Welcome to the 38th annual Food Trade News Market Study issue! Every year, this project is a real undertaking that requires months of research and data compilation, and once again we are proud to offer the entire metro New York/New Jersey marketing area in the study. The great team here at Best-Met Publishing Co pulled all of our oars in the same direction and you are holding in your hands that results of that collective effort. The team consists of VP and editorial director Terri Maloney, director of marketing and digital strategist Karen Fernandez, VP and general manager Maria Maggio, office manager and data accumulator Beth Pripstein, and, certainly our publisher Jeff Metzger! Enjoy the reading and we hope you find it useful.
There was a celebration out of Totowa, NJ when it was revealed that in our May issue that RDD represented seven out of the top 25 dairy brands in the Metro NY/NJ area according to the IRI Infoscan data for a 52 week period. Bob Cignarella’s big perishables brokerage company was proud of its accomplishment, but wasn’t resting on its laurels as they know that the summer season offers tremendous sales velocities for perishable items like hot dogs, burgers and deli and green salads. Bob Weinmann tells us that RDD Associates offers terrific promotional and merchandising activities to maximize those opportunities for the summer season. And while we are still at the RDD offices, word came that just in time for the summer BBQ season, they will be representing the Pat LaFrieda line of premier steakhouse quality meats and burgers. Pat LaFrieda has made a name in the high-end steakhouses and fine restaurants in the NYC area for the finest quality meats. The line will be debuted this season at Wakefern and has been a long time in the makin; I’m sure it will be a big success, congrats!
We had the opportunity to see the unveiling of the new SuperFresh banner in the area when two locations opened their doors for business utilizing the recently acquired banner by Key Food Stores. The first of the two was a Farmboy SuperFresh location at the site of a former Food Basics on Getty Avenue in Paterson, NJ that is owned and operated by Willie Park. “We’re excited for this store to be one of the first under the SuperFresh banner for us,” said Key Food vice president of business development John Durante. “As we continue to open more stores under this banner throughout New Jersey, customers will be happy to see that each store will focus on their community’s individual needs, just like this store will do for Paterson.” At 30,000 square feet, the new Farmboy SuperFresh offers customers an expanded shopping experience through renovations and additions. The meat department has been expanded to now include a butcher service counter with new Halal options. Customers can now enjoy fresh seafood
from the newly added seafood department, a new deli department, catering services and a full selection of liquor, beer and wine, as well as specialty Hispanic items. “We’re so happy to welcome the Paterson community into our store,” said Park. “We’ve worked so hard to make this store better than before and create a grocery shopping experience that can be enjoyed by all.”
The second SuperFresh to open was in Staten Island, NY at 6400 Amboy Road the site of a former Pathmark. The store is owned by brothers Sam and Randy Abed with partner Ed DiAntonio. It is their sixth supermarket, and the three are extremely bullish on the SuperFresh banner. At 40,000 square feet, the new store has an expanded produce department with an abundant selection of natural and organic products. They’ve partnered with the local La Dolce Amici Bakery to bring customers an array of pastries, ice cream cakes available for custom order and fresh bagels daily. A newly added “Juice 2 Fit” juice bar offers specialty drinks and acai bowls. Shoppers will also have their choice of sushi made with all natural seaweed from Sushi Lovers Sushi, as well as a variety of foods from Asian Gourmet available at the hot bar. The gourmet deli department features a full line of Boars Head products and prepared foods, and offers a full catering menu. In addition to the deli, SuperFresh’s notable features include an olive bar and a full line of craft and imported beers. For added convenience, the store also has a pharmacy.
The SuperFresh motto is ‘Better store. Better living.’ and that’s definitely something we’ve put into practice with this new shopping experience,” says store owner Sam Abed. “We’re so excited to bring a grocery store back to the neighborhood and so happy that we could employ over 150 Staten Islanders in the process,” said Sam Abed during the grand opening festivities. Best wishes all!
Kudos to the fine folks at Blount Fine Foods as they have launched a full line of premium organic soups created to meet the demand for authentic, certified organic foods. The rollout comes after more than two years of testing, development and innovation of organic soup recipes, as well as consumer packaging and marketing. “As the popularity of prepared foods has exploded at retail, we have seen the call for organics to be part of the solution grow from a murmur to a rumble to a roar,” says Bob Sewall, Blount’s executive vice president of sales and marketing. “For the last two years, our chefs have been working with restaurant chefs to refine our true-to-nature, delicious handcrafted organic recipes; improving our sourcing and collaboration with certified organic farmers; and testing and studying consumer attitudes, tastes and desires as they relate to premium organic soups.” The Blount Organics line is available nationally in seven varieties, including two brand new recipes that have never been offered anywhere; Organic Vegetarian Chili (gluten-free, vegetarian), Organic Tomato Bisque (gluten-free, vegetarian), Organic Coconut Lentil Soup (gluten-free, vegetarian), Organic Ancient Grain Minestrone Soup (vegetarian), Organic Savory Harvest Bisque (vegetarian), Organic Chicken Tortilla Soup (low-fat, chicken raised without antibiotics) and Organic Broccoli Cheddar Soup (gluten-free). In addition to the two new varieties, the rest of the line has undergone recipe improvements to further bring out the delicious layers of flavor Blount soups are known for. The Blount brand has undergone a complete redesign to highlight product features and make the soups more attention-grabbing and attractive to shoppers. All soups come in 16-ounce microwavable cups with Blount’s exclusive cool grip rim that makes picking up a cup of hot soup easy. The line will launch with both trade and consumer promotional campaigns, the latter being a first for Blount
Best wishes to Jim Allen, president and CEO of the New York Apple Association (NYAA), as he has announced he will retire at the end of this year. Jim joined the NYAA in 1996 as retail program director and was named president/CEO just four years later. As NYAA’s senior executive, Allen represents more than 675 apple growers in New York. His responsibilities include all administrative, promotional, grower education and communications activities, market research and public and government affairs. He oversees a $3.3 million annual budget and a staff of six. The NYAA will engage a search firm to assist them in finding a replacement. Best wishes Jim.
Just heard that the Fairway Market in Lake Grove, LI is closing just two years after it opened. Signs at the entrance of store recently stated, “Store closing. Everything must go.” (See Taking Stock on this issue for notes on the Fairway situation). The store is scheduled to close by July 15, said Tony Speelman, president of the UFCW Local 1500. The Lake Grove store, which opened in July 2014, will be the only Fairway closing so far, and the company still plans to open a new store in Brooklyn, Speelman said. The 50,000-square foot store directly across the street from the Smith Haven Mall never really did the business Fairway had projected.
As we all know, the job market can be difficult for anyone out of work. So, it’s good to know that there is an opportunity for those willing to roll up their sleeves and get back to some old fashioned retail work. Bimbo Bakeries is looking for individuals who wish to own their own distributorships selling Bimbo’s line of bakery products, including Arnold’s, Nature’s Harvest, Sara Lee, Bimbo and Marinela. The routes are established and financing is available. If interested, reach out to David Bressler at 845.519.7484 and best wishes in your job search.
Well, that’s all for now everyone. Hope you truly enjoy this year’s version of the Market Study, and I know I’ll be seeing you out and about at the various events in the area. As always, you can reach me at 201.250.2217 or [email protected].
