Hey WT,
Believe it or not, we have two drivers who are shorter than you. It boggles my mind how they do it every day because they stack most of our pallets about seven feet high. Some of the drivers use their dolly as a ladder, just not in front of the supervisor.
Knowing what the product looks like helps, and when I talk to the new drivers over here, I can't believe no one has given them any hints about it.
You will see our "House Brands" over and over, the brand's name should be on the invoice although abbreviated.
Sysco Reliance is a white box with green letters.
Sysco Natural is a white box with gold letters.
Sysco Classic and Serene is a white box with red letters.
Sysco Imperial is a white box with light blue letters.
International Imperial and Wholesome Farms is a white box with black letters.
Casa Solona is a white box with red and black lettering/designs.
Baker's Source, Block and Barrel, Portico, Citavo, Fire River, House Recipe, Pasta Labella and Arrezzio are also all in distinctive boxes.
Almost all the house brands will have a little circle symbol on top corner stating that the box has a minimum of 35% recycled whatever.
You already recognize a lot of the major brands, the same as in the grocery store, just bigger boxes. On our invoices over here the manufacturer's product code is just to the left of our item number. This is helpful when the shrink wrap steals pull sticker, or if the selector got lazy and didn't put the sticker on the box. The manufacturer's product code is usually printed prominently on the box.
Are you using the scanners over there yet? A lot of the drivers grumbled about them, but at this point I'd be lost without it, it tells me exactly what I'm looking for without having to sort through the invoice.