instore - September 2017 - 16

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success people are having around the country with focusing on how to
serve the Hispanic customer the best, it proves that being truly local, no
matter what local means, is the way a brick-and-mortar retailer has to
operate today."

Gomez says the second aspect is the training and care Cardenas team
members get from the company. "I have to give a lot of credit to the
Cardenas family," he says. "The founders of this business really created
a culture within the company and within the stores that is very familial.
Our team members, I think, feel like they have a home and that comes
from workplace culture."

"You've got to be careful not to
pigeonhole that customer. They'll also

Part of that environment, Nasshan says, comes from the way the
Hispanic culture views food and shopping for it.

buy across general market fresh meat
and prepared foods as well."

"There is a high value placed on fresh foods and fresh breads," he says.
"They want to pick out fresh bolillos that are made every day and fresh
tortillas made from scratch and really high-quality produce and meats.
And they view shopping for these foods as a family tradition."

John Gomez, Cardenas Markets

But one thing to consider, Nasshan also says, is that Hispanic customers
also want some options outside of their culture.
And when serving the Hispanic customer, a vital ingredient is the
warmth and familial atmosphere of the everyday shopping experience. Gomez recalled meeting a customer outside of the store who told
him her non-Hispanic husband insists on doing the grocery shopping
because he loved the "warm feeling" he got at Cardenas Markets.
"First, there's a natural warmth that Hispanics tend to have and like to
share," Gomez says. "Even strangers like to talk about the boxing match
or the soccer match. There's a natural chit-chat that goes on in our
culture. And the Hispanic customer is one of the last customers that
absolutely finds value in eating most meals at home with family."

"I think an important thing to remember, especially with meat, is that,
yes, you have to have the specific cut of meat that matches the desire
for authenticity," he says. "But you've got to be careful not to pigeonhole
that customer. They'll also buy across general market fresh meat and
prepared foods as well."

Room for growth
The exciting part of serving the Hispanic market is its anticipated
growth. As mentioned above, Hispanics are expected to account for
nearly 30 percent of the United States' population in 30 years.

The importance
of employees
When Cardenas Markets acquired Mi Pueblo
earlier this summer to form Cardenas Markets
LLC, it began its Cardenas University, an initiative
to train its team members on everything from
how to make the products in the perimeter of
the store to how to work together.
"As we continue to grow, we can't lose that
warm feeling for our customers and our team
members," says Cardenas CEO John Gomez.
"The engagement of our team members
means everything. Those training tools that
we're building will be really key for us in order
to keep that warm family feeling."

16 * SEPTEMBER 2017 * instore

And when Southeastern Grocers began
the conversion of several of its Winn-Dixie
locations to Fresco Y Mas stores, it first looked
to the opinions of its Hispanic employees.
"We not only looked at what Hispanic
supermarket competitors were doing,
but understanding that we've got a very
heavy base of Hispanic associates," says
Southeastern's Bill Nasshan. "We made sure
our associates agreed with what we thought
the prepared food offerings needed to be. You
have to listen to your associates. It's where
you'll learn the most."

That puts Hispanic retailers like Fresco Y Mas
and Cardenas Markets in a position to prepare
now. But Gomez says that must be done carefully and purposefully, with that warmth of
the culture in mind.
"That will be the key to our success. We
don't want to just grow and become this big
store that feels like a cold representation of a
regular grocery store," he says. "For us, it has
to start from the inside and work its way out.
Every team member has to feel good about
where they work, they have to be competent
because they've been trained on how to do
their job, and every team member feeling
like they have opportunity because of all
the growth we have planned. And that will
make its way from our team members to our
customers."

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