The Federation of Wholesale Distributors has revealed details of the FWD Academy, a year-long programme that has been designed to enable businesses to embed inclusivity into workplace culture, in what is the next phase of FWD’s Diversity in Wholesale initiative.
The academy will be run in In partnership with Elevo and offers structured programme featuring learning modules on inclusion and leadership, sector insight sessions linking learning to wholesale-specific challenges, as well as a calendar toolkit to activate key DEI moments.
The FWD has also revealed that it will now trade under the name of Food & Drink Wholesale UK to give a better reflection its focus, however, the organisation’s official name remains the Federation of Wholesale Distributors.
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Both announced at the FWD Live event, Baroness Sayeeda Warsi supported the initiative: “Diversity isn’t just a nice thing to have; it’s an essential business component and it helps deliver the best results. Leadership matters, and the work of FWD and Elevo has been doing that, and the announcement of the academy and its forthcoming programme of training and learning is necessary work at a critical time. It’s brave and it matters.”
“The FWD Academy is a game changer for the wholesale sector,” added Lyndsey Cambridge, head of external affairs, FWD. “We’re launching the FWD Academy to spark real, lasting change. This initiative is about more than just learning; it’s about creating a sustainable culture of inclusion and leadership, firmly putting people at the heart of wholesale. This boils down to recruitment and retention, and how we as a trade association can support our members to stay ahead of the game when it comes to attracting the best people – and then keeping them! In this climate businesses need to utilise all levers available to stay ahead. The academy is set to be an essential tool in the wholesale armoury.”
