Many brands reach a point where they know they need more support in retail, but they're not sure what kind.
Should they invest in a merchandising team? A sales team? Or a combination of both?
It's one of the most common questions businesses ask when trying to grow sales, improve retail execution, or expand into new stores. While the two functions often work closely together, they serve very different purposes.
Understanding the difference between merchandising and sales can help you make better decisions about where to invest your resources and ultimately achieve stronger results in store.
What Does a Merchandising Team Do?
A merchandising team focuses on in-store execution.
Their role is to ensure products are available, visible, correctly presented, and ready for customers to purchase. Great merchandising protects your investment in ranging, marketing, promotions, and product development by ensuring your products are represented well at store level.
Typical merchandising activities include:
- Filling shelves and reducing out-of-stocks
- Ensuring products match planograms
- Building and maintaining displays
- Installing point-of-sale material
- Checking pricing and ticketing
- Rotating stock
- Reporting store-level issues
- Taking photos and providing store feedback
- Liaising with store owners, buyers, and department managers
- Ensuring stock-on-hand (SOH) figures are accurate
- Investigating stock discrepancies
- Locating missing stock in reserve areas and back rooms
- Supporting stock replenishment and ordering discussions
- Identifying opportunities for additional ranging or display space
In many cases, a merchandiser acts as the eyes and ears of a brand in store. They identify problems before they become lost sales and ensure products remain available for customers to purchase.
Even the best product can't generate sales if it's sitting in the back room, incorrectly ticketed, or missing from the shelf altogether.
What Does a Retail Sales Team Do?
A retail sales team focuses on creating opportunities and driving growth.
Unlike merchandising, sales support is relationship-driven. Sales representatives work directly with store owners, buyers, category managers, pharmacists, department managers, and retail teams to grow a brand's presence and performance.
Typical sales activities include:
- Presenting new products
- Securing ranging opportunities
- Expanding distribution
- Negotiating additional shelf space
- Gaining secondary display locations
- Introducing promotional programmes
- Conducting staff training
- Following up on product launches
- Building relationships with key retail decision-makers
- Identifying growth opportunities within stores
A sales team helps brands open doors, gain support from retailers, and secure opportunities that drive future growth.
Merchandising vs Sales: What's the Difference?
The simplest way to think about it is:
Sales creates opportunities. Merchandising protects and maximises those opportunities.
A sales representative may secure a new display, gain additional shelf space, or convince a buyer to range a product.
A merchandiser then ensures the display is maintained, stock remains available, point-of-sale is installed correctly, and the opportunity continues delivering results.
Without sales support, growth opportunities can be missed.
Without merchandising support, those opportunities may never reach their full potential.
When a Merchandising Team May Be Enough
Some brands primarily need merchandising support.
This is often the case when:
- Products are already widely ranged
- Retail relationships are established
- Distribution is strong
- The focus is on maintaining standards
- The objective is improving availability and compliance
For established brands, merchandising can have a significant impact on sales by reducing out-of-stocks, improving display execution, and ensuring products are consistently represented across stores.
When a Sales Team May Be Enough
Some businesses need sales support more than merchandising.
This is common when:
- Entering a new retail channel
- Launching new products
- Expanding into new regions
- Seeking additional ranging opportunities
- Looking to grow retailer relationships
In these situations, the priority is creating opportunities and securing retailer commitment.
Sales teams help brands gain access to stores, buyers, and decision-makers who can influence future growth.
When You Need Both
For many FMCG brands, suppliers, and retailers, the best solution is a combination of sales and merchandising support.
This is especially true when:
- Launching new products nationally
- Expanding supermarket distribution
- Growing within pharmacy channels
- Running promotional campaigns
- Increasing store coverage
- Building brand awareness in competitive categories
A sales team can secure the opportunity.
A merchandising team can ensure that opportunity is executed consistently across every store.
Together, they provide a complete retail support solution that drives both short-term and long-term growth.
The Hidden Cost of Choosing Only One
Many businesses focus heavily on either sales or merchandising without recognising the value of both.
A strong sales programme may secure new opportunities, but poor execution can prevent those opportunities from reaching their potential.
Likewise, excellent merchandising can maintain existing business, but without proactive sales support, growth opportunities may be limited.
The most successful retail brands understand that growth requires both opportunity and execution.
One without the other rarely delivers the best possible outcome.
Every Brand Is Different
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to retail support.
Some brands need a dedicated merchandising team to improve shelf availability, maintain displays, and ensure stores are executing correctly. Others need a sales team focused on building relationships, growing distribution, and identifying new opportunities. Many achieve the strongest results through a combination of both.
At Plum Agencies, we work closely with each client to understand their goals, retail channels, budget, and growth ambitions. From there, we create bespoke retail support programmes tailored to the needs of the business.
Whether you need merchandising support, a dedicated sales team, or a fully integrated field sales and merchandising solution, we can build a programme that fits.
The right answer isn't choosing between sales and merchandising.
It's having the right people in the right stores, carrying out the right activities to help your brand grow.
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