Commentary From Our President
Breathing New Life into Supermarket HBC
Michael D. Sleeper, Chief Executive Officer, Imperial Distributors, Inc.
Has HBC lost its edge in supermarkets???
Have fresh and prepared foods taken over management focus while competition from chain drug and mass merchants grows tougher?
How much has our down economy impacted HBC in supermarkets?
These questions and others are making all of us take a hard look at ways to restore HBC’s rightful place in supermarkets. It’s important reflection worthy of our attention and priority.
Progress begins with leadership and by spreading the realization that the HBC department is exceedingly important to overall store success. This can start by identifying HBC success: showing sales and profit contribution, developing ongoing communication with store managers, non-food managers and supervisors and generating incentives for top performers at store-level. Rethinking strategies while the economy is soft includes changing assortments by focusing on items that sell best. Facings of smaller sizes costing less can be expanded with more space devoted to lower priced items and private label HBC.
Lowering price points on key items with the highest consumer repurchase frequency and assuring competitive retails with other outlets are critical. Since top sellers create price impression, HBC should follow the same mantra as grocery: “A fast nickel is still better than a slow dime.” TPRs are a standard in virtually every HBC category, supported by impact signing. Shoppers are always looking for specials; so let’s be sure that shoppers can see that the HBC department is loaded with value. And of course, we want our HBC endcaps to show an element of décor that sets it apart from Grocery. A poorly merchandised or unattractive endcap diminishes the impact of the department and sends a weak signal to shoppers. Attractive, high impact HBC endcaps, deliver a strong price image. Other ways to breathe new life into Supermarket HBC include: micro marketing to customer segments such as catering to seniors, male shoppers and ethnic populations; cross merchandising between departments; optimizing checkout space, focusing on nutrition and wellness and early planning for major events.
It’s a classic story of renewal. Creating a powerful look by improving merchandising will boost HBC performance and generate results that can be very different.
For comments or questions, contact us by phone at 508-756-5156, or e-mail: msleeper@imperialdistributors.com