While many business matters can now be discussed via Teams or email, the most important decisions are still often made around the same table. According to Aurinta Savickaitė, Marketing Director at MV GROUP Distribution, which brings together four distribution companies across the Baltic States and Poland, technology helps save time, but face-to-face communication remains crucial for long-term partnerships and strategic decision-making.

This trend is also supported by a survey conducted by Harvard Business Review Analytic Services: as many as 95% of respondents said that face-to-face meetings are a key factor in building and maintaining long-term business relationships, while 89% said they are essential to successfully closing a deal.

“Technology today allows us to exchange information quickly, address day-to-day matters and maintain continuous contact with partners. However, business is still fundamentally about people. Direct communication makes it easier to understand not only what a partner is saying, but also their priorities, business culture, values and long-term ambitions. As a result, issues that might otherwise take several weeks and dozens of emails to resolve remotely can often be settled in a single face-to-face meeting,” says Savickaitė.

Face-to-face meetings help businesses make better decisions

The search for new partners today begins with data, market analysis, consumer needs, international trends and an assessment of a product’s potential, but numbers alone are not enough to make a decision. According to Savickaitė, when looking for new brands, it is important to understand not only a product’s potential, but also the vision, ambitions and people behind it.

“Our markets are relatively small, which means that many international manufacturers already have partners in the region. We therefore continuously look not only for strong global brands, but also for new products and categories that meet changing consumer needs. We assess a product’s distinctiveness, the manufacturer’s approach to innovation, investment in brand development and its long-term growth potential,” she says.

According to Savickaitė, face-to-face meetings reveal things that are often not visible in financial reports or presentations. Meeting in person makes it easier to understand how decisions are made within an organisation, how important a particular market is to the manufacturer, how much it is prepared to invest in its growth, and whether both sides share the same expectations. This is particularly important when making decisions about long-term cooperation.

“Remote meetings are an excellent tool for dealing with day-to-day matters, but the more important the decision and the more people involved in the process, the greater the risk of different interpretations. In such cases, sitting around the same table makes it much easier to reach a common agreement on the next steps,” says Savickaitė.

Virtual meetings have not replaced international trade fairs

After the pandemic, a significant share of day-to-day communication with partners moved online. This made it possible to resolve many matters more quickly and efficiently, but at the same time further highlighted the value of meeting in person. Today, international trade fairs provide an opportunity to meet numerous existing and potential partners in one place over just a few days, see which trends are emerging across different markets, and discuss matters for which remote meetings are often not enough.

“Some of the most valuable discussions often take place not during formal meetings, but in informal settings – over dinner or while talking after an event. In just a few days at a trade fair, you can meet as many partners as you would normally be able to visit over several months. Seeing the value these meetings create, we also make a point of attending the most important international trade fairs in our sector every year. In the wine category, these are usually Wine Paris or ProWein, while in the food sector we attend specialised industry events and in the beer category trade fairs showcasing the latest brewing trends and innovations,” says Savickaitė.

International trade fairs are important for more than just meeting existing partners. They are often where new consumption trends, the fastest-growing categories and innovations that later reach the Baltic markets are first identified. Such events therefore serve not only as a place to strengthen partnerships, but also as an important platform for discovering new business opportunities and brands.

Consumers benefit from stronger partnerships

Another important aspect of face-to-face meetings is that they give manufacturers an opportunity to gain a better understanding of the local market. When visiting Lithuania, they can meet not only with the distributor’s team but also directly with retailers and representatives of restaurants and bars, take part in product tastings, and hear first-hand how their products are perceived in the market.

These meetings provide a better understanding of which products attract the most interest, which flavours or formats are still missing from the market, and why some products gain traction more quickly than others. These insights make it possible to plan new product launches more precisely, adjust marketing strategies and respond more quickly to the needs of a particular country.

“The distributor acts as a link between the manufacturer and the market. The closer we work together, the more accurately we can communicate consumer expectations and the faster we can respond to changing trends. Ultimately, this is reflected on shelves and menus – consumers gain access to a wider selection, higher-quality products and innovations developed on the basis of real market insights rather than theoretical assumptions alone,” Savickaitė emphasises.

The value of the time invested in travel, trade fairs and meetings is not measured by the number of events attended or conversations held. The return is reflected in faster decision-making, a better understanding of consumer needs, more targeted investments and new business opportunities.

“Remote meetings are not going anywhere – they allow us to deal with many day-to-day matters quickly and efficiently. However, the most important business decisions are still often made face to face. This is how new partnerships are formed, new brands enter our portfolio, growth opportunities are identified and consumer needs are better understood. Technology therefore complements face-to-face communication today, but it does not replace it,” concludes Savickaitė.