Company Blog

Who’s your Rock Star?

by Adam Zack — January 18, 2017

Many chefs are fickle?

Our rock stars have traditionally been, well, real rock stars. Musical idols that turn the girls knees to Jell-O and guys chartreuse with envy. Sports heroes who leave you slack jawed at their sight. Tiny actors that are bigger than life onscreen. Just this past weekend I was in San Francisco for a show by the rock star Rhett Miller*. So I’m coming out of the men’s room, open the door and standing there ready to come in (and cut the line, which you can do if you’re a rock star) is non other than Rhett Miller. I blurt out “Rhett!” like some kind of dummie, and he says “Hey, how you doing?” Great, now that I have got to hold the bathroom door for a rock star, thinking how jealous Linda is going to be when I tell her. Which she was.In our grocery business we have the opportunity to create rock stars within our organization. It’s an especially ripe opportunity with our chefs and butchers, and to a lesser extent with produce managers, wine and specialty food buyers. The Food Network turned a whole batch of chefs and home cooks into rock stars just by branding them. Bobby Flay, Wolfgang Puck, Ina Garten, Gordon Ramsey, Guy Fieri? All food rock stars that have done an incredible job of branding themselves...

by Adam Zack — January 11, 2017

A pet problem?

Dogs Go ShoppingBy Adam ZackThe biggest issue facing grocers today is not a labor shortage, it’s not inflation, it’s not Amazon. Those things are nothing compared to the Pet Problem. Pets used to be left in the car, or tied up outside the store. Then an old lady in Modesto brought her teacup poodle to the Shop ‘n Save in her purse. When no one said anything, she started putting it in the kids’ seat of her shopping cart. Seth the friendly realtor noticed and though “Damn, I guess it’s OK to bring Muffy in shopping with me.” And he did. The “No Pets Allowed” signs were suddenly too small for dog owners to see and the next thing you know pets were making shopping trips to the malls, Home Depot and grocery stores. It started happening all the time. Grocers, blindsided by this pet frenzy were at a loss. When the pet toting customers were confronted and told that no pets were allowed in grocery stores they became indignant and offended, swearing never to set foot in this dog-hating establishment again! Soon, a movement was started and little red vests for dogs that said “Service Animal” became the “I wish I would have invented that” investment and government, with nothing better ...

by Adam Zack — January 4, 2017

The store manager has set his standards high

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. These type 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. 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 almost full, the soda cans are not turned with the labels facing out, cashier Julia is chewing gum and good God Frank didn’t shave today. This ...

by Adam Zack — December 28, 2016

Brick & mortar is not going away.

As retailers it’s our responsibility to research, anticipate and react to trends that are happening in the food world. What seems crazy today can be a billion dollar industry tomorrow. Remember kale and how it was just a garnish? How about seaweed snacks? Coconut water? Almond Milk? Digital music? So here are some of the trends that I think bear a little thought as we head into 2017. But first, a few that sound a little crazy to most of us:

Skateboarding Pilates – as if skateboarding wasn’t hard enough
Cycle Karaoke classes – Riding a stationary bike, sweating and belting out your favorite tunes all at the same time.
Mermaid classes – Nothing like strapping on the mermaid tail AND learning how to use it.
Stripes – Hopefully vertical and not horizontal. That prison-striped suit adds at least 10 pounds.
Weight Loss Sunglasses – apparently the blue lenses make food look less appetizing. You go Japan, you go.

Now some things we should be paying attention to:

Wellness Tonics – The Kombucha trend has proved sustainable. Look for t
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Just Say Nope

by Adam Zack — December 21, 2016

Who respects the yes man?

The holidays bring joy, appreciation, togetherness, and love. Warm and fuzzy feelings are what the Christmas is all about, right? But the holidays also bring a very high level of stress. What presents to buy? What to cook for the meal? Who to invite and who not to invite? Planning and prepping, prepping and planning. It’s almost a full time job. It’s also the time to remember that saying “no” is perfectly acceptable. In fact, it’s healthy and sanity saving. For most of us who are pleasers, we hate to say no. We think that saying no, no matter how much saying yes stresses us or overextends us, disappoints people at this key time of year. But here’s a news flash, and it’s a fact: Saying no does not mean, “I reject you.” It is a legitimate and respectful response to a request. After all, who respects the yes man? What kind of thought goes into a request when every answer is yes? If we can’t say no then our yes means nothing. We think that just because someone asks something, especially family and close friends, that saying no somehow will offend them. So this season when the questions and requests come flying in: Can we have gluten free stuffing? Can we have prime rib a...

by Adam Zack — December 14, 2016

Little things can become big things to your customer.

