The food and beverage (F&B) sector is in the midst of a digital revolution. While much of the industry’s transformation has focused on direct-to-consumer (D2C) and retail experiences, a profound shift is underway in the world of business-to-business (B2B) commerce. Today’s business buyers—restaurants, retailers, distributors, and foodservice operators—are no longer content with slow, opaque, or impersonal purchasing processes. They expect the same seamless, personalized, and self-service digital journeys they enjoy as consumers. For F&B brands, this is both a challenge and a tremendous opportunity to differentiate, deepen loyalty, and drive growth.
The expectations of B2B buyers have fundamentally changed. Influenced by their experiences as consumers, business customers now demand:
Meeting these expectations is not just about delighting customers—it’s about shortening sales cycles, reducing cost-to-serve, and standing out in a crowded market. For F&B brands, bringing B2C-inspired digital journeys to B2B is a clear path to unlocking new growth and operational excellence.
The complexity of the F&B sector amplifies the urgency for transformation:
These challenges are compounded by the evolving profile of B2B buyers—many of whom are millennials accustomed to digital-first, consumer-grade experiences.
Modern B2B buyers want to research, order, and manage accounts online—on their own terms. F&B brands should invest in digital commerce platforms that:
Traditional B2B data strategies often fall short in F&B, where buying groups are complex and data is scattered. A modern CDP unifies data from every touchpoint—sales, service, marketing, and commerce—creating a 360-degree view of each business customer. This enables:
AI and machine learning unlock the full potential of unified data by:
For F&B, this means not just marketing smarter, but transforming the entire sales and service experience—empowering sales reps with insights and automating routine tasks.
Legacy, monolithic platforms can’t keep pace with the evolving needs of F&B B2B commerce. Composable commerce breaks down technology into modular, best-of-breed components, allowing brands to:
Agility in supply chain and order management is critical for F&B brands. Digital solutions should provide end-to-end visibility, from planning and procurement to production and delivery, enabling brands to optimize operations, reduce costs, and enhance sustainability.
Nestlé, a global leader in F&B, exemplifies the power of a customer-first, digitally enabled approach. Facing the need to drive growth and modernize its engagement model, Nestlé:
This transformation demonstrates how F&B brands can leverage B2C-inspired strategies to deliver measurable business outcomes in B2B commerce.
Digital transformation in F&B B2B is not without hurdles:
Success requires a holistic approach—aligning data strategy, technology, operating models, and talent. Prioritizing high-value use cases, such as pricing optimization and personalized campaigns, helps build momentum and demonstrate ROI.
Digitizing the B2B customer journey is a continuous journey of innovation. As AI, automation, and data platforms evolve, F&B brands must:
With deep expertise in the F&B sector and a proven track record of delivering measurable results, Publicis Sapient partners with brands at every stage of their digital journey. From strategy and technology implementation to organizational change and continuous innovation, we help F&B organizations harness the full power of data, AI, and advanced analytics—turning insight into action and action into sustained business growth.
Ready to transform your B2B experience? The future of F&B commerce is agile, customer-centric, and connected. By bringing B2C experiences to B2B, F&B brands can unlock new growth, deepen customer loyalty, and future-proof their business in an increasingly competitive landscape. Let’s start the conversation.