MAKING A SCENE URGED FOR DRAMATIC SALES HIKE

ROSEANNE HARPER

PHILADELPHIA -- Knocking down the walls to give customers a peek at the production area can open the door to more sales and profits in in-store bakeries and delis, according to a consultant at the Retailer's Bakery Association's annual convention here.

Brian Salus, president of Midlothian, Va.-based retail consulting firm Salus & Associates, told attendees that the animation provided by zeroing in on production activities can be a key factor in setting a supermarket bakery apart from the competition. He also stressed that showing products being made adds to their value, and therefore can command a higher retail price.

"It emphasizes freshness and quality and gives you an opportunity to show off your customer service. It can set you apart from the supercenters, for one thing. "We have to start thinking like the food-service industry. Price is not important in food service -- it's quality and freshness and greeting customers," he said.

Salus emphasized the necessity to be selective about what parts of the production operation you show, and he pointed out that animation can be created without major structural changes. "In fact, you can create an electronic window into the production area, with a video camera trained on the most appealing-looking elements of production, without making any other changes," he said.

He added that such a project could show production live, and could also be taped for later showing on the bakery counter monitor during production downtime. The cost of such an undertaking could be kept to about $1,000, he said.

Through his company, Two Guy Tours, Salus produces professional training videos for retailers with partner Bob Bowers of Absolute Post Productions in Akron, Ohio.

Aside from the video option, however, Salus also stressed that selected parts of production could be brought out onto the floor. Cake decorating, dipping strawberries in chocolate, and slicing bread were some of his suggestions. "One retail baker dipped strawberries at a station in front of the service counter for Valentine's Day, and it was such a success that he said he will line up a whole series of such activities," Salus said.

In the case of supermarket delis, he cited successful Caesar salad stations, which provide both animation and a chance to get associates interacting with customers.

The associate who is chosen for such an activity can be a big asset in creating sales, too, he said.

"You need to choose people who naturally interact well with customers. You can think of the theater of production as an actual theater presentation with you as the director. You have to choose the right actors and actresses for the parts," Salus said.

At Ukrop's Super Markets, Richmond, Va., where Salus was formerly a food-service director, an associate who was seen to be able to talk comfortably to customers was assigned to a Caesar salad station in one of the chain's units. Sales went up 5% almost immediately, Salus said.

"You could tell he was into his role. He learned about Caesar salad and was able to tell customers the history of it as well as what he was using for ingredients," said Salus.

As part of his presentation for Laurel, Md.-based RBA, Salus showed a video in which he and Bowers spotlighted production activity in supermarket bakery and deli departments and in selected retail bakeries and traditional food-service outlets in nine cities. Bread production was shown at Montana Gold Baking Co., Atlanta, a retail bakery and supplier of bread to supermarkets and food-service outlets, as an example of direct open production where the customer can see the entire area. The clean-up and mixing areas, however, are the farthest removed from the customer, while bench work involving molding and proofing is nearest to the customer.

West Point Market, Akron, Ohio, on the other hand, features indirect open production, which Salus illustrated via a video of the department, where West Point customers are separated from production by a glass wall with the look of a French door.

"That separates customers from distraction of noises such as the clatter of pans and whoosh of air vents," he said.

Baking, which has so many steps to it, is a natural for providing theater, Salus pointed out. He suggested that bread baking would be a good target. "Customers are interested in seeing what goes into baking a loaf of bread. And people eat bread every day. The aroma of baking bread is great. We should be appealing to all the customers' senses," he said. Salus added that in-store bakeries don't sample and demo enough.

"I often walk into a bakery and the aroma is great, but nobody offers me a taste of the product," he said.

As an extension of the baking process, Salus suggested adding programs such as a fresh-made sandwich station that features its own animation.

"Everybody knows the secret of a great sandwich is the bread, and you have it right there," he said.