Category: Guest Contributors

It’s still early in 2023, and I can’t help but think how strange the last few years have been. Just three years ago, Americans were hearing about a virus in China, but perhaps not thinking much about how it would impact their lives. My, how things have changed. Decades from now experts will talk about […]

Winston Churchill once said, “A politician needs the ability to foretell what is going to happen tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. And to have the ability afterwards to explain why it didn’t happen.” The same could very well be said of grocery market analysts. Who could have predicted a global pandemic, war […]

The period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s is one of the busiest times for grocers. The late fall and winter holidays bring a rush of shoppers eager to please family and friends at their seasonal gatherings. The traditional hectic holiday pace would be a whirlwind for grocers without the added pressures of inflation and supply […]

By the time most of you read this, the midterm elections will be over, most (if not all) races will be determined and the balance of power in Congress may be shifting.  Regardless of the midterm results and how the partisan winds shift, those in the U.S. House and Senate need to be aware of […]

I hear it all the time, “Eventually people have to come back to work, right?” Everywhere I go in the U.S. and other countries – as I talk to retailers, manufacturers, service providers and wholesalers – managers are wondering when workers will actually start working.  During the pandemic, millions of workers worldwide lost their jobs or […]

The COVID-19 pandemic has been one of the most challenging business environments that independent community grocers have had to face – and it’s not over yet. The sudden shift in retail spending behavior during the second quarter of 2020 drove record supermarket sales. Grocers moved mountains to keep shelves stocked while contending with operational challenges, […]

From IGA News The morning of July 28 hit different from other Thursdays for Isom IGA Owner and 2007 IGA International Retailer of the Year Gwen Christon. After a 12-hour deluge in eastern Kentucky brought 7-10 inches of rain overnight and raised the North Fork Kentucky River about 11 feet above flood stage – an […]

Fertilizer isn’t a glamorous topic. Far from it. But it’s a key player in the game of rising food costs. Plants need nitrogen, potassium and other nutrients to grow. Add more nutrients in the soil and plants grow bigger, vegetable and fruit yields skyrocket and, in turn, land becomes more productive and profitable. Reverse it […]

“I know what I know; the problem is that I don’t know what I don’t know.” In business, and in life, awareness of what you don’t know can be critical to success. And of course, the opposite is true. Being confident you know something, when the opposite is true is a path to disaster. As […]