First Choice Foodservice | Foodservice Wholesaler

Background

First Choice Foodservice is a family-run wholesale supplier with more than 40 years of industry experience.

Serving approximately 1,000 customers across the Midlands, the business supplies restaurants, care homes, garden centres, cafés and foodservice operators through a next-day delivery network supported by around 30 delivery vehicles.

As the company evolved from its retail roots into a dedicated foodservice supplier, customer expectations began to change. The team recognised the need to create a more digital customer experience while equipping their sales team with better tools and better visibility into customer behaviour.

The Challenge

The move into foodservice brought new opportunities, but it also created new demands.

Customers increasingly expected the convenience of digital ordering, while the business needed greater visibility into customer purchasing behaviour and sales performance.

The team wanted more customers ordering online, but they also wanted to understand what was happening across the business in real time.

Previously, sales teams often had to wait for reports before understanding whether customers were spending more or less than expected. This made it difficult to spot opportunities early and proactively engage with customers.

At the same time, First Choice Foodservice wanted to provide suppliers with better visibility into promotional performance and campaign activity.

The business needed more than just an ordering platform. It needed a solution that would connect customer ordering, sales activity and commercial insights.

The Solution

First Choice Foodservice implemented Orderlion to create a fully connected digital ordering experience.

Customers could place orders through the Orderlion App and Web Shop, providing a simple and convenient way to browse products and order online.

At the same time, the sales team gained access to powerful customer insights through Orderlion's Sales Pro and Analytics capabilities, allowing them to better understand customer spending patterns, purchasing trends and account performance.

The platform also enabled the business to run campaigns and promotions more effectively while providing suppliers with meaningful reporting on promotional activity.

For the sales team, this meant having access to the information they needed every day rather than waiting for reports at the end of the week.

The Results

The transition to digital ordering exceeded expectations.

Within just three months, First Choice Foodservice successfully migrated more than 90% of its customer base onto the new platform.

Today, approximately 65% of all business orders are placed through the app, creating a more efficient ordering process for both customers and internal teams.

The move to digital ordering also helped increase average basket spend, giving customers easier access to products, promotions and personalised ordering tools such as favourites and shopping lists.

For the sales team, one of the biggest benefits has been visibility.

Rather than waiting until the end of the week to review sales performance, Business Development Managers can now monitor customer spending habits and average basket values in real time.

"I can now see day-to-day customer spending habits and what their average spend is, so I don't have to wait a week to find out if sales are up or down."

Mia Henry, Business Development Manager at First Choice Foodservice

This has transformed the way the team engages with customers.

Rather than reacting to historical reports, they can proactively identify opportunities, support customer growth and ensure spending remains on track.

Orderlion's campaigns and promotions functionality has also created significant value.

The team can now track customer engagement with campaigns, understand which promotions are driving results and provide suppliers with accurate sales reporting and promotional performance data.

The platform has also strengthened customer relationships.

While some businesses worry that digital ordering may reduce customer contact, First Choice Foodservice experienced the opposite.

The in-app messaging functionality has enabled Business Development Managers to communicate directly with customers, helping support adoption, increase engagement and build stronger relationships.

"We're able to communicate with our customers through the chat message and it actually ended up bringing our Business Development Managers a lot closer to customers."

"The results from this have been absolutely incredible, even for the three months that we've been live."

Sophie Ainger, Marketing Manager at First Choice Foodservice

Key Results

• Migrated more than 90% of customers within three months
• 65% of all business orders now placed through the app
• Increased average customer basket spend
• Improved customer adoption of digital ordering
• Real-time visibility into customer spending habits and basket values
• Access to customer order histories and purchasing trends
• Improved campaign and promotional performance tracking
• Enhanced supplier reporting and sales visibility
• Stronger customer engagement through in-app messaging
• Greater efficiency across the business
• Enabled more proactive customer account management

Client Perspective

"Initially, I think customers were sceptical about using a new piece of technology and moving on to something new. However, it has been much easier once they are transitioned to get them engaging and using the app and the functions such as campaigns.”

Mia Henry, Business Development Manager at First Choice Foodservice

"Orderlion gives us access to analytics that provide sales data, insights into our customers and access to campaigns and promotions."

"Orderlion have helped us massively through this transition. We are a very thorough company and have probably driven them absolutely insane, but the result has been absolutely worth it.”

Sophie Ainger, Marketing Manager at First Choice Foodservice.

Looking Forward

As customer expectations continue to evolve, First Choice Foodservice remains committed to providing a modern, digital-first customer experience.

With strong customer adoption, growing engagement and access to real-time customer insights, the business is well positioned to continue strengthening customer relationships, supporting suppliers and driving future growth.

Bottom Line

Orderlion has helped First Choice Foodservice successfully transition customers to digital ordering while giving sales teams the tools and insights they need to drive growth.

The result is a more connected business with stronger customer engagement, improved visibility, increased efficiency and a platform that supports long-term success.

Ready to achieve similar results?

Whether you're a foodservice wholesaler, distributor or supplier, Orderlion can help you increase digital adoption, improve customer engagement and unlock valuable customer insights.

Book a personalised demo today and discover how Orderlion can transform your wholesale operation.