CVS: A Fresh Perspective on the Grocerant Niche

At the intersection of ‘better for you food’ and fresh prepared food, Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® believe CVS Pharmacy can find incremental customer relevance. One trend that's impossible to ignore is the rise of ready-to-eat and heat-n-eat fresh prepared foods. This "grocerant" niche is rapidly growing, and it's time for CVS to take a bite out of this lucrative market. 

The Current State of CVS 

CVS Pharmacy, the retail division of CVS Health, recently launched Well Market, a new store brand consumables line offering snacks, beverages, and groceries. This line brings 40 items to the shelves of CVS Pharmacy stores across the country and online. The products range from flavor-infused sprouted almonds to probiotic-boosted popcorn. Most items in the Well Market line are priced between $2.99 to $8.99. 

While this is a commendable step towards expanding their food and beverage portfolio, CVS is missing out on a significant trend in retail food: the grocerant niche of fresh prepared food. 

The Grocerant Opportunity 

The grocerant trend, a blend of grocery and restaurant, involves supermarkets offering fresh,Ready-2-Eat, and Heat-N-Eat meals and meal components. This trend caters to the busy consumer who is looking for convenience without compromising on health or taste. 

By incorporating fresh prepared foods into their offerings, CVS could drive top-line growth and bottom-line profits. Here's how: 

Catering to Consumer Preferences 

Consumers today are increasingly seeking out fresh, healthy, and convenient food options. By offering fresh prepared foods, CVS can cater to these preferences and attract a wider customer base. This could include busy professionals looking for a quick lunch, families seeking a convenient dinner solution, or health-conscious individuals wanting nutritious, Ready-2-Eat meals. 

Enhancing the In-Store Experience 

Adding a fresh food section could enhance the in-store experience for customers. It could transform CVS from a traditional pharmacy into a one-stop-shop for health and wellness needs. This could increase foot traffic and encourage customers to spend more time (and money) in the store. 

Driving Profitability 

Fresh prepared foods typically have higher profit margins than packaged foods. By offering these products, CVS could increase its profitability. Additionally, offering a unique and appealing range of fresh foods could differentiate CVS from its competitors, potentially driving customer loyalty and repeat purchases. 

The Path Forward 

To capitalize on this opportunity, CVS could consider partnering with local chefs or food suppliers to offer a range of fresh prepared foods. They could also explore creating an in-store dining area where customers can enjoy their meals. This could create a more engaging and enjoyable shopping experience, further driving customer loyalty. 

Just think about this, by embracing the grocerant trend and offering fresh prepared foods, CVS has the potential to drive significant growth and profitability. It's an opportunity that's too good to pass up. 

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter 

Rite Aid Targets Sprouts, Earth Fare, and Whole Foods

 

In a never ending battle for share of stomach Rite Aid is targeting the ‘better-4-you’ space and it’s preminmum profit subset of ‘better-4-you’ snacks.  According to Steven Johnson Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®, “Rite Aid is right on, cherry picking the preminium profit sub-category of ‘better-4-you’ snacks.

In case you did not know, Ello Market is a private label snack line at Rite Aid that is focused on healthy eating will garner customers from customers who vist Whole Foods, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Earth Fare.

Taking the lead from the Dollar store sector at successfully cherry picking the grocery store sector, now Rite Adi is doing the same thing to the ‘better-4-you’ grocery store sector.

Rite Aid has divided the new private label ‘better-4-you’ line into categories – Core, Better for You, and Indulgent. Products include “healthy snacks, pantry essentials and indulgent treats,” according to a release from Rite Aid.

So, actual products include things like savory nuts (pistachios and dry roasted peanuts), assorted sweets (chocolate almonds, peach rings and gummy butterflies), as well as trail mix varieties including Protein Trail Mix and Probiotic Trail Mix, and other kitchen items like honey and spices.

Pamela Kohn, SVP, chief merchandising officer at Rite Aid, stated, “We’ve been paying close attention to consumption habits to ensure our offerings fulfill the needs and desires of our customers”.  According oi Johnson snacks are profitable, ‘better-4-you’ snacks are even more profitable.

