LICENSE TO SELL

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- To strengthen the competitive positioning of its members, Associated Wholesale Grocers here has developed a series of licensed banners under which they can operate. "The banners give retailers a broad latitude to put their independent stamp on a store while at the same time giving them disciplines to follow and advertising and merchandising programs to utilize," Michael DeFabis, president and chief executive officer, told SN.

ons, and that is geared to stores of 25,000 to 45,000 square feet in rural markets. The 44 Country Marts in Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma have average volumes of $9 million to $15 million a year. Bob Hufford, president and chief executive officer of Town & Country Grocers, Frederickstown, Mo., who operates 28 stores in Missouri, Arkansas and Tennessee, has converted six to the Country Marts format, "and we've definitely increased our volume with that format," he told SN. "We're definitely sold on the Country Marts format, and we think you can take it almost anywhere and do business against almost anyone." Besides more than doubling his average store size, Hufford said, the six Country Marts have larger perimeter areas for expanded perishables

Apple Markets, a conventional neighborhood concept that emphasizes perishables and features small service departments for stores of 15,000 to 22,000 square feet designed for operators who need an advertising or merchandising group tie-in. The 50 Apples in Kansas, Missouri, Oklahoma and Arkansas average sales of $6 million to $8 million a year. According to John Utter, owner of two Apple Markets here of 25,000 and 32,000 square feet, the two stores he operates under the Apple banner "have shown significant sales increases, and the increased emphasis on perishables in the Apple ads has resulted in a definite shift in sales from strictly groceries to more perishables."

Sun Fresh, a perishables-oriented combination-store format for stores of 30,000 square feet in metropolitan locations catering to convenience and geared to a middle- to high-income demographic. The 10 Sun Fresh locations, all here, average sales of $10 million to $16 million annually.

Cash Saver, a format for stores of 15,000 square feet or less in rural and metropolitan locations featuring limited variety and perishables that extends the viability of older, smaller stores. The eight Cash Savers, here and in Missouri, average volumes under $3 million a year.

Thriftway, "an effective advertising group," DeFabis said, that falls between an Apple Market and a Cash Saver, geared for smaller neighborhood stores of 15,000 to 25,000 square feet that lack the space for all departments. The 75 Thriftways in Kansas and Missouri average sales of $3 million to $5 million a year.