President’s Message
Late-spring musings james p. hallan MRA President and Chief Executive Officer
Welcome to the new Michigan Food News! For 73 years, the Michigan Food News has covered the news that food businesses need to successfully operate in Michigan. With this issue, we launch a new look — redefining the magazine in a contemporary way to make the most of the print medium. Our goal is to honor its history while looking to the future. With a new style and size, the revamped magazine features a fresh cover design, more color and more photos, while continuing to offer its signature trusted content and focus on your needs and those of other food businesses in Michigan. We hope you like it! Legislative Reception Speaking of photos, this issue has many from our annual legislative reception, which, by all measures, was widely successful as we set an attendance record. The purpose of the event is to showcase our industry to elected officials and others who care about our issues. Our Buy Nearby Guy served as the greeter, reminding everyone that it’s important to keep dollars in the Mitten. The event featured many Michigan products. A heartfelt thanks to all our sponsors who helped make the event so successful. Open Enrollment The open enrollment period for MRA’s Retailers Insurance Company dental plan, administered by Delta Dental of Michigan, and vision plan, administered by VSP Vision, is May 1-June 15, with an effective date of July 1. Both are part of MRA’s Private Insurance Exchange. Members with two to 50 employees can learn more at retailers.com/private-exchange or call (800) 336-3699, ext. 681. Workers’ Compensation Members of Michigan Grocers, a division of Michigan Retailers, have two strong, Michigan-based options when it comes to purchasing workers’ compensation insurance. The Michigan Grocers Fund is an excellent, dividend-paying group self-insurance fund that was organized in 2014. It has a strong
track record. Likewise, Michigan Grocers members have the opportunity to participate in Retailers Insurance Company, which is rated by Demotech as “A Prime, Unsurpassed.” Check them out at migrocersfund.org and retailersinsurance.com. Membership Renewal Thank you for renewing your membership. As part of your membership, you are eligible for one free, updated labor law poster that includes recent changes to the minimum wage and paid leave laws. Extra copies are available for $15 each. For information on how to request your free poster visit bit.ly/MRAposters. Looking Back and Looking Ahead Michigan Grocers became part of Michigan Retailers Association in January 2018, and the affiliation has been very successful. We’ve made significant progress on our goal of strengthening our common retail brand while maintaining your grocer identity. Successful events have continued: the Michigan Grocers Summit was held in September at Crystal Mountain Resort, and the annual golf outing was held in June at Williamston’s Brookshire Inn and Golf Club. (See pages 7 and 13 for information on this year’s events.) We strive to keep you well-informed. The Michigan Food News continues, now in its refreshed format, and we’ve added a biweekly electronic bulletin of fast-breaking food news to keep you up-to-date. In addition, as MRA members you also receive legislative bulletins and the bimonthly Michigan Retailer magazine. You are also entitled to all Association benefits including merchant processing, Buy Nearby events, health and dental insurance offerings, Michigan Retailers Foundation scholarships and more. Importantly, the new Grocers Divisional Board met three times last year, and two grocers now serve on the Michigan Retailers Board of Directors. I hope you’ll agree with me that we are stronger together.
Michigan Grocers Division Board of Directors James P. Hallan, President Michigan Retailers Association Rich Beishuizen Country Fresh Craig Diepenhorst H.T. Hackney Dave Duthler AMRA Energy Jim Forsberg Arctic Glacier Premium Ice
Jim Gohsman SpartanNash John Leppink Leppink’s Food Centers Ken McClure Kroger Company of Michigan Bryan Neiman Neiman’s Family Market
DJ Oleson Oleson’s Food Stores Don Symonds Lipari Foods Thom Welch Hollywood Markets Jim Zyrowski Ben’s Supercenters
Michigan Grocers Association is a division of the Michigan Retailers Association
James P. Hallan Publisher Lisa J. Reibsome Editor & Ad Sales
(517) 449-2245 MGAReibsome@comcast.net Publisher does not assume responsibility for statements made by advertisers in business competition. © MICHIGAN FOOD NEWS 2019 MICHIGAN FOOD NEWS
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