Case StudiesFood Distribution
Food Distribution

How Husky Foods Transformed Brand Partner Vetting with AI

A 58-year-old Canadian food importer reduced partner evaluation time by 80% and discovered 12 high-potential brands in their first quarter using DealVet.

80%
Faster Evaluations
12
New Brands Signed
48+
Brands Analyzed

Husky Food Importers

Premium European Food Distribution

IndustryFood Import & Distribution
LocationVaughan, Ontario, Canada
Founded1966 (58 years)
Team Size~50 employees
Brand Portfolio48+ premium brands

The Challenge

Husky Food Importers has built a reputation over nearly six decades as Canada's premier importer of European specialty foods. With brands like Ritter Sport, Yorkshire Tea, and Gerolsteiner in their portfolio, they've become the trusted bridge between European producers and Canadian retailers.

But as the specialty food market exploded, so did the number of brands wanting North American distribution. The business development team was drowning in inquiries—sometimes 20+ per week—with no scalable way to evaluate them.

Pain Points Before DealVet:

  • 4-6 hours per brand spent on manual research—Googling, reading news, checking financials, visiting LinkedIn
  • Inconsistent evaluations depending on which team member did the research and what sources they found
  • Missed red flags on two partnerships that later turned problematic—supply issues that news coverage had hinted at
  • Good brands slipping through because the team couldn't evaluate fast enough before competitors signed them

"We were spending more time researching brands than actually building relationships with them. And even after all that work, we'd sometimes miss something important that was right there in the news."

— John, Business Development, Husky Foods

The Solution

Husky Foods became one of DealVet's founding customers, working directly with our team to build AI-powered partner intelligence tailored to food distribution.

Instant Brand Reports

Enter a brand name and get a comprehensive analysis in under 60 seconds—company background, market position, news sentiment, social presence, and risk factors.

Partnership Scoring

AI-generated scores (1-100) based on brand strength, market fit, growth trajectory, and risk profile—customized for Husky's specific criteria.

Continuous Monitoring

Automatic news alerts for all brands in their portfolio and pipeline—catching supply issues, leadership changes, and market developments early.

Team Collaboration

Shared workspace where the entire BD team can access reports, add notes, and track brand evaluation status—no more duplicate research.

Brand Comparison

Side-by-side analysis when evaluating multiple brands in the same category— perfect for deciding between competing partnership opportunities.

Risk Detection

AI flags potential concerns—financial instability, negative press, leadership turnover, supply chain issues—before they become problems.

The Results

80%
Reduction in evaluation time
From 4-6 hours to under 1 hour
12
New brand partnerships
Signed in first quarter
3
Risky brands avoided
Flagged before signing
48+
Brands analyzed
Existing + new opportunities
"DealVet has completely changed how we evaluate new brand opportunities. What used to take half a day now takes minutes, and we're catching things we would have missed before. We've already avoided two partnerships that looked good on paper but had warning signs in the news. That alone paid for years of the subscription."
JM
John
Business Development, Husky Food Importers

Key Wins

Discovered Hidden Gem

DealVet's analysis identified a small German confectionery brand with exceptional growth metrics and no North American distribution. Husky signed an exclusive agreement before competitors even knew about them.

Avoided Supply Crisis

News monitoring caught early reports of production issues at a brand Husky was about to sign. They paused negotiations and avoided what became a 6-month supply shortage.

Portfolio Health Check

Running their existing 48 brands through DealVet revealed two partners showing warning signs. Husky proactively addressed inventory levels before any disruption.

Ready to Transform Your Partner Vetting?

Join Husky Foods and other industry leaders using DealVet to make smarter, faster partnership decisions.