to the role! What an incredible few days, full of positivity, enthusiasm and energy! It was the best and greatest introduction to the group and its members.”
Post-conference, Lockie is eager to hit the road, travelling across the country to meet several Unitas members dotted across the UK with a mission to better understand their infrastructures, depots, and symbol estates.
She informed, “Looking ahead, over the coming weeks I’m focusing on getting out on the road, travelling the length, breadth and depth of the UK to visit as many member businesses as I can so I can spend time fully understanding their infrastructure, depots and symbol estates in order to bring the best support I can.”
Retail bug
Lockie’s love affair with retail began at the tender age of 14 when she started working in a local convenience store.
She said, “I started my career at Costcutter in 1987, working in a variety of roles, including six years in IT which has led to my understanding and respect for data. By working in multiple departments, I have extensive operational experience which proved to be invaluable as my role, and the business, grew.
“From running my own stores, including a diverse blend of store types, from university sites, holiday parks, small format and large, my understanding of the challenges, and opportunities, now proves to be enormously beneficial.”
At Nisa, Lockie spent more than 12 years, joining in 2012 as a sales support manager, before serving in positions such as head of retail operations and head of key accounts. Her time at Nisa was transformative, both for herself and the company. Over the years, she built lasting relationships with retailers while leading the partner base and retail team.
She also led the symbol group’s retail team through significant transitions, including Nisa’s shift from a mutual-style ownership structure to a corporate governance model.
Lockie is confident that all that she has learned will now come in handy as she has a better perspective of how things actually work.
She said, “I have spent my career embedded in convenience retail, and this knowledge will be invaluable in my new role.
“Through my years at Nisa and with Costcutter before that, I have spent my career embedded in convenience retail so this knowledge and insight will be invaluable in my new role. My experience has shown me, repeatedly, the critical importance of encouraging retailers to stay close to their customers.
“Understanding the needs of your customer base and the area in which you operate is essential to ensure your range is right.”
Apart from navigating business decisions, the key role at Nisa also armed Lockie with the power of honest communication and in building lasting relationships, something which she found resonating at Unitas as well.
“During my career, I have learnt many lessons, not least the value of open and honest communication and the importance of relationships, but this is also key to everyday life. What appealed to me about joining Unitas was that one of its strategic pillars is around building sustainable relationships with its supplier base which aligns perfectly with my own approach.”
Apart from making strides on the business side, Lockie’s tenure at Nisa saw her touch several other milestones. More than just a business leader, Lockie also became a trustee for MADL (Making A Difference Locally), where she worked tirelessly to help independent retailers support their local communities.
Her tenure at Nisa also saw a sizeable impact on fair representation. Through panels and forums both internally and within the industry, she diligently worked on diversity, inclusion and mentoring activities, a passion which she is determined to pursue at Unitas as well.
Currently, she is an ambassador for Diversity in Wholesale, Women in Wholesale, GroceryAid, and WiHTL Women to Watch 2024. For many years, she has heavily supported the Association of Convenience Stores including the more recent Shopkind campaign.
She is determined to pursue the causes at Unitas as well.
“I was an active ambassador for their diversity and inclusion agenda, which I will be continuing at Unitas. I am passionate about driving this agenda forward, with continued work with Diversity in Wholesale, Women in Wholesale, Women in Retail and other industry initiatives,” she said.
Braving ahead
Clearly, Lockie brings more than just passion to the table; she also brings an unmatched depth of hands-on industry experience and more importantly, empathy.
With her decades of experience, she is acutely aware of the challenges that face both retailers and wholesalers.
She said, “There are countless issues facing the retail sector, and wholesale, right now, not least the increased cost to do business at a time when consumers are counting every penny and demanding the best value.
“At Unitas, we have recognised that there are opportunities to drive the retail proposition forward right across the group with store formats, compelling range advice and powerful promotions to meet these customer requirements.
“Our members are at different stages in their retail journey and our priority is offer the support most needed in order to counter the challenges they may face. Some members have
invested with dedicated retail teams out in the field to support their retailers, and others are at the start of this journey, so we are hard at work to understand what is needed and how we can best deliver an improved level of support to their retailers.”
Another issue that Lockie feels particularly passionate about is the rise of shoplifting, robbery, and violence against shop workers. Having introduced several successful safety initiatives in her previous roles, she is determined to bring similar programs to Unitas’s wholesale members.
