Articles

Pasta manufacturers will challenge you to find a more versatile product in the grocery aisle. From a homemade mac n’ cheese, to a suave seafood linguini, pasta can be dressed up or dressed down to meet any everyday or special occasion. Looking to fill up on fibre? There’s a noodle …

Changes to B.C.’s liquor policy could mean a windfall for grocers. It may be only one store in a pilot project, and the only product available so far is local VQA wine; but the long-standing dream of brewers and distillers to sell to grocers in B.C. has finally made the jump to reality. And even …

Fixtures are an integral part of store design, and the most elaborate systems go a long way in making any store appealing. But even basic systems judiciously used can encourage shoppers to fill their baskets. For example, Dr. Herb Sorensen, author of “Inside the Mind of the Shopper,” says staggering fixture patterns from section to …

Millennials are cooking more, but they want help from the deli On June 25, in “The State of Fresh: Are Fresh Foods Really Stealing Sales From Non-Fresh Foods?” Nielsen Surveys said overall fresh department sales have increased by five per cent, with deli sales showing a volume growth of six per cent and dollar growth of nine …

Last September, an Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) article, Today’s Supermarket Special: Transforming the Store, indicated that, while convenience is still a priority for shoppers, the definition has changed. “Convenience isn’t just about getting in and out of the store quickly or going to the store nearest to you,” says Laurie Demeritt, CEO of The Hartman Group, which partnered …

Discovery Organics is Committed to Organics and Fair Trade  In July, Discovery Organics’ new 20,000 square foot headquarters in East Vancouver was still being prepped for occupation. But Annie Moss, who founded Discovery in 1998 with partner Randy Hooper, could be found wandering through the bare facility, looking like the proverbial kid in the …

Functionality is the new Paradigm With carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) declining at an annualized rate of four per cent (IBIS World), a fundamental shift is occurring in Canada’s $2.5 billion beverage market that natural health retailers are in a prime position to take advantage of. Today, the cutting edge beverages are less about simply thirst …

We’ve seen plenty of changes in the past two years. Will we see more? For all of us involved in the grocery industry in Western Canada, it has been a wild ride over the past two years. There have been lots of big opportunities for some and challenging times for many on both the retailer and supplier side …

Health-high with Spreads Despite relatively stable retail volume sales, the Canadian retail value for spreads grew three per cent in 2014 to reach $589 million. The Euromonitor International Country Report goes on to describe the category as “very mature” and “saturated with limited growth opportunities.” That being said, the three leading players in the …

Mexican Food Undergoes Category Expansion There was a time when the term ‘Mexican Cuisine’ meant tacos and salsa. But the landscape of ethnic cuisine has changed and along with it consumers’ desires when they hit the ethnic aisle. Mexican foods have seen significant category expansion over the years. “Mexico has been a very prevalent …