SHOPRITES PUSH BIRTHDAY CAKE IN BABY AISLE

ROSEANNE HARPER

ELIZABETH, N.J. -- A number of ShopRite supermarket operators supplied by cooperative wholesaler Wakefern here are cross merchandising fresh products from the in-store bakery in the baby products aisle.

The products are birthday cakes, which are attracting attention in the baby aisle via large overhead signs. According to Wakefern spokeswoman Laura McCafferty, approximately 40 to 45 stores owned by Wakefern members are using the overhead signs in the baby aisle to call attention to an offer of a free birthday cake for babies who are having their first birthdays.

"It makes sense to do this, because in the baby's first year, customers are shopping the aisle where the formula and diapers and wipes, as well as baby food, are located," she said.

The cross-merchandising giveaway, she said, is a way to attract customers to the in-store bakery who may not have shopped that department previously, and it's also an effective way to call attention to the department's decorated cake program.

"They may have come to the bakery for bread or rolls, but had never ordered a birthday cake there. We do get repeat business from this," McCafferty said.

At one of those participating Wakefern-member ShopRites, in Bethlehem, Pa., the huge sign hangs overhead in the baby supplies aisle sporting "Free Birthday Cake" in large type. In slightly smaller print, the sign urges customers to inquire in the bakery department about a free birthday cake for their child's first birthday. In addition to the cross-merchandising message, a color photograph of a double-layer cake with one candle in the middle takes up a significant portion of the sign.

"We've been offering free first birthday cakes for a while, but the sign is new for us," said Mark Laurenti, operator of the Bethlehem ShopRite unit, as well as another ShopRite in Whitehall, Pa., where he is also making use of the signs.

"We also have put one up in the greeting card section," Laurenti said. "We had had a sign in our bakery indicating that we give parents a free cake for their child's first birthday, but we figured everybody who has a new baby doesn't necessarily come into the bakery department. We knew they'd be shopping the baby food aisle, which also has baby formula," he added.

"We're looking to build customer loyalty. We want customers with young children," he said. "We put an additional sign up in the greeting card aisle, because we thought we might catch the uncles and granddads there, and they would tell the parents about it."

Laurenti said the colorful signs attract attention easily, and consumers have been responding to the free cake offers at the bakeries in his stores since the cross-merchandising program was put in place. The retailer told SN, however, that he couldn't say how much volume has increased.