Fresh Food Retailing Expanding Beyond Traditional Borders

Evolving the success of Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food has been documented on this blog talked about and written about a lot for one reason of late.  It is driving top line sales and bottom line profits within existing legacy points of distribution and more importantly at new non-traditional points of fresh food distribution garnering share from legacy food retailers.

Are you a retailer Looking A Customer Ahead? Is your food company prepared to succeed in 2015, 2016, and 2020? Here are some of the advantages to entering or expanding your business within the grocerant niche:

Drive More Customers Expand Your Reach

The larger and older the food retailer, the more narrow focus and regular routine of marketing has become. What has worked for 50 years, is not working today.  How is that Campbell’s selling today is it a destination driver? 

While legacy retailers have honed their brand and supply chain. They have set and defined boundaries, and it is difficult to get outside of what they have always done.  Today, time and technology have redefined the consumer playing field.  Your brand must become dynamic again or risk losing consumer relevance. There is a huge opportunity for share of market if you elect to evolve you brand with migrating fresh food consumers. That means to the Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat grocerant niche filled with fresh prepared food.\

Consumers Experiment New CPG Today they Migrate to Fresh

Large food retailers typically pay more at the C-level, and are seen as stable employment currencies (not-taking risk). One of my clients CEO’s says “my job is to Do No Harm”.  One problem consumers are dynamic not static if your company is not evolving fast enough your year over year customer counts will be in decline.  

However the grocerant niche when vertically integrated into an existing brand creates a new level of excitement within the entire company.  When sales grow, the opportunity for advancement expands, building team momentum, excitement explodes like a wildfire.  Customers can feel the proactive positive buzz from employees. Doing nothing Boring Doing More of the Right Something Soaring. 

Change is Customer Proactive 

Evolving, creating and driving change is incredibly dynamic, consumer focused. Change is contagious. Developing a grocerant program is change that evolves.  Your company will grow and will go through a bell curve, and you see the whole thing step by step when you vertically integrate change into your brand and consumer values. If not integrated you do not really get to escape the velocity of the event, but change is exciting nonetheless and customers will still follow.

Consumer Relevance Means Evolving not Simply Staying Alive

How is “Doing no Harm” working for you? Are you going to tangibly impact your company or maintain the status quo? Today like never before companies have the ability to evolving a brand at a speed not seen since your company was a start-up. What impact are you going to have on your company? There is a difference between the work you do and the impact you have.  Fresh Food retailing is evolving at break neck speed.  Is your brand evolving fast? Are slotting fee’s more important that a fresh food focus? 

Springboard to more Profitability Don’t Spin Out, or Spin Off the Map

If you do nothing but wait, watch or blame the economy you are very likely to simply spin out of control. Redefining your brand with consumer relevance will position you too either create a positive spin off or springboard to the next level.  Legacy organizations need to be mindful that springboards do great things for your organization, your team and your shareholders.

Foodservice Solutions® Grocerant Guru™ is a Customer Focused Success Clue 

LTO’s can drive top line sales and bottom line profits while taking you in a new direction.  Are your LTO’s leading your brand, testing your brand or simply copy-cat marketing tactics absent strategy?

Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® a Tacoma, WA based retail foodservice consultancy has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. For your GrocerantScorecard or for product placement, Grocerant niche brand positioning assistance contact via: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us , the Grocerant LinkedIn page or on Facebook at Steven Johnson

Visit: www.FoodserviceSolutions.us  if you are interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® 5P’s of Food Marketing can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization or you can learn more at Facebook.com/Steven Johnson, Linkedin.com/in/grocerant or twitter.com/grocerant Email: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us for more information