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Commentary
From Our President
An independent retailer quoted recently in Supermarket News may have put it best when he said “Tough times will elevate us and make us better and drive unnecessary costs out of the business. It just makes us stay more focused than we’ve ever been.” So here are our resolutions to help us focus and make us better in 2009. It’s all about creating opportunities in tough times. 1) DON’T SKIP OVER TRADE PUBLICATIONS. They’re packed with industry news merch/operational ideas with useful details. We want to scan the trades faster and/or assign a staff person to provide summaries at staff meetings for discussions. 2) Get to know our Customers Better. This can be vital in devising more successful promotions, better item selection, pricing, and store layout. We will make time to work with store managers and DMs to better understand shoppers’ reaction and response. Finally, we want to talk to shoppers themselves, to see first-hand their likes and dislikes. 3) Cultivate a better culture. The old saying “Take care of your people, and they will take care of you,” is more true today than ever. We will find new ways to boost morale and motivate our team members. Good communication programs, competitive pay and benefits, and wellness programs can help, but consistent employee recognition is key. 4) Latch on TO new products. We will take advantage of increased eating meals at home. New products create excitement. We will assign someone with creative talent to identify new products, keeping them fresh and play a lead role in item selection. 5) Know that price is king. Maintaining value, quality and convenience are all important, but American shoppers are tremendously impressed by price. Everyday items are especially subject to competitive shelf pricing. We should be competitive on at least the 1,000 top items in HBC, GM and Seasonal. Price optimization software is no longer just for the largest retail chains. 6) Promote, promote, promote. We want to engage all of the store departments with cross merchandising promotions. Value packs within traditional departments provide growth opportunities. We will be looking for coupon redemptions to rise dramatically. 7) Innovate, innovate, innovate. Whether it’s a unique floor plan or exciting shelf décor; we will make our categories stand out. The idea, of course, is to make shopping an easier and more rewarding experience. 8) Push private label. Given the times, we will continue to build PL. PL’s potential with better product quality and more attractive packaging is achieving double-digit sales gain year over year increases, outpacing national brand growth. 9) Don’t forget green. Despite the economic climate, we believe green, eco friendly and natural products will continue to grow. We expect increased demand as our new president takes office and promotes more social responsibility. 10) Give non-foods a big boost. Now that hard times have impacted gourmet and prepared foods, we are advising supermarkets to find time to pay more attention to GM/HBC. Health and Beauty Care and General Merchandise are still top sales and profit performers in the stores. We will do a better job on special displays in 2009. Research conducted among 6,000 shoppers found that far more impulse purchases are driven by special displays as compared to specific items on the shelf. 2009 will be a challenging year for all of us, but elevating our performance by staying more focused will increase category sales, improve HBC/GM profits and hopefully make our New Years resolutions more impactful. For comments or questions, contact us by phone at 508-756-5156, or e-mail: msleeper@imperialdistributors.com
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