Why Gainsay
Wired differently. Connecting the dots.
You get senior, hands-on experience from global foodservice and specialist food importing, applied with the pace and pragmatism a startup needs.
Why Gainsay
The experience behind Gainsay
Gainsay Consulting is led by Martin Jarvis, a procurement and supply chain leader who has spent his career on both sides of the food industry: inside a global foodservice brand managing large, multi-category buying portfolios, and at a specialist food importer sourcing premium products from around the world.
That combination matters. Corporate-grade buying discipline — should-costing, category strategy, supplier governance — usually stays locked inside big companies. Martin brings it to food and drink startups at the pace they actually operate: fixed prices, hands-on delivery, and results measured inside 90 days.
The name is the philosophy. To gainsay is to challenge — and that is what a good procurement partner does. We will challenge the comfortable assumptions that quietly cost you margin, and we will challenge our own plan too, the moment the evidence changes.
Credentials you can verify
MCIPS (Chartered)
Chartered membership of the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply — the global standard for procurement professionalism.
MBA
Business leadership training that connects procurement decisions to your growth plan and investor story.
MCIM
Chartered Marketer — because procurement only protects margin when it understands what customers actually buy.
BRC Lead Assessor
Able to audit food safety and quality systems at your co-packers and suppliers first-hand.
Certified Agile & Sustainability Practitioner
Practical methods for fast iteration and for building the ESG evidence retailers now demand.
Lean Six Sigma & Disciplined Agile Scrum Master
Process discipline that turns supply chain fixes into lasting improvements, not one-off savings.
Offices
London · Dubai · Hong Kong
Time zones that cover Europe, the Middle East and Asia in one working day.
Working languages
English, Mandarin, Arabic, French and German — so we can negotiate directly with your suppliers, wherever they are.
Global sourcing
Supplier relationships and market intelligence across Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
How we show up
- We challenge, constructively
- The name Gainsay means to speak against. We question the assumptions that quietly cost you margin — including our own.
- We deliver, not just advise
- We sit beside your team, pick up the phone to suppliers, and see negotiations through to signature.
- We price with certainty
- Fixed prices and clear scope on every package, with a gain-share option so our fee can track results.
- We measure what matters
- Margin points, service levels, supply risk, speed and ESG readiness — reported to you every month.