WENATCHEE, WA – Premier apple grower CMI Orchards is looking to build on the success of its Season of Flavor promotion and extend its promotional efforts with two of the company’s most popular varieties of branded apples with its Season of Flavor “Encore Promotion.”
“Promoting premium varieties, while driving a quality eating experience during these late spring and early summer months, is the perfect way to capture incremental dollars and strengthen profits,” noted Vice President of Marketing George Harter. “Jazz™ and Pacific Rose™ offer retailers a competitive advantage, driving excitement and strength to their apple commodity.”
The Season of Flavor promotion—which included Ambrosia™, KIKU®, Kanzi®, Jazz, and Pacific Rose apples—kicked off in early March and encouraged produce departments throughout the nation to build creative apple displays.
To celebrate the success of the promotion to date and continue its momentum, CMI announced, in a press release, that the company has launched an “Encore Promotion,” extending the Season of Flavor for two leading branded apples: Jazz and Pacific Rose.
According to the company’s press release, the Season of Flavor “Encore Promotion” is designed to help retailers take advantage of a short window of opportunity in which to drive category sales. The promotion offers retailers and produce managers incentives through an inventive display contest, along with other perks and prizes.
Jazz and Pacific Rose apples are grown and marketed throughout the U.S. by CMI Orchards, Rainier Fruit Company, and The Oppenheimer Group.
For more on this and other promotional opportunities retailers in our industry can take advantage of, stay tuned to AndNowUKnow.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – As its fourth quarter for the year comes to a close, SuperValu saw some major movement to its stocks. After announcing its 2017 Q4 results yesterday and beating analyst expecatations, the retailer’s stocks surged as much as 16.1 percent, and ended the day with 6.4 percent gains.
"We finished fiscal 2017 with momentum in our wholesale business and an improved balance sheet resulting from the sale of Save-A-Lot,” said President and CEO Mark Gross.
The retailer reported an increase of 0.6 percent to $2.91 billion for its net sales, according to a press release, while the company’s total wholesale revenue also increased 3 percent. The Motley Fool reported that analyst estimates were originally $0.09 per share for SuperValu, however the retailer moved past that expectation in its Q4 to boast adjusted earnings per share of $0.13.
Other highlights to the retailer’s 2017 Q4 report include:
- Adjusted EBITDA $124 million
- Adjusted net earnings of $39 million
- Net same store sales decreased 5.8 percent
During this quarter, SuperValu also completed the sale of its Save-A-Lot business. As we previously reported, the retailer sold the banner to Onex Corporation for $1.365 billion. Strategic growth is still in the cards for the retailer, as the company recently announced its agreement to acquire Unified Grocers.
“I’m very excited about our agreement to acquire Unified Grocers as it brings together two great companies to create one of the nation’s leading grocery wholesale organizations. At the same time, we are working to fundamentally improve the shopping experience in our retail stores and with new leadership and renewed passion we are focused on changing our operating results. I remain optimistic for growth and believe strongly in the path our team is pursuing to achieve it,” Gross continued.
Motley Fool also stated that analyst expectations will most likely continue to rise, with current projections for the company’s 2018 Q1 residing around $0.13 per share.
Access the company’s entire financial report, here.
What’s next for SuperValu as it follows through on its acquisition, with eyes set on more growth? AndNowUKnow will report.
CHILE – The shores of Chile were rocked with a weighty 7.1 magnitude earthquake earlier this week. Originating offshore about 85 miles from Santiago, the quake caused tremors that were felt all the way to the country’s capital but did not cause any long-lasting effects.
"We have no reports of victims or significant damage. There have been some landslides in some places, without major complications," said Interior Minister Mario Fernandez, according to The Telegraph.
The quake was centered 22 miles west of Valparaiso off the coast of Chile. The US Geological Survey stated that the phenomenon was a shallow earthquake, occurring at 6.2 miles below sea level.
Though authorities sounded the tsunami alarm at the earthquake’s onset, a tsunami warning was quickly canceled as the Chilean Navy and Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre did not expect any threatening waves. The Centre reported only small tsunami waves around half a foot tall.
Though an earthquake of this size falls under the “major” category, the offshore origin point of this earthquake downplayed any serious effects. There were several afterstocks after the initial tremor that were also felt in Santiago, including two that registered 5.0 and 5.4 magnitudes.