Looking for success clues of your own? Foodservice Solutions® specializes in outsourced food marketing and business development ideations. We can help you identify, quantify and qualify additional food retail segment opportunities, technology, or a new menu product segment.  Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma WA is the global leader in the Grocerant niche visit us on our social media sites by clicking one of the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Dollar General Looking for 10,000 Restaurant Employees

 

Convenience Stores, Grocery stores, and Restaurants are all looking for more employees.  Just two years ago, Dollar General had more than,16,705 stores they simply keep growing and according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® ‘there is a limited amount of floor space in a Doller General store for grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food.  Fresh food has been the fuel to drive growth Dollar General need to spin off / out some other products to continue growth in food and prepared food.”  Well, it worked!

Now, Dollar General Corp. has released plans to create approximately 10,000 net new career opportunities in fiscal 2022 through expected new store, distribution center and private-fleet growth. The new career opportunities represent an estimated 6% overall increase to the company's current workforce.

Here take, a look at the new store count, 18,000 U.S. locations by the end of 2021 and is still growing. In its third-quarter earnings report, Dollar General said that it would open 1,110 new stores in 2022, which includes approximately 100 new pOpshelf store openings. It also has plans to add new traditional and DG Fresh distribution centers and further expand its DG Private Fleet network. Additionally, the company disclosed that it would enter Mexico with 10 locations. How fast are you growing? Fresh Food Sells!

In a Battle for Employees

Grocerant Niche Offerings Help 

Drive Sales and Pay the Bills 

Kathy Reardon, Dollar General’s EVP and chief people officer, stated, “At Dollar General, our employees are the heart of the company and bring our mission of Serving Others to life each day. We are excited to add new opportunities for individuals to start or develop their career through our growing organization, and we look forward to welcoming new talent to the DG family again this year,” …. “We continue to make meaningful and positive investments in our hometowns through new store and distribution center growth, which allows us to remain dedicated to support our diverse employees with training, development, advancement and education opportunities.” 

In case you did not know, Dollar General ranked fifth in Fortune’s World’s Most Admired Companies list in the Specialty Retailers category. The corporate reputation list is based on survey respondents rating companies in their own industry on nine criteria, from investment value and quality of management and products, to social responsibility and the ability to attract talent.

Do you think you can compete? Well, some of the retailer's benefits include day-one telemedicine eligibility and Dollar General’s Employee Assistance Foundation, as well as health insurance coverage options, 401K savings and retirement plans, tuition reimbursement, paid parental leave, and adoption assistance to eligible employees, as well as training and development programs.

Dollar General touts the fact that it works to create a pathway for career advancement within the organization. According to the company, this is evidenced by the fact that approximately 75% of current lead store associates and above are internally placed.

Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or call our Grocerant Guru®.  Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. Contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or 253-759-7869

Rite Aid Evolving with a Fresh Food Focus

 

Retailer after retailer find that evolving with consumers pays off in the long run. Consumers are dynamic not static and retailers must be as well.  Demand for grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh food had created new growth for many a retailer as regular readers of this blog know.

Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions® believes that Rite Aid will benefit from its new partnership with Uber Eats garnering new electricity for its food, beverage, and snacking offerings. So, how is your branding extending your brand invitation this fall?

According to Johnson, “Brand relevance is in part driven with innovation in new food products in combination with new avenues of distribution all of which are the platform for the new electricity.”  That said, what are you waiting for?

Johnson stated “that in my minds-eye the new electricity must be very efficient for the supply and includes such things as fresh foods, developing brands, unique urban clothing, grocerant positioning, fresh food messaging, autonomous delivery, cashier-less retail, plates, glasses, cash-less payments, digital hand-held marketing.

All retailers to survive the next generation of retail must embrace the artificial intelligence revolution while simultaneously embracing fresh food that is portable, fresh, with differentiation that is familiar not different. 

So, when Rite Aid announced the expansion of its partnership with Uber Eats to offer same-day delivery of grocery and healthcare products the undercurrents of customer demand were once again in play.

Get this, now on-demand delivery is now available for 2,185 Rite Aid drugstores across 17 states on Uber Eats. Customers who wish to order Rite Aid items for delivery open the Uber Eats app, tap the convenience or pharmacy icons, select Rite Aid, and begin shopping. Within the app, users can access a full catalog of healthcare and grocery products from their local Rite Aid store. Uber Pass and Eats Pass customers will also enjoy no delivery fee and 5% off on all orders over $15.

