01
Broken Margin Stack
Distributor take, shelf fees, freight, and deductions surface margin pressure that only looked acceptable on paper.
Distribution / CPG / Vendor Side
Your channel model may need a harder operating read.
For brands already inside KeHE or UNFI: PRO diagnoses whether supplier readiness, deductions, chargebacks, scorecard pressure, OTIF penalties, fill-rate performance, and promo-driven volume can support more capital.
Sales Quality • Promo Architecture • Reorder Durability • Margin Stack
Readiness Signals
The pressure points that constrain active KeHE and UNFI suppliers.
02
Sales Quality and Promo Dependence
When scan-downs stop, sales disappear; volume is being bought, not earned.
03
Deductions and Fee Drag
Bill-backs, fines, and launch charges get normalized until the loss is material.
04
Premature Expansion
More DCs before proof compounds the operating gap and burns capital faster.
05
Reorder Durability
Sales that disappear without promotional support are subsidies, not durable demand.
06
Account Manager Inconsistency
DC-level execution swings make consolidated P&L unreliable across the footprint.
Core Offer
Distribution Diagnostics Pro
Distribution Diagnostics Pro is an operator-grade commercial diagnostic for active KeHE and UNFI suppliers. It surfaces whether the model is profitable, scalable, and stable — or sensitive to channel complexity.
Output: Go / Constrain / Stop.
- Margin Stack Review: distributor economics, landed margin, fee load, and SKU-level gross profit
- Sales Quality & Promo Architecture: base demand versus subsidized movement
- Deductions and Fee Pressure: bill-backs, claims, and recurring deduction patterns
- Reorder Durability: repeat demand without promo support
- Expansion Discipline: whether new DCs are helping or scaling the loss
FEE STACK SURFACE
Where Supplier Margin Moves Inside the Fee Stack
Most supplier losses do not show up as one clean line item. PRO reviews visible exposure categories first; scoring, weights, and full review stay inside qualified engagements.
01
MCB / Billback Exposure
Off-invoice programs, billbacks, and recovery gaps that distort net contribution.
02
Promo Funding Pressure
Trade spend, scan-downs, and allowances that fail to create durable reorders.
03
OTIF / Fill-Rate Penalties
Short ships, late performance, and fill-rate pressure that become deductions.
04
ASN / EDI / Labeling Compliance
Documentation, transmission, labeling, and receiving friction that create exposure.
05
Freight and Temp-Controlled Routing
Routing, carrier, temperature, and handling issues that compress landed margin.
06
Spoilage / Unsaleables / Deduction Drag
Spoils, unsaleables, claims, and recurring deductions that become normalized.
07
Scorecard Degradation
Performance decay that weakens account posture and raises growth cost.
08
Slotting / Program Fees
Program, launch, shelf, or access costs tested against reorder economics.
What PRO Finds
The four operating layers where KeHE / UNFI models fail.
Where deductions, chargebacks, scorecard pressure, OTIF penalties, and fill-rate gaps become visible.
01
Shipment Risk Layer
Flags shipment exposure before it becomes receipt pressure, deductions, chargebacks, or conditional review.
02
Program and Eligibility Layer
Shows where GBB, scorecard, and promo readiness are helping the brand — or limiting it.
03
Promo and Reorder Layer
Separates real demand from subsidized movement and measures recovery.
04
Supplier Record Layer
Organizes cost sheets, deductions, velocity, and compliance records into evidence.
Most suppliers review incidents. PRO diagnoses the system before expansion compounds the operating gap.
Decision Output
The autopsy produces one of three outputs.
GO
Economics hold, promo spend is recoverable, deductions are controllable, and velocity justifies continued investment.
CONSTRAIN
The model can work, but promo architecture, deductions, or fee stack terms must be corrected before expansion continues.
STOP
The current structure is not viable. Stop or reconstruct the distributor path before more capital deepens the loss.
Diagnostic Evidence Preview
High-level proof views from operator diagnostics
Full diagnostic outputs are reviewed during a booked diagnostic call.
KeHE Connect reports activity. PRO explains the financial meaning.
Booked diagnostic calls receive the diagnostic environment with full input review.
Best Fit
This is for brands already inside the KeHE or UNFI model.
Built for active KeHE and UNFI suppliers who need the economics confronted directly: promo dependence, deduction pressure, margin compression, and fee exposure. Not a fit if you want findings softened or assumptions blessed.
Good Fit
- Active KeHE or UNFI suppliers trying to understand why the P&L is under pressure
- Brands dependent on promos for velocity who want to fix the base demand problem
- Operators absorbing deductions with no current ownership of the cleanup
Not a Fit
- Brands that want someone to validate bad economics without challenging the assumptions
- Teams unwilling to look at promo ROI or deduction history honestly
$382K
Cash burn avoided
$142K
MCB recovery
Top 15%
Compliance rank
Field-Verified Results
Real models. Recovered margins.
Three supplier engagements across complex distributor channels. Different operating gaps, same finding: the economics were not yet durable before scale. PRO surfaced the issue before losses compounded.
001
The Growth Trap — Emerging Specialty Protein
Series A brand secured four distributor DC authorizations before auditing economics. PRO surfaced negative contribution risk, pivoted to a two-DC pilot, and rebuilt landed-margin architecture.
$382K
Burn Avoided
34.2%
Landed Margin Held
−9.6 pts
Trade Spend
002
Velocity Without Profit — Natural Refrigerated Deli
The fastest-moving SKU was losing $0.37 per case. MCBs were unmapped, trade spend was 29.4%, and promo had become the only lever.
+$1.18
Margin Per Case
−11.5 pts
Trade Spend
$142K
MCB Recovery
003
The Six-Figure Compliance Exposure — Organic Frozen Seafood
Brand entered a major natural/specialty distributor channel, then accumulated $142K in chargebacks. No compliance owner, chronic fill-rate gaps, and de-authorization risk were all in play.
$98K
Deductions Recovered
97.4%
Inbound Fill Rate
Top 15%
Compliance Rank
CHANNEL EXPOSURE PREVIEW
See how much margin may be under pressure before the next deduction hits.
Enter three numbers. PRO returns a directional exposure estimate, scorecard health preview, and the likely pressure points inside your channel model.
Estimated Annual Margin Exposure
—
Scorecard Health
—
PRO Preview Score Directional scorecard health proxy
Detected Drivers
- Most suppliers underestimate their true deduction exposure by 20–40%.
- Run the preview to see where your margin is actually breaking.
Enter all three inputs to surface your exposure profile.
This preview is directional. It does not surface PRO’s full scoring model, fee-stack weights, or diagnostic review logic. Full analysis is reserved for qualified engagements.
No external data is pulled.
Engagement Options
Operator-led diagnostics and execution support
Gate 0 Diagnostic
Fast first-pass review.
- ✓ Initial pressure-point identification
- ✓ For brands testing whether the current model is structurally working
Full Distribution Diagnostic
Deep review of fee stack, deductions, promo dependence, DC complexity, and execution gaps.
- ✓ Includes Pressure Map and decision output
Execution Support
Operator-led follow-through on the highest-cost issues.
- ✓ Directed follow-through on corrective priorities
Next Step
When channel economics are not durable, capital will not fix them.
Distribution Diagnostics Pro isolates the economics and produces a commercial decision output. It tells you whether the current KeHE or UNFI path deserves more capital — or whether it should be stopped and rebuilt.
Start Distribution Diagnostic
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