Valparaiso and its surrounding regions have reported no structural damage or traffic delays as a result of the quake.
SALINAS, CA - Mann Packing’s Culinary Cuts® have snagged yet another title, this time for its innovation within the food and beverage category. Mann Packing announced that the line won the international Edison Award™ for Innovation.
"We are honored to be an Edison Award recipient for 2017,” said Director of Corporate Marketing Gina Nucci. “The quality of the companies at this event really demonstrates that businesses of all sizes are pushing forward in creative ways to meet consumer demands and maximize returns. Mann’s has always tested the boundaries in produce, and to be recognized with this award is an affirmation of our spirit for innovation.”
Mann’s Culinary Cuts is a revolutionary line of fresh vegetables cut into distinctive shapes. The convenient fresh vegetable line is cut into distinctive shapes, and makes for a perfect pasta swap, for the free-from preservatives and gluten trends. Washed and ready-to-eat options include:
- Cauliflower Cauliettes®
- Shaved Brussels Sprouts
- Sweet Potato Ribbons
- Butternut Squash Zig Zags
Culinary Cuts are the first veggie pasta swap products available nationwide and are backed with promotions and merchandising support to educate consumers and spur sales, according to a press release. The Edison Awards, an independent organization since 2008 but founded by the American Marketing Association in 1987, recognizes innovators in Applied Technology, Health & Wellness, Consumer Goods, and Energy & Sustainability, among others.
With the Edison Awards having recognized and honored some of the most innovative products and business leaders in the world, we congratulate Mann Packing on this prestigious recognition!
BOISE, ID – Albertsons Companies announced that it has promoted current Jewel Osco Division President Mike Withers and appointed him Executive Vice President, Retail Operations for Albertsons Companies.
“Mike is an exceptional leader who understands our business and market areas from coast to coast,” noted President and COO Wayne Denningham, in a press release. “Throughout his career, Mike has worked closely with many members of our current leadership team, and his management experience and operations expertise will help all of our divisions run really great stores.”
Withers has been with the Boise-based company since 1976. Like many of Albertsons’ executives, Withers began his career as a store clerk and gradually worked his way up to store management. He served as district manager in both Washington and Florida and was eventually promoted to Big Sky Division President with responsibilities for store operations in Montana and North Dakota, a role he also held in both the Florida and Portland divisions. Most recently, Withers held the dual roles of Vice President of Marketing and Merchandising for the Florida and Southern divisions, and President of the Southern and Jewel Osco divisions.
In his new role, Withers will lead the company’s East Region operations, while current EVP, Retail Operations Susan Morris will focus on the West Region. Jim Perkins, EVP, Retail Operations Special Projects, meanwhile, will focus on targeted initiatives to accelerate growth. All three EVPs will report directly to Denningham.
Congratulations to Mike on his most recent promotion. We at AndNowUKnow will continue to report on important executive moves in our industry.
DAVIS, CA – In our increasingly discount-driven era, what can produce retailers do to gain an edge? I recently had a chance to ask Ken Ouimet (CEO & Founder) and Edris Bemanian (COO) of Engage3, a competitive intelligence and consumer engagement company providing data-driven business solutions for retailers and manufacturers. Engage3 recently participated in a webinar entitled “Surviving the Emerging Price War,” presenting tools and tactics that retailers can use to negotiate increased price competition.
“You’ve got Amazon and Walmart entering a price war and they’re picking off the center store,” Ken begins. “From a technology perspective, variable weight items have always been the unaddressed area in pricing. I used to have retailers ask me what we could do with fresh at my first company, Khimetrics. Many companies had backed away from pricing in fresh, but this time it’s unavoidable.”
“Fresh is, in many ways, becoming the most important part of the store for retailers.” Edris adds. “What’s driving trips, actually, is fresh and produce. Consumers still want to look, touch, and feel their produce before they buy it, and we’re finding that it’s increasingly important to find the right price position on these items. Because now, in addition to traditional commodity items like milk, bread, butter, eggs, customers are paying increasing attention to the pricing on their variable weight items.”
Because many prepackaged goods are essentially identical to their competitors’ offerings, Edris explains, stores have less opportunity to differentiate on these items, and companies that can offer the steepest discounts may invariably win out with price aware consumers. But unlike prepared food products, fresh fruits and veggies have a number of unique attributes that can differentiate stock from place to place and store to store.