Battle for Share of Customer Dollars

Jim Peters, chief operating officer of Rite Aid, stated, “Consumer shopping preferences are changing, so we are continuing to evolve our retail business to ensure customers are able to conveniently get what they need to keep their family happy and healthy – whether they visit us in-store or buy online,” ... “By adding Uber as a delivery option, we are doubling down on an omnichannel approach that complements the busy lives of our customers. Ensuring convenient access to whole health essentials enables us to live our purpose of helping people achieve whole health for life.”

So, Uber Eats now becomes Rite Aid’s latest partner for on-demand delivery service for front-of-store products. The Camp Hill, Pa.-based drugstore chain has offered same-day delivery of groceries and OTC health products at all of its stores through Instacart under a partnership announced just over a year ago. This past May, Rite Aid teamed up with DoorDash for same-day delivery of nonprescription health, wellness and convenience products. And most recently in August, Rite Aid joined with Shipt nationwide to offer delivery in as soon as an hour.

Raj Beri, Uber’s global head of grocery and new verticals at Uber Technologies, stated, “Convenience is a key component of Uber’s delivery strategy, allowing us to create a seamless delivery experience by ensuring we have the essential stores and products customers need," said. "With our partners at Rite Aid, we're thrilled to make shopping for everything from cold medication to cosmetics more 'convenient' than ever."

Invite Foodservice Solutions® to complete a Grocerant ScoreCard, or for product positioning or placement assistance, or call our Grocerant Guru®.  Since 1991 Foodservice Solutions® of Tacoma, WA has been the global leader in the Grocerant niche. Contact: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or 253-759-7869

Walgreens Delivers via Uber Eats

 

Back in the day Walgreens was the largest chain of restaurants in the U.S. with lunch counters serving hot meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  Walgreens was the first to offer the ‘fourth meal’ serving coffee and pie all day as a meal or a snack.  The ability to expand its speed of service via Uber Eats will drive long term success according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Walgreens continues to evolve.  Are you evolving? Consumers are dynamic not static all retailers must be as well. 

Walgreens, shoppers will soon have such items as milk, bread, snack, health-and-wellness, beauty and personal care, and household products, as well as over-the-counter medications, delivered the same day via Uber Eats.

Since, Walgreens expanded its collaboration with Uber to offer products directly on the Uber Eats platform to customers across the United States consumers can get fresh food faster. The drug store chain’s shoppers can now have such items as health-and-wellness, beauty and personal care, and household products, as well as over-the-counter medications, delivered the same day via Uber.

This on-demand delivery service is currently available from more than 7,800 stores across the country, with Puerto Rico to soon follow. First to be offered under the expanded collaboration are top-selling Walgreens retail items on the Uber Eats app, with more added daily; the goal is to expand to the retailer’s entire assortment of more than 20,000 products over time.

“Walgreens provides our customers with seamless health and well-being experiences, and offering them convenient delivery solutions on whichever platform they prefer to shop is key,” noted Stefanie Kruse, VP, digital commerce and omnichannel at Walgreens. “Our collaboration with Uber for on-demand delivery through both Walgreens and Uber’s channels, as well as integrated vaccine scheduling, gives customers simple and easy ways to put their health and well-being needs at the forefront – which will continue to be important to them as we emerge from the pandemic.”

“By leveraging the best of what Walgreens and Uber have to offer, we’re making it easier than ever for customers to prioritize their health and wellness,” said Raj Beri, head of grocery delivery at San Francisco-based Uber. “From on-demand delivery of essentials to hassle-free vaccine scheduling all at the touch of a button, we’re focused on eliminating barriers that burden customers’ everyday life, helping them go anywhere and get anything instantly.” 

Those who want to order Walgreens items for delivery can open the Uber Eats app, tap the convenience or pharmacy icons, choose Walgreens, and start shopping. To mark the launch, Walgreens and Uber Eats are offering customers a $20 promo off orders of $30 or more through June 27.

Further, the two companies worked together earlier this year to develop a new vaccine-scheduling option via the Uber app enabling U.S. Uber users to arrange a COVID-19 vaccine appointment at Walgreens. After entering a ZIP code and selecting from the available appointment times, users can reserve a ride to the appointment by scheduling a pickup time and location. Before the appointment, a push notification reminds the user of the upcoming ride to the vaccination appointment. How are you evolving?

