At the top of their game

The team from Tops Friendly Markets and their industry partners celebrated Tops as the Grocery Headquarters 2015 Independent Retailer of the Year.

The secret to Tops Friendly Markets’ success is spelled out in its name. For the grocery chain though, Friendly means more than a big smile and excellent customer service. The grocery chain is not only focused on bringing its customers across-the-board value, but bringing them exactly what they want at that great value.

At the Retailer of the Year award dinner in Buffalo, N.Y., Grocery Headquarters’ editorial director, Seth Mendelson, praised the grocery chain for its dedication to and innovation in targeting its local markets. The chain has built its reputation by catering to each store’s neighborhood with unique product offerings, and by dedicating shelf space to farmers and producers from the surrounding towns and regions, as well as hot brands from local popular restaurants.

Executives at the self-proclaimed “House of Brands” say that customers appreciate and understand the partnerships the stores have with local companies. “As a house of brands we want to pull everybody and this gives us a chance to do that,” said Kevin Darrington, COO for the Williamsville, N.Y.-based grocery chain.

Here is a look at the celebration for Tops Friendly Markets.

[caption id="attachment_36643" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Some of the friendly faces from the Tops Markets team: (l-r) Joe Salhab, district manager; John Persons, executive vice president, sales, marketing and merchandising; Frank Curci, chairman, president and CEO; Dave Talladay, director of merchandising services.[/caption] [caption id="attachment_36644" align="aligncenter" width="500"] Frank Curci (left), president, chairman and CEO of Tops, accepts the Retailer of the Year award from Grocery Headquarters’ editorial director, Seth Mendelson.[/caption]