“Consumers are paying increasing attention to those attributes because of what we’re calling price and product transparency,” says Edris. “Consumers now have the ability to go and look online to research products and compare products across retailers and shopping apps.”
Retailers who can glean the most information about their consumers, and leverage that information to inform pricing and assortment decisions, will be best able to earn their customers’ business without giving away unnecessary margin.
“Retailers need to align their products and their assortments with their customers’ needs and wants, from a local perspective,” Edris notes. “In certain markets like Los Angeles, for example, you might have more interest, a higher demand, and a higher willingness to pay more for meat that’s antibiotic free, whereas in other markets you might find that consumers just simply aren’t paying attention to, or do not particularly value, those attributes.”
By utilizing data, segmenting, and addressing the needs of consumers, and targeting specific attributes that local customers are looking for—fresh vs previously-frozen, non-GMO, or organic, for example—retailers can better tailor their assortment and their pricing to consumers’ needs and weather pricing pressures.
“There can be a certain value associated with non-GMO items and organic items, and that’s where we try to leverage a combination of market share data, cost data, and sales data to figure out what consumers value and how we can price based on value, while still being fair to the consumer,” Edris tells me.
As for suppliers, Edris tells me that they can help their retail partners along by sharing accurate “actionable guidance and intelligence” and offering services like suggested retail prices that increase transparency and benefit supplier, retailer, and consumer alike.
“It’s imperative for suppliers to become partners to their customers, to the retailers, and provide added value from a strategic perspective. If you’re a supplier and your customers can trust you to help them with their pricing strategies and their assortment strategies, then you’re creating both a greater dependency on you and an additional value that you both benefit from. Invest in technology that will enable you to provide an accurate read of the market and provide strategic guidance so you can earn and keep your seat at the table during this price war.”
“Retailers will need to use fresh products to drive traffic to their stores. It’s going to be important to be more aggressive on price and to differentiate with better quality product. Help retailers differentiate on offerings by looking at the attributes Edris mentioned and help them market what’s unique about the product. What’s the product story? Help tell it. The manufacturers who win the race will be the ones who help their retailers win the war,” Ken concludes.
For more on Engage3’s insights into price competition in the marketplace, check out its webinar, here.
SALINAS, CA – The Organic Produce Summit has added another industry leader to its line up of keynote speakers. Today, the company announced that David McInerney, Co-Founder of online fresh food grocer Fresh Direct, will be the fourth keynote presenter at the nearly sold out OPS 2017.
“Understanding what we’re eating and who’s growing it are the most important—yet often forgotten—details when it comes to what we put in our bodies,” McInerney said. “To meet and talk with those individuals and companies growing organic fresh produce and marketing it to consumers across the globe is truly an honor.”
According to a press release, McInerney and his team spend more than half the year traveling around the globe to learn, investigate, explore, and taste fresh food. Fresh Direct is recognized as a pioneer in e-commerce/direct to consumer delivery. The company, founded in 2002, has been offering fresh food at comparatively low prices directly to consumers throughout urban areas in the Northeast.
McInerney’s addition rounds out what promises to be an engaging slate of speakers delivering keynote presentations at OPS 2017. Attendees will hear from noted dietician and author Ashley Koff; the co-founders of The Organic Coup, America’s First USDA Approved Organic Fast Food, Dennis Hoover and Erica Helton; and a Retail Roundtable presentation exploring the insights, opportunities, and challenges facing retailers in the multi-billion-dollar organic fresh produce industry.
“In addition to an informative series of educational sessions, we are thrilled with our line-up of keynote presentations,” said Susan Canales, Director of Operations, for OPS. “Our attendees will have an opportunity to learn from influential thought-leaders in three major areas of organic produce sales—retail, the up and coming foodservice sector, and the dynamic direct-to-consumer model changing the way all shopping is done. Our attendees will gain insightful and useful information on how leading companies are marketing organic fresh produce to consumers and the opportunities to drive sales into the future.”
Canales noted in the press release that only a very limited number of general registrations to OPS 2017 remain available, and the event is expected to sell out by the end of this month.
“The overall response and enthusiasm for OPS is unbelievable,” Canales said. “We wish we had greater capacity to handle a larger audience, but we are confident the intimacy and energy of OPS 2017 will be unlike any other industry trade event.”
