the quantities sold are small; several cases of beer or a few
bottles of strong liquor. The customer pays the truck driver
in cash or is sent an invoice. The order is immediately input
by the truck driver into a handheld computer, which can be
connected up to a printer in the truck's cab. The customer
receives a printout of the invoice and the details of his order
are transmitted at the end of the day via a network to the
mainframe computer at Mendez. Bienvenido Aulet is the
head of the Beer Truck Division. He explains that the truck
driver and his assistant do much more than just deliver
beer. "In fact we have a whole liquor division in a small
department. We have marketing, promotions and direct
sales all under one roof." The truck driver will personally
handle the merchandising and make sure that the FIFO
(first in, first out) principle is maintained. He also acts as a
salesman. "If he sees new stores or restaurants, he will visit
them and try to sell them our products."
According to Mendez, the Beer Truck Division is not in
direct competition with the cash carry wholesalers.
Alvarez: "We supply to customers who appreciate that extra
element of service. They pay us a little bit more for their
beer than they would pay in the cash carry's."
VIP
Manuel F. Rivera is Sales Manager of the Liquor Division. He
has been working for Mendez for 28 years and was the
company's very first Merchandiser. He still remembers the
downturn at the end of the 1980s. "Those were hard times,
but selling is still difficult today as there is a lot of compe
tition."
Service is important. It provides a competitive edge. In
the Mendez warehouse, for instance, two delivery vans are
available for the VIP service: this VIP service means that
small quantities ordered by hotels and restaurants can be
delivered almost instantly. For other customers the rule
that is applied wherever possible is: place your order by
phone before 10 a.m., and we'll make the delivery the same
day.
Another essential element of the success of Heineken in
Puerto Rico is the loyalty of the sales reps. "Our sales peo
ple have a special bond with a few products and Heineken
is one of them. That's because Heineken contributes to the
image of our company. It's also because, as agents for this
brand, we are not simply selling beer. We are selling
Heineken."