She told Asian Trader, “I feel passionately about the safety and protection of convenience store retailers and how we can best support them to stay safe. In previous roles, I introduced several initiatives that were successful in protecting the welfare of retailers, and I will be looking to do the same again through our wholesale members.”
Looking ahead, Lockie feels that “value” will continue to be priortised by wholesalers and retailers as well as buyers.
She said, “Value is one of Unitas’s key strategic pillars as this will continue to play a huge role for wholesalers and retailers, so a strong value proposition is essential. Price marked packs will, of course, continue to drive trust and loyalty, but with the caveat that shared margins are appropriate.”
Apart from value, the end users also prioritise quality, something which tends to ensure the repeat customers at stores. Lockie is set to cater to this requirement through Unitas’ own label range.
She continued, “What is clear is that alongside value, customers are also expecting quality, which is why the Local Living own brand range is so key to get right. Our members’ retail customers are relying on us to deliver a high-quality value proposition, and we are confident that the Local Living SKUs currently available and those in the pipeline will tick all those critical boxes.”
Lockie is also concerned about squeezing retailers’ margin and is also focused on increasing supplier engagement at depots.
“To also drive value, our promotions need to pack a punch to deliver excellent margins, sales and footfall on the bestselling brands, and this is another of my key priorities to ensure we utilise our scale as the UK’s largest wholesale buying group to deliver really powerful deals.
“NPD of course continues to drive engagement right across the sector, in depots and in store, and by leveraging our scale and reach, we have access to the leading suppliers and brands.”
She is focused on listening – to members, suppliers, retailers – in order to establish what’s working and where improvements can be made to Unitas’ processes and propositions to provide both independent retailers and its members with the support they need to thrive.
Unitas’s “Plan for Profit” initiative is another area where Lockie is eager to make an impact.
She told Asian Trader, “I have 37 years’ experience within the retail sector, and I’ll be bringing that expertise and insight to the role to ensure our promotions, and ‘Plan for
Profit’are effective and deliver results for retailers and consumers. By working closely with members and our supplier partners, we can unlock significant opportunities both in depot and in store.
“An ongoing priority will be examining our joint business plans with suppliers with a retail lens. Not only will this enable us as a group to better understand the challenges suppliers face but also identify new opportunities to drive compliance and execution across the group.
“Talking with suppliers enables us to really understand what’s on their mind around issues such as NPD and compliance, and this helps us to shape activity in depot and in store.”
Lockie also points out that the wholesale and retail landscape gets largely impacted by regulations and legislation, such as HFSS (High Fat, Salt and Sugar) and MUP (Minimum Unit Pricing). She is confident, however, that the Unitas team is well-positioned to stay ahead of these challenges, providing members with the support and information they need through Plan for Profit, when they need it, in order to succeed.
It’s barely a couple of months but Lockie seems to have settled down well in her new key role.
She said, “Also, working with the wider Unitas team, we’re constantly exploring new opportunities to launch them across the wider membership to drive benefits for the whole group. We have a lot of plans in progress, so watch this space.”
Making inclusive workspaces
Both retail and wholesale are infamous for the pay gap when it comes to gender despite women playing a huge role in the retail sector. Apart from the pay gap, their numbers shrink rapidly with rising ranks.
Spanning 37 years, Lockie has been a part of a sector where women often tend to experience being the only woman in the room. However, the change is happening, and she has been both a witness and the key driver.
She said, “Things have moved on, without a doubt. Thanks to excellent initiatives such as Diversity in Wholesale, there is recognised support across the sector which is most welcome. However, more still needs to be done and I’m passionate about playing a role in this.
“Joining Unitas, I’m delighted to see that the group takes diversity and inclusion seriously, which is reflected in its team, and I’m really positive about the future for women in this fantastic channel.”
Lockie urges female retailers and wholesalers to never be afraid to work within different areas of the business, saying such an opportunity will always be beneficial as it gives a “broader understanding”.
Her advice to women looking to advance in retail is clear.
“Take ownership of your career. Build a broad network of people you can learn from, and endeavour to work with a mentor. Never underestimate how much you can learn from others. More people will be willing to help than you realise. You just have to ask!”
Lockie being an expert in knowing the pulse of the British convenience channel, her new role at Unitas does sound like a perfect fit not only for her but for retailers, wholesalers and the industry as a whole.
With her passion for retail and excellent business acumen along with her commitment to diversity, she is poised to lead the buying group into an exciting and dynamic future—one where independent retailers and wholesalers alike can thrive.
Mirjam Fogarty, head of operations, Pipers Crisps