More on information on Organic Produce Summit 2017 is available here.
COSTA RICA – Blanketing its surrounding areas with ash, Costa Rica has been graced with its largest volcanic blast in years. The eruption produced plumes of over 3,200 feet, with falling rocks and magma.
Poás’ explosion was known as a phreatic eruption, or, one that is mainly driven by water. This particular blast, according to Wired, was caused by heated water at the volcano’s summit crate lake and vent area. Flights out of the area managed to catch the resulting plumes as the volcano rumbled to life.
As we left San Jose Costa Rica this morning, we had a great view of the La Poas Volcano eruption. We found out tha… https://t.co/Db2hiOtcgx pic.twitter.com/thAG3CzvVT
— Scott Rovak (@scottrovak) April 14, 2017
The eruption also caused boulders as big as wide as almost 7 feet being thrown into the air from the lake vent, with reports indicating that some even broke the floor of Poás’ visitor center in the volcano’s National Park.
Costa Rica Volcanological and Seismological Observatory (or OVSICORI) posted a video, seen below, that showed new ash and large blocks around the volcano’s crate. The organization’s scientists told The Costa Rica Star that in the materials ejected from the volcano, 5% was new magma. This most likely signifies that more eruptions are in store, with potentially more violent ones that could lead to bursts over 16,000 feet high.
The volcano already saw another burst of life, as it experienced another five minutes of activity mere days after the initial explosions. The country’s geologists and volcanologists have categorized the volcano as highly unstable as it continues to register frequent activity.
So far, no reports have surfaced of travel or shipping being affected in the area.
What will Costa Rica see next as Poás’ momentum continues to build? AndNowUKnow will report.
MORGAN HILL, CA - Sakata Seed America is marking its 40th birthday in North America, and the company has quite a few things lined up to celebrate, not the least of which are a new logo and slogan.
“To pay tribute to this anniversary year, we’ve developed a new logo and slogan to illustrate our company’s history and vision for the future–but, that’s not the only way we’re recognizing this milestone,” said Alecia Troy, Senior Marketing Manager. “Throughout the year we’ll be celebrating our anniversary by giving back to the employees, customers, industry, and community that got us to this point. This accomplishment is only made possible by many positive elements and we want to recognize and share that story all year long!”
On the note of positive elements, Sakata has laid out a plan to spread the love through an act of kindness for each candle on the proverbial cake.
"A big part of why we do what we do is that we see the downstream benefits of bringing beautiful flowers and healthy vegetables to the consumer. It’s nice to come to work knowing you’re making a positive impact on people’s lives, and we want to celebrate our 40th by increasing our level of commitment to this mindset,” Troy added.
Through this '40 Acts of Kindness’ initiative, Sakata has committed to contribute to 40 organizations aimed to promote and benefit health, wellbeing, community, and industry progress through either monetary gifts or volunteerism, according to a release.
This ranges from smaller outfits like the communities around Sakata arms in Morgan Hill, California, as well as Mexico and Guatemala affiliates, to national ones like the American Heart Association. To see the full list of organizations, check out the new 40th Anniversary website.
Continue to follow AndNowUKnow as we watch this 40th year for Sakata unfold.
CINCINNATI, OH – Looking to further grow its brand, The Kroger Co. announced today that it has named Kristal Howard as the company’s new Head of Corporate Communications and Media Relations.
In her new role, Howard will be responsible for national media and corporate communications. According to a company press release, she will also serve as the spokesperson for Kroger, a company that employs 443,000 associates at 2,796 retail locations across 35 states throughout the nation.
"Kristal is a consummate PR pro who understands the intersection of food, media, our customers, and other stakeholders," said Keith Dailey, Senior Director of External Affairs. "We are excited she has accepted this new role to help elevate Kroger's unique story."
Since 2010, Howard has served as Public Relations Manager for Kroger’s Dallas and Houston division, where she garnered a number of accolades. She was named “Top 30 under 30” by PR News in 2013, amongst a number of titles, and was recently named one of ten “Black Women to Know in PR, Tech, & Digital Media” in Ebony Magazine. Howard is a graduate of the University of Houston.
We at AndNowUKnow congratulate Howard on her appointment and wish her the best in all her future endeavors. For more news on this and other import retailers in our industry, check in with us at AndNowUKnow.