SALISBURY, NC - When I first met Teri Miller in 2016, I was immediately drawn in by her grace, passion, tenacity, and drive. Her ability to dance between the art and science at retail truly imparted on me a new way of looking at fresh produce. Since then, I have reveled in her career and have loved being a witness to her journey. With a new year comes new beginnings, especially for Teri, and as the seasons change, the retail veteran is walking a new fork in the road, joining Freshouse as the company's Business Analyst.
"I am excited to learn what it really takes to execute a program from the seed to the plate!" Teri tells me as she describes this new role with Freshouse. "Bringing together all involved—from the supply-side to the buy-side—in order to create a successful solution that allows us all to prosper financially and to have confidence in those relationships, is something I have been looking forward to doing for quite some time now."
In Teri's role as Business Analyst, which she assumed on January 9 of this year, she will be focusing on continuing the growth of Freshouse's relationship with retailers.
"Freshouse has solid relationships with our current customer base, but with the changes technology brings and the changes in customer shopping patterns, relationships need to develop with different perspectives," Teri reflects. "Relationships are about understanding what drives success at retail—of course, margin is a huge component, but quality and assortment play equally in how retailers service their guests. The spectrum of quality and assortment varies vastly for retailers. No longer is the cookie-cutter approach the only solution. My role is to help bridge that understanding with our customers. We want to grow and evolve with them."
Freshouse brings more than 75 years to the business as a family-owned company in agriculture. The company offers a full line of fresh fruits and vegetables that provides a regional, seasonal, and year-round supply of fresh produce to retailer operators.
With the fourth generation now leading the business, Freshouse has expanded with acreage in New York, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Canada, and Mexico in recent years with facilities located on the East Coast, providing coverage to many major East Coast markets. Services include growing and harvesting, repacking and regrading, custom packing/packaging, cooling and storage, and distribution.
While potatoes of different varieties and sizes, as well as broccoli and onions, are at the top of its deal, Freshouse sources a wide range of product for retail partners in a fashion to keep costs low and quality high.
Teri has been in the grocery business for 34 years, 28 of those with Food Lion and six years with The Fresh Market. She has been married to Johnny Miller for 34 years and looks forward to spending more time with their son, Dalton Miller, and his beautiful wife, Ashley.
Congrats, Teri, on the exciting path ahead! We are so thankful for all you continue to do for our industry!