When we were kids my brothers and I looked forward to the nights when our dad would be out of town at dinner time. That sounds terrible, but it’s true. Don’t get me wrong, my dad is one of the greatest men you could ever meet —generous, funny, loving, smart — one of the greatest role models ever. Family dinners were always fun, delicious and great bonding times for the five of us. But when he would be at a grocer’s convention, or a board meeting, or just out looking at other stores for ideas we could have the things for dinner that he didn’t like. He didn’t like pizza much at all. (Character flaw or just plain weird? You decide.) But the thing I remember looking forward to the most was having breakfast for dinner. Mind you, this was not a weekly occurrence. Maybe once every couple months at the most should you be wondering who the real weird one is. My mom would make pancakes or waffles and lots of bacon with warm real maple syrup and butter and we would scarf them down like they were our last meal for a month. The pancakes seemed extra fluffy, the bacon more delicious than normal (if that’s even possible) and the syrup just perfectly sweet. Just mom and her thr...

by Adam Zack — December 7, 2016

Grocers know crunch time.

Crunch time is a great headline for a fresh vegetable promotion. Or a promotion of chips. It’s also the phrase that is very applicable to our grocery industry when the pressure’s on. Pedal to the metal. Balls to the wall. Go time. It’s the time when things have to get done, and if they don’t the business suffers and customers end up disappointed. Maybe it’s just because grocery is in my blood, but it seems that in our business, people rise to the occasion more than any other industry. People that you would never think would take the reins rise up and not only meet the deadlines, they blow them away. During holiday times we are reminded just how fantastic our grocery workers are. They give up their own time of rest and relaxation during Thanksgiving and Christmas to serve our customers and make their holidays special and amazing. It’s hard work and generally pretty thankless. Some might say “Well, you only had to work until 4:00 on Thanksgiving” or “You were off Christmas day”, but after delivering during the crunch time of the day before those holidays, the body and mind are pretty tired and preparing a meal or participating in a big gathering are not quite as appealing.The bigg...

by Adam Zack — November 30, 2016

Lets promote quality.

So the holidays are here and it’s the time of year to share love, family and friendship. It’s the time to be thankful and to let them know how much you appreciate them with gifts, cards and sharing a special meal or two together. Nothing shows how much you care like the very cheapest turkey you can find! Or the Prime Rib roast that is maybe a little tough, but good Lord only cost $4.88 per pound! The tradition of finding the cheapest meal ingredients possible, and bragging about it to those beloved, cherished guests has always been somewhat of a mystery to me. Sure, everyone loves getting a “deal”. Everyone loves finding that bargain that saves money. But aren’t we talking about a special occasion? A gathering that happens once, maybe twice a year? Isn’t that reason to seek out the highest quality? The best turkey? The most tender cut of quality beef? For most supermarkets the quandary comes with appealing to those masses seeking that bargain of the century. If we don’t have the cheapest turkey in town, maybe we will lose customers to the competition. It’s a valid concern, definitely, because when they come in to buy that cheapest main course, they also buy the rest of the items for thei...

by Adam Zack — November 23, 2016

Everything I am thankful for.

It’s unbelievable. Thanksgiving 2016! When we were kids time seemed to just go so sloooooowwww and somewhere in our 20’s or early 30’s it seems to have speeded up. “I hope I die before I get old” has morphed into “I don’t feel as old as I look” and constantly reminds me of everything I have to be thankful for, every day.Top Ten Things I am thankful for 2016

An election year that brought out the worst in some people, the best in some, and made everyone pay attention and participate.

Tender Belly Bacon – Berkshire pork, uncured, cherry wood smoked. You need to find this.

The TV series Fargo. Some of the best storytelling and characters ever.

The Cubs win the series! The Cubs win the series!

A boss that makes it a point to compliment and is funny and weird.

Crispy chicken tacos.

Kids that make their own way, think their own thoughts and still love their dad.

A big family tree of nuts who doesn’t usually judge, seldom fights, loves each other unconditionally and always has each others backs.

by Adam Zack — November 16, 2016

Attitude is more important than facts.

It’s a beautiful day, don’t let it get away – U2I never really thought that a good day, or a bad day, had more to do with my attitude going into the day than with what my interactions with the day’s people and challenges brought. I was always the constant in the equation, and the actions of the people and situations I dealt with largely determined whether I’d have a great day or crappy day, right? I didn’t put enough stock in my attitude going into the day. I didn’t fully realize that if my day started with optimism, appreciation and energy that the rest of the day was likely to follow. Even more impactful was that as a leader the people around me were keyed to my attitude and followed suit. This was all brought into focus with an article on attitude shared with me recently. Thanks Linda for seeing how this could help me, and in turn help others.

ATTITUDEAttitude is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failures, than successes, than what other people think or say or do.Attitude is more important than appearance, giftedness, or sk...
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