Negotiating your Cheney Brothers prices: an operator's guide

The comparison method (works for any distributor)

Start with 10 items you spend the most on. For each one, record the exact product spec and pack, your current delivered price in a common unit, and one like-for-like reference: another distributor's quote, a cash-and-carry shelf price, or a dated invoice from another operator. A cheaper case is not a valid comparison when the weight, trim, grade, brand, or fresh-versus-frozen spec differs.

Keep two questions separate. Your own invoice history can show that a SKU changed; it cannot, by itself, show that the new price is wrong. An outside reference can show that a lower current price exists; it only holds up when the item and timing match. Write both pieces down before deciding what to ask your rep.

Then make the conversation line-specific. Bring the item, your invoice price, the comparable reference, and the price you want reviewed. Also ask which pricing method applies to the account and whether any markup or service fee is fixed or percentage-based. That gives the rep a concrete question to answer without turning the call into a threat to move the whole account.

Treat Cheney and PFG as related references

PFG's completed acquisition does not reveal how either account is priced. It does change what the comparison can prove: a Cheney-versus-PFG gap shows two offers available to you, not a check between unrelated owners.

Keep both quotes if they fit your operation, but label the relationship and look for another reference as well. A separately owned distributor, a cash-and-carry price, or a dated invoice from another operator gives the rep conversation a more independent check.

Use Cheney Express as a pickup reference, not a delivered quote

Cheney says its Cheney Express will-call service is open to the public and carries frozen, refrigerated, and dry products. Its published process supports online or call-in ordering followed by pickup.

Capture the exact item, pack, price, pickup location, and date, then normalize it against the delivered invoice. Because Cheney Express belongs to the same distributor and requires pickup, treat the result as a same-company will-call reference—not an independent delivered alternative—and keep your pickup costs visible.

Straight answers