Success does leave clues. One clue that time and time again continues to resurface is “the consumer is dynamic not static”.  Regular readers of this blog know that is the common refrain of Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®.  Our Grocerant Guru® can help your company edify your brand with relevance.  Call 253-759-7869 for more information. 

Will Rosalind Brewer Evolve Walgreens in a Grocerant Destination

 

Success does leave clues and Rosalind Brewer has demonstrates an ability for lifelong learning, growing business successfully, and continued personal growth according to Steven Johnson, Grocerant Guru® at Tacoma, WA based Foodservice Solutions®. 

Working at the intersection of fresh food, merchandising, and retail discovery Rosalind Brewer, once led Walmart’s Sam’s Club division as CEO before departing to be Chief Operating Officer of Starbucks, and has recently been selected to be the next CEO of drugstore operator Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA).

It is clear facts matter to Brewer.  Facts have contributed to her success. We must also note that Brewer was with Kimberly-Clark Corp. for 22 years, starting as a scientist and ultimately becoming president of the global nonwovens sector in 2004.

Around the globe the retail world has been disrupted the past year, Brewer who begins her new role March 15, 2021, has had a front row seat actively adapting, adjusting business models to complement customers desires, with new ‘local’ restrictions and regulations.  

For those of you who don’t know, Walgreens Boots Alliance operates the largest U.S. drug chain, with more than 9,000 units under the Walgreens and Duane Reade brands in all 50 states. It also controls Boots stores in Europe and Asia and international wholesale and distribution networks under the Alliance Healthcare banner. Thus, the insights Brewer gain while at Starbucks will complement her insights moving forward.

Regular readers of this blog know that Walgreens has been experimenting with fresh food retailing for many years, in fact Walgreens as many readers of this blog know was once the largest chain restaurant in the U.S. serving meals at a ‘lunch counter’.

Recently, Walgreens has experimented with Kroger on various strategies, including a fleet of stores doing double duty as online grocery pickup points and other stores testing Kroger-aligned food departments. Walgreens separately has pioneered food-to-go and substantial grocery offerings in many of its stores.

Here is what the team at Foodservice Solutions® knows:

1.       62.3% of all U.S. households are comprised of one or two people. US Census

2.       Online food and beverage sales — including grocery plus restaurant online delivery — jumped 125% to $106 billion over the 52 weeks ended Nov. 30, accounting for 12% of overall dollars spent in those categories, NielsenIQ data shows. 

3.       Restaurant digital ordering and delivery grew 300% faster than dine-in traffic since 2014.

4.       Grocerant ScoreCards found 82.3% of consumers don’t know what’s for dinner at Noon, and 61.1 don’t know what’ s for dinner at 4PM %.

5.       Prepared food purchases are frequently a planned purchase among 59% of shoppers, while 41% of shoppers said they buy prepared foods on impulse. Dinner has the highest amount of prepared food buys with 79% of respondents making purchases for that meal, while lunch comes in at 77% and breakfast at 62%.

While at Starbucks, Brewer was instrumental in helping the company accelerate its growth strategy, expand its global reach, and drive value, developing a mobile order and pay platform and revamping its rewards program.

Brewer recently stated, “The healthcare industry is constantly evolving, and I am excited to work alongside the entire WBA team as we deliver further innovation and positively impact the lives of millions of people around the world every day. This is especially true today as the company plays a crucial role in combatting the COVID-19 pandemic. I step into this role with great optimism for the future of WBA, a shared responsibility to serve our customers, patients and communities, and a commitment to drive long-term sustainable value for shareholders.”

It's at the intersection of retail, the healthcare industry, and the halo of ‘better-for-you’ fresh food discovery aka grocerant niche Ready-2-Eat and Heat-N-Eat fresh prepared food that Walgreens will elevate discovery edifying a tomorrow’s long-term relationship with today’s and tomorrow’s customers.

Don’t over reach. Are you ready for some fresh ideations? Do your food marketing ideations look more like yesterday than tomorrow? Interested in learning how Foodservice Solutions® can edify your retail food brand while creating a platform for consumer convenient meal participation, differentiation and individualization?  Email us at: Steve@FoodserviceSolutions.us or visit us on our social media sites by clicking the following links: Facebook,  LinkedIn, or Twitter

Battle for Share of Stomach