Pivoting The Supply Chain: Food Importation And Distribution

Big shifts during the circuit breaker provide food importer and distributor Sonnamera Pte Ltd with new ideas for reshaping the business.

- Victor Chen

The shutdown of economies a few months ago did not leave Abhay Sharma unfazed, although the admits that it was not the first crisis that he has seen. “The worst that I had experienced was the 1998 financial crisis, and the meltdown of the Russian rouble I was running a business in Moscow,” he recalls. He claims to have emerged stronger then and feels that he can position Sonnamera the same, as well. “We are already looking for a larger warehouse and, with the addition of new brands, we’ll have a bigger offering to consumers.” In the next six months, he will strengthen his supply chain and invest in digital technologies to streamline his operation and ensure congruence between various departments. Abhay is the director of Sonnamera Pte Ltd, an importer and distributor of FMCG to the retail trade in Singapore.

Before the pandemic struck, most of the products that they import came from India, where a 60-day total lockdown crippled the supply chain. Abhay quickly decided to open trade channels with food companies in the US and Australia and increased imports from Italy and Holland by over 800 per cent. “We had also airfreighted huge consignments of (some Italian products) to ensure that the major retailers’ shelves were well stocked.”