My father told me many times that necessity is the mother of invention. Certainly, others have said it as well. This moment in history has forced all of us to reinvent everything; think smarter; think as we say, outside the box, to form our new normal. To say the least, the COVID-19 outbreak has changed the world as we know it in a little under two months, and the food industry is right up at the top of the list with how things have changed. So, what will this new normal look like? Consumer Brands Association has been monitoring consumer opinion on the coronavirus and its effects. Its latest report indicates that 76 percent of Americans are prepared for the impact of COVID-19 on their lives and concerns over the ability to find food and supplies has steadily diminished. People are adapting, so far. Retailers have put protocols in place protecting employees and customers alike already. But, will they go to the next level requiring employees to wear PPE or taking customers’ temperatures at the front door, and for how long? Will self-serve salad bars and food courts become a thing of the past? Will the time-honored tradition of holding the door open for the next customer at Wawa continue or will there be a demand for automatic doors now that nobody wants to touch anything that others have touched before? And for that matter, will self-serve coffee return to Wawa at all? Will shoppers continue to do curbside pick-up or have groceries delivered by any one of the companies currently offering those services? And, on that note, which of all of those will survive? I recently heard about a supermarket chain in Ohio that turned an entire underperforming store into a curbside pick-up only location. Sales are up. There have been runs on (what the public thought were) necessities and hoarding of proteins and paper goods. Retailers should take a good long look at whatever products (not seasonal) are left on the shelves after this pandemic subsides. It is a real time case of extreme SKU rationalization. Many retailers had been scaling down before the pandemic, this just makes it easier.
And on the human side, life as we know it has also changed. Time spent with family is precious and in the pre-COVID-19 era, we lost sight of that as we were so busy doing what we do, 24/7/365. Indeed, in the first days of the stay-at-home order, there was a run on jigsaw puzzles on every online site (now there is a run on hair coloring). Family game night has made a huge comeback. Even Disney made it easy on parents by releasing Frozen II on Disney+, helping keep the little ones entertained while parents worked from home or tried to make sense of having everyone at home all the time. The spring holidays of Passover and Easter, usually celebrated with large family gatherings, were scaled down. My family’s Easter dinner was facilitated by Zoom, so we could all be together even if only for a short time. The Hunter Food Study Special Report did an online survey the results of which indicated that 54 percent of Americans are cooking and baking more now and 73 percent say they are enjoying it as much or more than they did before; 57 percent of Americans are wasting less food than before the pandemic; 60 percent are looking for recipes to use the ingredients they have on hand in their pantry or refrigerator; 40 percent of Americans are turning to more indulgent comfort foods during this time; and 51 percent of Americans reported they would continue cooking more when COVID-19 comes to an end. This begs yet another question about our new normal: what will happen to the restaurant/ foodservice industry when this is over? COVID-19 has affected the foodservice industry in such a way that they have scaled down with furloughs, closed, or reinvented themselves into retail pick-up and distribution companies. We’ve had two deliveries from Baldor Foods at my house and split them with a friend via curbside drop off, comprised of mostly perishables. They are delivering to Pennsylvania from New York! Is this temporary or part of their new normal? What about restaurants? Will guests be greeted by masked hostesses giving out throw away menus? Will servers wear gloves and masks, too? The doctors at the center of the pandemic tell us that unless a vaccine is discovered, social distancing will probably be in place until 2022. How can these places spread the tables out to comply and do enough volume to stay in business? All these questions will ultimately be answered, but one can’t help but ponder what the rest of 2020 and 2021 will look like.
Just before the COVID-19 outbreak, Weis Markets announced its store teams had raised a combined $315,000 in February in support of the American Heart Association’s (AHA) mission to build healthier lives free of cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The money was raised during a four-week, in-store campaign as part of AHA’s “Life is Why We Give” campaign. Weis Markets’ customers contributed more than $300,000 during a four-week in-store program. The company rounded up this total to $315,000. “We are truly grateful to our customers and associates for their commitment to this program,” said David Gose, Weis Markets’ senior VP of operations. “This campaign far exceeded our expectations and will benefit the communities we serve. It also honors the memory of Ashley Catlin, a 31-year old Weis associate who unexpectedly passed away last year as the result of a cardiovascular issue. It is a fitting tribute, since Ashley helped start our in-store program in 2018. We are grateful to her family for their participation in our campaign, particularly her sister Amber Piermattei, who spoke so eloquently in her sister’s memory.” The funds raised will be used to support heart disease and stroke prevention, including nutrition education, in Weis Markets’ seven-state market area.
“The Weis Markets team really put their hearts into this year’s Life is Why We Give campaign and we were completely blown away by what they were able to achieve,” said Teresa DeVono, VP of youth programs for the American Heart Association, Eastern States region. “We are incredibly grateful that Weis Markets shares our passion for making a difference in the health of our communities and investing in our lifesaving mission.”
Perhaps the worst downside of COVID-19 is death, especially when it is someone we know. Such is the case with the passing April 7 of Steve Ravitz, legendary retired owner of five ShopRites and one Price Rite in Camden County, NJ. Steve’s formal obituary is on page 2, but I wanted to acknowledge him here because our families go back a long way. Our fathers were friends and his dad Stanley was a customer from when he had a store in North Philly. Steve was a merchant and an entrepreneur, and he learned from the best. He has passed that unique attribute on to his sons, as well. He was larger than life and he loved life. Family always came first with Steve, and fortunately, he made sure they all knew how much he loved them, so there were no regrets when he passed. He was more than generous, and he cared about his community more than any material possessions, as so many have said. His work at The Ravitz Family Foundation, founded by his parents, was legend. Even before he was diagnosed with COVID-19, he was helping those in need due to the pandemic. Little did he know he would be one of its victims. Steve was a mensch, in the best sense of the word. I’m going to miss you, my friend. Rest in peace. Memories of Steve may be shared on the Ravitz Family Markets Website at www.ravitzfamilymarkets.com Contributions in his memory can be made to the Ravitz Family Foundation at www.ravitzfamilyfoundation.org.
After 21 years at Saint Joseph’s University (SJU), Patty Smith is retiring. Her career at SJU began at the University College in 1999, then at the Center for Food Marketing in 2001 and finally she has been at the Academy of Food Marketing since 2009. Patty is also an SJU food marketing alumna, class of 1978, who worked for Heinz before coming to SJU. She is looking forward to spending time with her family, going to the beach, and seeing friends, all without a schedule! Congratulations Patty, we’re going to miss you!
Also exiting our industry is Glenn Bergman, executive director of Philabundance, where he had been for the past four years. Prior to running Philadelphia’s food bank, Glenn was the general manager of Weaver’s Way Co-Op in Ambler, PA and spent years with Steve Poses at The Frog restaurant in Philadelphia. We still haven’t heard of Glenn’s plans for his post-Philabundance life, but we all wish him well and thank him for the good work he did to push the organization to the next level.
Birthday shout outs for the month of April go to: Lou Eni Jr., Dietz & Watson; Ed Herr, Herr Foods; Theresa Lowden, JOH; Jack Foti, Rosa Foods; Ron Benjamin, Star Companies; Scott Vicari, PromoPoint Marketing; and Dominic Botto, Botto’s Sausage. Buon compleanno a tutti! And a special shout out for the 50th birthday of Earth Day…I still have my button from 1970!
Quote of the month: “In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to.” Dave Hollis
