editor’s note by Jim Dudlicek
Mystery Machine
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s you might have guessed, my job allows me to visit a lot of different grocery stores all over the country. I’ve seen many sizes, styles and formats, and most are innovative in at least one way, if not several, aimed at enhancing the overall shopper experience. Tis puts me in a position not enjoyed by most folks not connected with our business. Still, with all of the strides that retailers have made, I was surprised to hear the results of a recent study indicating that most people are disappointed by their visits to the grocery store. According to a national customer experience supermarket study conducted by Fairfax, Va.-based Bare International, mystery shoppers reported that two of every three supermarkets they visited were “mediocre” or worse. Bare randomly selected 26 U.S. supermarkets, some units of large chains and others locally owned, for evaluation this past February. Te result: 62 percent of the facilities visited scored less than 90 percent (“mediocre” being below 90), with 53 percent earning a score of 85 percent or lower, and 19 percent scoring below 75 percent. Bare International President Michael Bare called the results “shocking, especially because many of those in the bottom 20 percent are part of large, well-known chains.” Te study’s mystery shoppers inspected fve departments in each supermarket: deli, bakery, meat, produce and prepared foods. Tey additionally rated such other experience factors as customer service, store cleanliness, and the appearance and conduct of staf. Bare concludes, “Tis shows us that the typical supermarket experience is not one that excites or even pleases consumers.” Tat’s shocking to me, too, especially because those departments are the showcases of most stores. Tat’s certainly the case at the new Buehler’s store, in Wooster, Ohio, demonstrating that grocers in small-town America are just as progressive as those in big cities. Fresh local produce, custom deli sandwiches and chef-created prepared foods are among the highlights of this bright, comfortable, easy-to-shop store. And how often can you sit at a bar in the middle of a supermarket, enjoying a glass of local craft beer on tap and a fresh-baked maple-frosted longjohn?
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| Progressive Grocer | Ahead of What’s Next | May 2015
Most folks’ supermarket experiences are mediocre or worse? Zoinks! Buehler’s is our Store of the Month in this issue — read more about it, starting on page 24. And I know that grocers like Kroger, Publix and H-E-B are kickin’ it in the shopper experience department as well. It’s part of why they’re on the top end of PG’s annual Super 50 ranking of grocery retailers. Check out the full ranking and details of the top performers, starting on page 39.
Rumble, Rumble, Rumble … Who put eight great tomatoes in that little bitty can? Contadina tomato paste. Who told us about it? Stan Freberg, the father of the funny commercial. Freberg, who died last month at age 88, was a brilliant satirist and multiple Clio award winner who changed the way consumers looked at products like Sunsweet prunes (“Today the pits, tomorrow the wrinkles!”) and Cheerios (“the terribly adult cereal”), and who used devices such as lavish Broadway-style production numbers to promote things as mundane as canned soup. Tese TV spots and others can be found on YouTube and are worth checking out. I grew up listening to Freberg’s popular comedy albums, but his marketing techniques and their impact on the pre-store shopper experience were revolutionary for their time. Yet the man himself never took his signifcance too seriously. “Hey, folks, this is pizza we’re selling here,” Freberg once said, presumably in reference to the spots he produced for the Jeno’s brand, “not the Holy Grail.” PG Jim Dudlicek Editor-in-Chief jdudlicek@stagnitomail.com Twitter @jimdudlicek