by Cindy Sorensen/ Founder and CEO, The Grocery Group Today’s produce departments provide a great example of how grocers have reinvented departments within their stores to be relevant to consumers’ ever-growing and changing desires and demands. Several years ago, when local farmers markets began to pop up in library, shopping center and school parking lots around their […]
Tag: Shelby Exclusive
Posted inShelby Content, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, National, The Independent Perspective
Larkin: Independent Grocers Are Vitally Important To Political Process
by Peter Larkin/ president and CEO, National Grocers Association Special to The Shelby Report The 2018 midterm elections are quickly approaching, as observed by all the political ads that currently pepper our airwaves, and much is on the line for both political parties. A look at historical data on congressional elections suggests that Democrats will have an […]
Posted inDairy News, Grocery News, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, International Foods, Marketing News, Merchandising News, National, Shelby Content
Sorensen: Connecting With Hispanic Shoppers
by Cindy Sorensen/Founder and CEO of The Grocery Group The Hispanic population represents the fastest-growing ethnic group in the U.S. In fact, by 2020, Hispanics will be the largest ethnic group. They currently represent 17 percent of the population and will grow to be 29 percent by 2050. This growth will occur in all regions […]
Posted inPackaging News, California Perspective, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, Shelby Content, West
Prop. 65 Warning No Longer Needed For Coffee; Cereal Under Scrutiny
by Ron Fong/president and CEO, California Grocers Association In many respects, California is like an island unto itself when it comes to laws and regulations. For better or worse, our state is home to a number of laws and regulations that exist nowhere else in the nation. Among the most notorious and controversial of them […]
Posted inDairy News, Grocery News, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, National, Shelby Content
Milk’s Missed Opportunity
by Cindy Sorensen/founder and CEO, The Grocery Group With approximately 96 percent of all households purchasing milk, it holds an enviable spot in consumers’ shopping baskets and refrigerators. There is only one other category that can claim a higher household penetration, and that is toilet paper. But milk’s stronghold with consumers is fading. As competition […]
Posted inPackaging News, Beverage News, Grocery News, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, Midwest, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content, Sustainability News
Meet Gen Z: Plastic Water Bottles Bring Landfills To Mind
by Claire Lentsch/a contributor to The Shelby Report The first thing that comes to mind when it comes to landfills is plastic. Although plastic is not the only thing that forms mountains of waste, it is one of the more common things we face in our day-to-day lives. Ads promote the idea of “save the […]
Posted inGuest Contributors, Albertsons, Amazon Fresh, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content, Store News, Whole Foods
With Retail Store Openings Down And Closings Up, Employees Appreciate Leadership
by Art Patch/a retired retail executive & regular columnist for The Shelby Report There is so much happening in retail businesses, it’s no wonder employees are concerned about their future. Most distressing is a recent industry study by Jones Lang LaSalle showing new store openings down 28.8 percent in 2017. Most of us follow the […]
Posted inCalifornia Perspective, Association News, Home Page Latest News, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content, West
California Perspective: Relationship-Building Plays Important Role In The Political Process
by Ron Fong/president and CEO, California Grocers Association Success in government relations often is rooted in the connections developed with legislators over the years. While politics, and lobbying specifically, is by its nature an adversarial pursuit, good government relations separate the conflict from the person you conflict with. Legislation comes and goes, but legislators stay […]
Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Shelby Content, The Independent Perspective
Larkin: Digging Into The Data Points On Digital
by Peter Larkin/ president and CEO, National Grocers Association Special to The Shelby Report The growth of e-commerce is high on the radar of independent supermarket operators, and it’s important for them to understand the current online shopping preferences of consumers. Findings from the third annual National Grocery Shoppers Survey outline these preferences and identify key moves […]
Posted inSnacks Brands, Grocery News, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Midwest, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content
Meet Gen Z: Snacking Is Convenient, Efficient And Preferred By Younger Consumers
by Claire Lentsch/a contributor to The Shelby Report Editor’s note: Shelby Midwest Editor Terrie Ellerbee met Claire Lentsch at the 2017 Supervalu National Expo in St. Paul, Minnesota. Lentsch was invited to share her perspective as a member of Generation Z (born since the mid-1990s) and a consumer. Snacking is replacing family meals. A lack […]
Posted inIndustry News, Albertsons, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, National, Shelby Content
What If?—Five Tips For Limiting Negligent Security Liability
by Justin R. Parafinczuk, Esq./ civil trial attorney and shareholder, Koch Parafinczuk Wolf Susen, P.A. Slip and falls, poorly stocked shelves and parking lot obstacles each present personal injury hazards for supermarket customers and potential liabilities for supermarket retailers. Enter the age of violence in the public space, where shop owners—and their customers—face an entirely new […]
Posted inShelby Content, Grocery Store Layout, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, National, Shelby Signature Content
Art’s Angle: Keeping The Business Simple Bodes Well For Growth
by Art Patch/a retired retail executive & regular columnist for The Shelby Report I had the opportunity recently to chat with one of the owners of a small but very successful independent food retailer in Northern California. He is co-owner of an eight-store chain with stores ranging in size from 20,000 to 50,000 s.f. He […]
Posted inOnline Grocery Technology, Guest Contributors, Home Page Latest News, Industry News, Midwest, Shelby Content
Meet Gen Z: Technology Is Convenient, Comforting
by Claire Lentsch/ a contributor to The Shelby Report Editor’s note: Shelby Midwest Editor Terrie Ellerbee met Claire Lentsch at the Supervalu National Expo in 2017. Here, Lentsch shares her perspective as a member of Generation Z (born since the mid-1990s) and a consumer. Technology creates convenience. By introducing technology into the food industry, food becomes […]
Posted inFood Industry Hall of Fame, Albertsons, Amazon Fresh, Anniversary Issues, Home Page Latest News, Independent Store News, Store News, West, Whole Foods
Bristol Farms’ 35th Anniversary & Kevin Davis, Food Industry Hall Of Fame Inductee
Bristol Farms was founded in November 1982 by two men whose careers had been in the meat business. Irv Gronsky and Mike Burbank were moving toward retirement age and so decided to sell their high-end meat business that supplied restaurants and butcher shops. But they weren’t quite ready to stop working altogether, so they decided […]
Posted in, Home Page Latest News, Shelby Content, Shelby Signature Content, Southeast
Harry’s Farmers Market Founder Still Speeding Along In Life And Work
Harry Blazer opened his first Harry’s Farmers Market in Alpharetta, Georgia, in 1988. Blazer grew the business into three mega-stores and six Harry’s in a Hurry locations, generating revenues of $140 million and employing 1,200 people. Admitting later that the company expanded so fast it “ran out of runway,” Blazer sold to Whole Foods Market […]