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FRESH SUMMIT 2006

SAN DIEGO - Produce department managers emphasized the importance of educating their associates and shoppers about new products and keeping the departments neat during a discussion at the Produce Marketing Association's Fresh Summit International Convention and Exposition here.Representing a variety of retail formats, the panelists were Leticia Saldivar, a "farmers corner" manager at 11-unit AJ's

SAN DIEGO - Produce department managers emphasized the importance of educating their associates and shoppers about new products and keeping the departments neat during a discussion at the Produce Marketing Association's Fresh Summit International Convention and Exposition here.

Representing a variety of retail formats, the panelists were Leticia Saldivar, a "farmers corner" manager at 11-unit AJ's Fine Foods, a division of Chandler, Ariz.-based Bashas'; Nathan Schuessler, a produce manager at Henry's Farmers Market, a division of Boulder, Colo.-based Wild Oats Markets; Mike Perriera, director of produce and bulk foods at 15-unit Longo's, Toronto; and Emzie Cander, produce manager at 60-unit Food City, Phoenix.

Acting as moderator, Virginia Beach-based consultant and former retailer Harold Lloyd questioned managers on how they spend a typical work day, how they keep their departments appealing, what's their most successful promotion, and how they balance effective sampling with attention to food safety.

Cander at Food City said he keeps a close eye on the department to make sure the merchandise looks good.

"Every hour, we walk through our department, taking time to look at each and every item," he said.

At Longo's, the store manager goes up and down the produce aisle first thing every morning to make sure everything is in order, Perriera said, pointing out that he sees that as a positive.

"He's giving us an additional perspective on how things look," he said. "It's not intimidating. It's helpful."

Cander said his store manager does the same thing.

Perriera's pet peeve is clutter, he said, and he goes to great lengths to minimize it.

"I just watch all the time, but we once had a supervisor who cut a broom handle off and walked down the aisle with it, crossways in front of him," he said. "If it hit anything, we had to move it. He made a good point with that."

Perriera said he occasionally uses the broom, too. The stores make sure there's a 5-foot swath of space for the customers to maneuver in and if there isn't, associates correct the problem.

Commenting on fruits and vegetables that may have passed their peak, Lloyd said when he was a retailer, he would ask a cashier to go through the produce department at regular intervals and take anything off the shelf that she would not buy for her family.

"She'd come back with a basket and we'd measure the dollar amount," he said. "The first time it was $32 worth."

In creating displays, Saldivar said at AJ's she has the freedom to do pretty much what she wants based on what products she's promoting.

"We're fortunate, because we don't have schematics so I can use some creativity," she said.

Perriera at Longo's, who also has flexibility in building displays, showed a slide of a huge red arrow, cut from cardboard and pointing to an immense display of a new variety of apples. At the end of the arrow, was a round red sign that said "Try It."

That, he said, was one of the most successful promotions but it wasn't just the display and the sign that worked.

"We had a fact sheet we gave to our employees that told how the variety was developed, where it's grown," he said. Employees also wore "Try It" badges, which Perriera said reminded them to talk about the apples to customers.

As a rule, he routinely introduces his employees to new items.

"At the beginning of a shift, every day, we'll sort of huddle about anything new or featured, and before their shift, I'll take the cashiers down the aisle and point out new products or tell them about anything they don't recognize," he said.

At AJ's, Saldivar takes a sample of new products to all the departments in the store.

"We had these delicious pears and I had everybody try them," she said. "I think the first day 50% of sales were to store employees."

Sampling is effective, panelists agreed, but had different ideas on how to execute it. Schuessler at Henry's Farmers Markets said he prefers to give the customer a free sample to take home.

"I give it to them whole, for instance a whole apple. They can cut it at home and share it with their family," Schuessler said.

The strategy works better from a food safety standpoint, and more people get to sample the product in the comfort of their home, he said.

"I put my name and number in the bag with it and ask them to call if they have any questions about the product or how to use it," he said. "I did that with mache recently, a new green a lot of people aren't familiar with."

The retailers all agreed, on the question customers most often ask: "How do I use this particular product?" Most said they had a book in the department that they refer to when necessary, but Saldivar said she uses posters provided by the specialty produce supplier, Melissa's. They're colorful and informative, and she posts them near the corresponding items.

Saldivar said "super fruits" - those known to be particularly rich in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals - are the hottest thing on the produce scene right now. Other panelists agreed, and mentioned in particular some new imported varieties of berries.