Vendor Management Practices & KPIs Across Leading Retailers in Latam
Situation
Our client was seeking to understand how top e-commerce and retail platforms in Latin America organize and manage their supplier relationships, specifically Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico. The goal was to benchmark commercial practices such as margins, return policies, payment terms, and advertising investments across multiple retail categories, covering:
- Smartphones & Notebooks
- TVs
- Large & Small Appliances
- Toys
- Tools
- Beauty
- Home CPG
Objective
The objective was to benchmark vendor management practices across Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico’s top retailers by gathering data on key metrics such as Vendor Margins, Front and Back Margins, Payment Terms, and Return Policies, supporting the client’s strategy and performance optimization.
Our Work
- In the first phase, 10EQS sourced and interviewed subject matter experts with deep experience in vendor management, category leadership, and supply chain across Brazil’s leading retailers.
- For the second phase, focused on Argentina and Mexico, 10EQS interviewed subject matter experts with experience in Category and e-commerce.
For both phases, 10EQS thoroughly screened and qualified candidates, ensuring their knowledge of commercial terms, negotiation dynamics, and operational KPIs.
Project team
- Ex-BCG Consultant with an industry background in CPG and e-commerce, based in Brazil
- Management Consultant with extensive experience in benchmarking and competitive assessments, based in Argentina
- Ex-Accenture & KPMG Consultant with retail & CPG industry experience
- 10EQS Delivery Operations (=PMO) providing quality assurance, process management and expert recruitment
- 19 industry experts
Industry experts (excerpt)
- Senior Vendor Manager – E-commerce Platform (Brazil)
- Manager, Store Retail – Retail Company (Brazil)
- Head Commercial Lead Marketplace – Retail Company (Mexico)
- Category Manager – E-commerce Platform (Argentina)
- Ads/Retail Media Director – E-commerce Platform (Brazil)
- Branch Manager – Retailer (Argentina)
- Product Manager, E-commerce – E-commerce Platform (Brazil)
- Commercial Director – Retailer (Mexico)
- E-commerce Manager – Retailer (Mexico)
Results
10EQS delivered quantitative benchmarking metrics & KPIs across the target categories for each country. The insights helped the client to identify key patterns and prioritize areas for commercial and operational improvement. Amongst other results, there was a notable variation in vendor terms for smartphones across different brands within the same retailer.
Vendor and margin structures differed significantly by brand, reflecting varying levels of negotiation power. Advertising investment was absent across all cases, and payment terms were generally consistent. Damage allowances and performance bonuses were selectively applied, depending on the supplier.