Company Blog

Regret

by Adam Zack — February 9, 2022

True regret is a negative emotion.

“I hate regrets more than apologies”― Fat Mike, NOFX I was standing at the airport last night waiting for my wife to come out of the bathroom and was looking at the books at the airport store – you know the one that sells magazines, books, candy, snacks, etc. – and on display was a book that caught my attention called The Power of Regret by Daniel Pink. My first thought was how much a guy with the last name Pink got teased in school. My second thought was that my philosophy has always been the opposite of thinking of regret as a power. To me, regret was always “shoulda, coulda, woulda”. It spoke of action (or inaction). It put the focus on the past, which was something you can never change. Dwelling in the past distracts you from the present, and the future. Yeah, it was something you could learn from and not make the same mistakes again, but true regret is a negative emotion. It’s like saying “I wish I would have bought land out here back in 1990 because it’s worth a fortune today” or “I wish I ...

by Adam Zack — February 2, 2022

As leaders, we need to embrace failure like we do success.

New items, campaigns, programs and initiatives are the keys to growth in our grocery business. To be successful they need great planning, thorough communication, coordinated execution and the patience for it to get established and grow some roots. It’s not easy and it’s not inexpensive. Too often a great product is just put on the shelf or in the case with little or no signage, story telling or promotion. No one is surprised when 30 days later very few have sold, or it goes out of code and like that, it’s buh-bye, never to be seen again. If only someone had loved and nurtured it, it could have been rookie of the year, or at least been an alternate on the all-star team. But that’s not what this is about. Let’s assume that we do all the right things. We like the product, promote it, tell it’s story and to our surprise it still just sits there. It doesn’t resonate with the customer and we start feeling bad for it. It’s a failure. The shame. As leaders, we need to embrace failure like we do success. Well over 50% of the new items and programs we try won’t be around next year. And that’s OK, because failure, when executed well, is the result of...

by Adam Zack — January 26, 2022

Good weird isn’t creepy or gross.

Weird: of strange or extraordinary character: ODD, FANTASTICI love weird. Weird is unique, interesting, funny, quirky, different. I have two daughters that have pretty much called me weird from the time they could talk. I think it was in the top 10 first words. I’m sure that when I was feeding Holly as an infant, and gave the dog a taste of her baby food, then back to her, she was thinking “This is weird. I share food with the dog?” Being a weirdo is a badge of pride to me. I don’t want to be the boring old dad that just acts like every other dad. I don’t want to be the brother, son or husband that is predictable, with no spikes on the radar. Weird is fun, and I search out products (like our new Bacon Flavor Lip Balm, and Mac & Cheese flavored Candy Canes) that will leave an impression on people. It’s a great opportunity for independent retailers to do something that will get people talkin...

by Adam Zack — January 19, 2022

“Good idea” is kind of a reflective response.

“Never save a good idea. Do it!”
– Denis O’DellDenis O’Dell was a film producer who worked on The Beatles “A Hard Day’s Night”, Magical Mystery Tour and the footage for what eventually became the new Beatles documentary release “Get Back”. The footage he captured showing the collaborative process between the four band members is mesmerizing when you reflect on how many great songs they produced and how they just stem from an idea that one of them had. (It also shows just how close Yoko Ono sat to John Lennon always. Ever hear of personal space, Yoko?!)
So as I watched the creative process for what became the album Let It Be, the quote from Denis telling them not to sit on a good idea made an impact. The dialogue went something like one of the Beatles saying “That’s a good idea, we should save it.” How many times do we say to people (or people say to us): Good idea! And how many times does the good idea get saved, eventually never seeing the light of day? So here’s one of my 2022 goals: Say “good idea” only when it’s actually a good idea that makes sense and is achievable. Then make a plan to act on it. “Good idea” is kind of a reflective respon...

by Adam Zack — January 12, 2022

Listening is another word for giving your attention to someone.

“Attention is the rarest and purest form of generosity.”― Simone WeilI saw this quote this week and it grabbed my attention and got me thinking. We talk constantly (although not incessantly, as that term seems tedious and nagging) about how important and difficult it is to really listen. To listen closely, pay attention and not jump forward to your anticipated response or conclusion of what the person is telling you. So when I saw this quote (in the movie The Lost Daughter) I was moved enough to think that listening is another word for giving your attention to someone. Your full attention without distractions, without multitasking and with full eye contact. People are constantly seeking your attention. Kids, employees, salespeople, advertisers – pretty much everyone wants your attention. It’s coveted and valuable. Giving that attention, especially since it is a limited commodity, is a gift you give others. Not that any of us are some almighty important ruler that doles out our attention by the spoonful as if we are some kind of aristocrat. Our attention is...

by Adam Zack — January 5, 2022

The easiest job in the world is the Amateur Critic.

