inStorebuyer - February 2011 - 48

have received acclaim as the best of Orange County, CA. Other bakery specialties include Texas Chocolate Cake, Cinnamon Breads, Carrot & Pumpkin Cake, Gourmet Brownies, Sour Cream Coffee Cake, and Handmade Scones. Carrying unique UPCs is crucial to the success of the specialty gourmet retailer. According to SPINS, an infromation provider for the natural

products industry, a specialty gourmet retailer is defined as a supermarket doing more than $2 million in annual volume with more than 25% of total volume sales in specialty products. By comparison, a natural supermarket does at least 50% of total volume sales in natural and organic products. Kathryn Peters, senior vice president of business development for SPINS, shared the latest data,

Food for Thought
According to Todd Hale of The Nielsen Co., the economy has many consumers thinking about the prices they pay for just about everything, but it seems that too much emphasis is being placed on low prices and not on the benefits and solutions (real and emotional) consumers can receive from manufacturers and retailers. Hale offers the following thoughts for how retailers and manufacturers can capitalize on these trends: • Consider meal solutions for breakfast, lunch and dinner that leverage both center store and perimeter categories. • Collaborate on meal solution formats and arrange the store aisles so shoppers don’t have to walk the entire store to find one-stop items. • Leverage cooking classes and recipes both in-store and through multi-media (print, online, smart phone apps) outlets. • Try in-store and mobile demo and sampling stations so your shoppers and consumers can smell and taste what you have to offer to drive a sale. • Cross promote against complementary food and non-food categories to provide value along with solutions. • Look to social media sites to attract recipe ideas and feedback from shoppers or consumers and use banner or brand advocates to speak for you. • Explore celebrity chef or restaurant alliances to build equity with people who enjoy cooking. • Use advertising copy that embraces the joy of cooking and celebrations with family and friends. Be sure to make the brand or banner clearly visible and learn from the growing trend around reality video and leverage banner and brand advocates in your ads.

revealing specialty-natural products grew 11.3% in dollar sales and 13.4% in unit growth within the specialty gourmet channel in 2010. “2010 was a big time rebound across the industry,” Peters says of the specialty and natural products marketplace. “The secret to growth appears to be having a very strong stance and communicating that stance to consumers.” Bristol Farms communicates its commitment to specialty gourmet foods by touting such new deli items as the “the rare jewel of Spain, Jamon Iberico De Bellota. Created from an ancient Spanish breed, they are fed acorns, wild herbs, and mushrooms, and then closely watched as they cure for over three years. The result is a sweet, rich, and complex ham that simply melts in your mouth; a must try for any food connoisseur,” according to Bristol Farms. Other featured deli meats are prosciutto from both the Parma and San Danielle regions of Italy, the fine Serrano ham of Spain, as well as pancetta, truffle and roasted Italian hams, and dry Spanish chorizo. With this type of selection, it is no wonder Bristol Farms has been a “foodie” favorite in California since the company opened its first store in 1982 in Rolling Hills, CA.

Capitalizing on Food Culture
As the U.S. economy suffered one of the worst downturns in recent history, consumers responded by showing a renewed focus on back-to-basics cooking at home, according to Todd Hale, Senior

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inStorebuyer - February 2011

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