COLUMBUS, OHIO -- Retailers must aim for a quick and easy shopping experience in order to revitalize Center Store sales, according to Tom Jackson, president and chief executive officer of the Ohio Grocers Association.
At the Ohio Grocers Association's 101st Annual Convention and Trade Show, to be held here in September, Kraft Foods will conduct a workshop focusing on new ways to merchandise products in order to get Center Store sales back to where they once were.
A great deal of emphasis has been placed on the perimeter of the store in recent years, due in large part to the popularity of prepared meal solutions, said Jackson. Yet, he noted, the center of the store is the largest real estate investment for many retailers. There are also more dollars per square foot in the Center Store than anywhere else, he added.
Plus, many people still prefer to cook their own food, and these are the consumers retailers need to target when promoting Center Store products.
"The average family income in this country is $35,000, so many people can't afford prepared meals,"explained Jackson. "People still want to prepare family meals; they just don't want to spend a long time doing it."
The key is to create a convenient, customer-friendly merchandising scheme that provides an entire meal in a single stop. Retailers have to avoid sending consumers on a "treasure hunt" throughout the center aisles in order to find the sauce, cheese and pasta they need for an Italian dinner, maintains Jackson.
"Let's bring those things together in one aisle for a super-convenient shopping experience," he said.
It's a good suggestive selling technique as well, he added. When a customer sees all the ingredients they need for a particular meal, they may leave with the makings for a dinner they didn't even know they wanted.