The easiest job in the world is the Amateur Critic. You know the guy who goes into a restaurant and complains that his water is too cold or that the music’s too loud. He bitches about not enough (or too much) dressing on the salad and that the grill marks on the steak should be perpendicular to the grain of the meat and not parallel. They are frequent Yelpers and feel superior sharing their “experiences”. These types of people next lead into “If this were my restaurant, things would be different around here.” And sometimes the rich ones actually DO buy the restaurant or start their own with the intentions to offer just the right temperature water and perfect amount of dressing with 90 degree parallel grill marks on the steak. They soon find out that there are about 1000 other things that are more important that they didn’t consider and before you know it, there’s an available restaurant space on the market and they have a big tax write off. It’s very similar with food stores. The deli salads have spilled over, the bread section is wiped and for God’s sake why are there only 3 rotisserie chickens in the warmer? The wastebasket in the men’s room is...

by Adam Zack — December 29, 2021

2021 was a very strange year.

It’s the time of year for those New Year’s resolutions. Lose weight, exercise more, drink less, call mom more often, etcetera, etcetera. I was thinking about it because someone asked me what my New Year’s resolutions are going to be. The more I thought about it, the more I decided that instead of resolving to do something, I should instead reflect on what I did right, what I did wrong, and what I learned in 2021. I think about personal relationships, work associations, personal health and happiness and family ties. What did I accomplish that made others (and me in turn) happy and fulfilled? Resolve to keep doing them. What did I do that I regret? Resolve not to do them again. What should I have done differently? Do it differently. 2021 was a very strange year, with new challenges and old responsibilities presenting themselves daily. I’m going to take a long look in my 2021 rearview mirror and focus on the good images I see reflected.

Read More – I Moved To Nowsville

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by Adam Zack — December 22, 2021

The focus in our house is going to be one of gratitude and appreciation.

Just before Thanksgiving a friend was telling me how Thanksgiving was his favorite holiday. More than Christmas, I asked? Yeah, he said, because it didn’t involve the stress and craziness of buying gifts, decorating, making sure everyone is happy and the pressure that came with it. To him Thanksgiving was about family and friends sharing a big meal and, well, just being thankful. As we close in on Christmas, I really have given his opinions some thought. The hosts of Christmas gatherings have the pressure to make sure everyone is happy. Guests have to decide where to go, when to go, who to go with. Lists of gifts and recipients to be fulfilled, who to see, what to cook. Combine that with the hectic and extremely busy season that befalls grocers, and it gets almost overwhelming for some people. I love Christmas, and this year I am going to try and take my friend’s view of Thanksgiving and apply it to Christmas. I’ll be thankful for the friends and family that I do get to see. I’ll take their desire for us to be together on the holiday as a compliment and not an obligation. The focus in our house is going to be one of gratitude and appreciation. I�...

by Adam Zack — December 14, 2021

America’s taste continues to evolve.

I have two daughters who will eat (and thoroughly enjoy) foods that go from off-putting to just gross to me. The key phrase is to me. Lamb heart tartare (raw), they love it. Anything made from glands or organs, yum. Anything from the ocean, especially something raw, slimy or weird, delicious! If it’s made from neck bones or pigs feet, it’s consumed. Rocky mountain oysters? Heck ya!! I’m often the butt of jokes for my conservative, non-adventurous tastes, but these girls (actually young women ages 28 and 31 but we always just refer to them as “the girls”) we raised young with McDonald’s as a special treat (DeDonalds!! DeDonalds!!! I can hear the past glee still) and Domino’s pizza a completely acceptable version of Pizza Napolitana. So what happened? I take some of the blame for always cooking and encouraging them to try everything. I give Los Angeles some blame for having such an array of foods from all over the world so easily accessible. But most of the reason is that, especially in today’s world of Instagram food shots and cooking competition shows everywhere, America’s taste has and continues to ...

by Adam Zack — December 8, 2021

Wanting credit can go to extremes.

We meet some of the very nicest people in the world in the grocery business. For every one of the a-holes that complain about every little thing and make us question why we are even in this business, there are at least 10 that would qualify for instant sainthood. I have a customer at my store in San Diego who would go to the front of the line of potential saints, right in front of my wife’s sister Lorraine and my good friend Mary Cass. This customer, who wishes to remain anonymous (her name rhymes with ennifer) is not only our #1 customer in terms of dollars spent with us, she’s our #1 in terms of customer satisfaction, expressing appreciation to employees and smiles. You literally say “Can a person really be that nice??” So yesterday, she was in shopping and she gave my store manager an envelope with $500 cash in it to do “something nice for the employees” on the condition that we not tell any of them who gave the gift, only that it was from a happy customer. She wanted no credit at all for her kindness and generosity. When I got home last night and was telling my wife the story during our daily debriefing (which may or may not include some bourbon), we talked about ...