Henry’s Foods Shifts to Custom iPad Sales App

ALEXANDRIA, Minn. -- Henry’s Foods Inc., one of the largest convenience store distributors in the Midwest, has deployed Verge Ignite, a custom iPad sales app powered by Verge Retail. This new platform replaces the laptop-based solution the company had been using.

Verge Ignite is designed exclusively for c-store distributors and retailers, and will help Henry’s Foods increase sales, enhance presentations and processes, and eliminate printing costs.

“Our relationship with Verge has been fantastic. They worked with our team closely throughout the process to deliver highly customized functionality. The entire Verge team really understands the industry’s challenges and as a result, has a product specifically catered to the c-store space,” said Kellie Janssen, director of strategy and business development at Alexandria-based Henry’s Foods.

Verge, the technology spinoff of North Carolina-based M.R. Williams Inc., created a custom Plate Ordering module for Henry’s Foods that allows its team of sales representatives across Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and the Dakotas to build plates, and on the fly adjust retail, portion size and gross profit.

This custom foodservice module joins an already robust set of features that can improve sales presentations and processes, accelerate speed to market, reduce order errors and eliminate printing costs, according to the announcement from Verge.

“We’re thrilled to be in a position to step in and provide Henry’s Foods with the mobile tools their reps need in order to keep an edge in an ever-increasingly competitive marketplace,” said Carson Kuehne, chief innovations officer for Verge Retail.

Verge Retail’s technology is deployed across more than 2,200 retail outlets and used by tens of thousands of c-store retailers, distributors and consumers nationwide.

Founded in 1929, Henry's Foods is a fourth-generation family owned, operated and oriented business. It has diversified from distributing just candy and tobacco products to now also distributing foodservice, paper, hardware and wholesale groceries throughout Minnesota, eastern North and South Dakota, northern Iowa and western Wisconsin. Its product line includes more than 12,000 items.