Beaudry & Cadrin And The Fine Art Of “Coopetition”
Beaudry & Cadrin, the only genuine food distributor in Quebec to operate an extensive network of convenience stores (not counting the three major food giants of Metro, Sobeys and Loblaws, which are yes, distributors as well, but above all supermarket operators), has developed the fine art of being both supplier and competitor of its partners.
This is shown by the remarkable image captured on the Internet, at the top of this article, in which we see a Beaudry & Cadrin delivery truck unloading its merchandise at an Eko convenience store owned by the petroleum distributor F. Dufresne.
Beaudry & Cadrin is thus acting as a food supplier to the Eko convenience store … while also being a direct competitor!
In fact, just 1.5 km from this convenience store, or less than 20 minutes’ walk away, is the nearest competitor’s of the Eko gas station: a Beau-Soir c-store, a banner owned by none other than… Beaudry & Cadrin !
Competitor and supplier/partner at the same time! … is it not an ideal business model?
There is a scientific term to describe the phenomenon: “coopetition”.
According to Investopedia, coopetition is the act of cooperation between competing companies; businesses that engage in both competition and cooperation are said to be in coopetition.
But an even more accurate term would be: adaptation.
Fine adaptation to a ruthless market, in order to get all the possible benefits, quite simply!
