Harrowden Foods / BB-Demo – Negotiation
Callcompleted
Harrowden Foods: documents · 2025-11-28 13:30
Rajesh Mistry, who signs, will not sign on the call but will sign before 12 Dec 2025 if the revised Growth paper has the split, usage reporting and helpdesk-first sequencing. His main worry is shelfware.
What was said
What this says
Current to 11 Oct 26Rajesh Mistry, who signs, will not sign on the call but will sign before 12 Dec 2025 if the revised Growth paper has the split, usage reporting and helpdesk-first sequencing. His main worry is shelfware.
What happened: Lewis Kerr and Owen Tallis negotiated the Growth order form with Rajesh and Gemma Holt. The paper shows £62,000, which is the whole deal value including implementation and excluding VAT, not the annual subscription.
Customer view: Rajesh fears paying for everyone while a third log in. He asked for usage figures in writing ahead of each quarterly review.
Commercial: Owen said the first-term concession does not carry into the renewal, and Rajesh accepted renewal at list. Extra users would be co-termed, and Rajesh will not buy them until the first lot are used.
Watch: Finance will review the paper before he signs. The evidence does not show whether it was signed.
Themes
Current to 9 Oct 26Theme
Growth tier price negotiation
Importance
upsell
Sentiment
mixed
Voice
decision-maker
Who was there
BB-Demo
CRMmade from
Them
CRMmade from
Follow-up
Next steps
Current to 9 Oct 26- Lewis Kerr to send the revised paper with the split, usage reporting line and helpdesk sequencing.
- Lewis Kerr to send a separate add-on quote for extra users with the revised paper.
- Gemma Holt to introduce finance so the paper does not land cold.
Risks
Current to 9 Oct 26- Rajesh fears shelfware and will not sign without proof of use.
- Finance wants to see the paper first and Rajesh is away part of the following week.
- The first-term concession ends at renewal, so renewal is at list.
Opportunities
Current to 9 Oct 26- Additional user blocks of ten, co-termed to the renewal, if customer service adopts the brain.
- Helpdesk connectors sequenced first to show early value.
Transcript
Lewis Kerr NoneAfternoon, everyone. Can you hear me alright? I've got Owen with me today, our VP Sales, because there's a pricing point on the agenda.
Gemma Holt NoneHi Lewis, hi Owen. Yes, loud and clear. Rajesh is just joining, I can see him sat in the lobby.
Owen Tallis NoneAfternoon. Bit of a gale down here, so if I drop out that's the wifi, not the paper.
Rajesh Mistry NoneAfternoon, all. Apologies, my last call overran. Am I audible? Good. I'd like to keep this tight, if that's alright.- Lewis Kerr NoneOf course. So to confirm what we're here to settle: Harrowden is looking at the Growth tier, for commercial insights and customer service together, and you'd like it signed by Friday 12 December 2025. Is that still right?
- Rajesh Mistry NoneThat's the target, yes. Target, not a promise. I haven't seen a version of the paper I'm happy with yet.
- Gemma Holt NoneAnd from my side, the account managers are keen. We had a good one this week, actually. One of them pulled a retailer's complaint history together before a review meeting, took her ten minutes instead of an afternoon, and that's off the demo data. So the appetite is there.
- Owen Tallis NoneGood to hear. Lewis, where's the paper against that date?
- Lewis Kerr NoneThe current order form is on the Growth tier with the implementation fee in it. To put a number on it, the total on the paper is £62,000, and that's the whole deal value, implementation included, and it's excluding VAT. It isn't the annual subscription on its own, and I want to be clear about that because it's easy to read it that way.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneRight. So the sixty-two is the all-in for the first term. What's the cost per head?
- Lewis Kerr NoneIt depends how you want to count it. The tier includes up to 40 users, but I'd rather not quote you a per-head figure from memory. I'll put it in the revised paper so it's written down and you can check my arithmetic.
- Rajesh Mistry NonePlease do. I'll want it split. Implementation on one line, subscription on another, and the cost per user on a third. Then I can compare it to what we spend on the other planning tools.
- Owen Tallis NoneThat's reasonable, and we can do that. Can I ask what's making this feel heavy, Rajesh? Is it the number itself or what's behind it?
- Rajesh Mistry NoneIt's what's behind it. I've sat through enough software rollouts where we paid for everyone and perhaps a third of them logged in. Shelfware. I won't sign for that. Show me it's used.
