EAST BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Shaw's Supermarkets here and its Star Market banner stores broke from New England food retailing tradition this past weekend by distributing some 5 million advertising fliers on Thursday instead of Sunday.
With this policy change, which has Shaw's sales week running from Friday to Thursday rather than Sunday through Saturday, the 166-store chain, a subsidiary of London-based J. Sainsbury plc., said it expects to better serve its shoppers at a time when they now do the bulk of their buying, said Bernie Rogan, company spokesman.
Along with changing the distribution date of ad fliers, the company also shifted its schedule of store resets, price changes and display building to the middle of the week instead of the weekend, when stores are most crowded with shoppers.
To get the word out about the change in schedule, Shaw's over the next few weeks will run a consumer awareness campaign themed "Thank God It's Friday," said Rogan. Banners with the motto will be prominently displayed in stores, and staff will wear buttons promoting the campaign.
The move reflects shifting shopping patterns resulting from a variety of social changes, including more two-income families and a hectic lifestyle limiting time for shopping. In the past, shopping patterns were also affected by the state's blue laws, noted Rogan, which were repealed in Massachusetts in 1994. New England, where the laws originated, was one of the last bastions of the statutes that regulated shopping hours and sales of certain products. With the ending of blue laws, store resets shifted to Saturday and Sunday during what use to be slower periods in the stores.
Today, Shaw's generates over 50% of its weekly sales during the weekend, with Sunday being the busiest day of the week, said Rogan. Sunday generates 19% of sales, followed by Saturday, with 18%, and Friday, with 16%.
"We've learned our customers love to shop on weekends, so why not give them the best presentation all weekend long -- instead of having to do a store start right in the middle of the weekend?" asked Rogan. It also puts less labor pressure on staff so they can better serve customers during the busiest shopping days, he added.
According to Rogan, vendor reaction to the changes has been favorable, with increased sales expected, although, he noted, such a change is not easily accomplished overnight. Shaw's distributes fliers in over 25 major newspapers and countless other news publications in its marketing areas. In eastern Massachusetts, Shaw's is consolidating the flier with that of its Star Markets subsidiary. The broadsheet format will offer Star customers more advertised features each week. "It's all part of the integration process," said Rogan. In 1999, J. Sainsbury strengthened its position in the New England market with the purchase of the 45-unit Star Market.
The question remains as to whether the competition, principally Stop & Shop, will follow Shaw's lead. Rogan believes it's only a matter of time before other food retailers in the market change their promotional schedule as well. In that event, New England food retailers will move closer to those in the rest of the country, where advertisements usually run in food day newspapers on Wednesday.