- Gemma Holt NoneWhich is fair, honestly. But I'd say the commercial insights team will use it daily, that's not in question. The bit I'm less sure of is customer service, and that's where I'd like to get to. Can we get customer service on from the start?
- Lewis Kerr NoneThat's the scope in the paper, yes. Commercial insights and customer service both in the first rollout, with the helpdesk and the CRM connected, plus the orders data. I wouldn't change that, Gemma.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneHold on. Before we go on, can I see how you'd report usage back to me? Not a slide. What would I actually receive, and when?
- Owen Tallis NoneLet me take that, Lewis, if I may. After go-live your customer success manager, Amara, runs a usage review with you. Active users, questions asked, which teams are asking them, and who asks the most. If one person is asking most of the questions, we say so, because that's a risk for you as well as for us.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneAnd that's in the paper? Or is that goodwill?
- Owen Tallis NoneThe Growth tier includes quarterly reviews, so it's contractual. What I'd suggest we add is a line saying the first one takes place at a set point after go-live, with the usage figures sent beforehand. That way you walk in already holding the numbers.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneThat's closer to what I need. I'd like the figures a few days beforehand, in writing, not in the meeting.
- Lewis Kerr NoneI'll write that in. Noted: usage figures sent ahead of each quarterly review, in writing.
- Gemma Holt NoneCan I ask about the add-ons while we're here? What would it cost to add more users later? Because if customer service takes to it, I'd expect the planners to ask for access too, and I don't want to reopen the whole thing.
- Lewis Kerr NoneAdditional users come in blocks of ten, priced as an add-on, and I'd co-term them to your renewal so you've one date and one invoice cycle to manage. I won't give you a figure for that today because I'd be quoting from memory. It's a separate quote, and I'll send that over today with the revised paper so it's all in one place.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneCo-term it, yes. I don't want two renewal dates. And I don't want to buy extra users until the first lot are being used.
- Owen Tallis NoneWhich is sensible, and I'd rather you bought in that order too. Let me raise the discount, since it's on the paper. Whatever concession is on this first term applies to this first term only. It doesn't carry into the renewal. I'd rather you hear that from me now than find it at the renewal.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneUnderstood. Let's not pretend otherwise. So the renewal is at list, whatever list is then.
- Owen Tallis NoneExactly. And let's not discount twice, so I'm not going to stack another reduction on top of what's already there. What I can do is look at the shape of the paper, not the headline. Lewis?
- Lewis Kerr NoneOn the shape, the one thing I'd look at is the go-live commitment. At the moment the connectors in the order form carry a live-within date. If you'd like the customer service connectors prioritised, we can sequence them first in the plan, which gets your service team onto the brain sooner without touching the price.
- Gemma Holt NoneOh, I like that. Helpdesk first. We get the most noise from customer service, so seeing complaints next to orders early would make my life easier.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneDo it. I'd rather see the helpdesk data in the brain early than wait for everything at once. That's a way of testing whether it earns its place.
- Owen Tallis NoneRight. So what's the next dated step? Lewis sends the revised paper today, and Rajesh, you review it. Who signs?
- Rajesh Mistry NoneI sign. Our finance team will want to see the paper before I do, but it's my signature. I'm away part of next week, so I'd read it over the weekend or the start of the week.
- Lewis Kerr NoneThen I'll send it over today, with the split you asked for: implementation, subscription, cost per user, the usage reporting line and the helpdesk sequencing. Anything you need from me before then?
- Rajesh Mistry NoneOne thing. Can the paper state the VAT position on every line, so finance don't have to ask me? Lewis, I know you do that already, but please keep it.
- Lewis Kerr NoneEvery line, yes. Excluding VAT, with VAT shown separately at the bottom.
- Gemma Holt NoneI can sort out the finance intro too. I'll tell them it's coming so it doesn't land cold.
- Rajesh Mistry NonePlease. Right, to be clear on where I am, so nobody leaves with the wrong idea. I'm not signing today. If the revised paper says what we've just discussed, I will sign before Friday 12 December 2025. I won't need another call to do it, unless something in it surprises me.
- Owen Tallis NoneThat works for us. And if something does surprise you, ring Lewis rather than let it sit. A surprise on a Thursday is better than a surprise on the Friday.
- Rajesh Mistry NoneAgreed. Thank you both. Gemma, I'll catch you after.
- Lewis Kerr NoneThanks, Rajesh. Thanks, Gemma. Kind regards, all, and I'll get that paper to you this afternoon.
- Gemma Holt NoneCheers, Lewis. Cheers, Owen. Speak soon.
Callsmade from