(Photos by Lindsay Sisting for PMG)
Jeff Cady, director of produce and floral for Tops Friendly Markets, is PMG's 2020 Produce Retailer of the Year.
In a year unlike any on record, with the COVID-19 pandemic delivering unprecedented challenges, Tops has continued to remodel locations, continued to drive sales and creativity in stores, and continued to push forward on sustainability. In produce, Cady has been leading the charge.
He has long been a champion for great presentation of produce, encouraging a culture of creativity among his stores with display contests and other events. Based in Williamsville, N.Y., Tops competes with banners from Walmart to Wegmans, yet the company has continued to grow.
Cady has also made a point in recent years to get involved in industry groups that work to move produce forward, from serving on boards of the United Fresh Produce Association to contributing regularly to the town hall discussions the Produce Marketing Association held weekly in the early months of the pandemic.
Join us for the Produce Retailer of the Year award presentation at Fresh Summit at this link at 11:45 a.m. CST on Oct. 14 — https://farmjournal.zoom.us/j/92498771978
Cady's team and others in the industry mention a commitment to constant improvement as one of his defining characteristics.
“He wants to be better,” said Tom Stenzel, president and CEO of United Fresh. “Some people kind of get set in their ways, but he's constantly looking for new opportunities, learning opportunities. It's funny because even on the virtual convention that we did just a couple months ago, he spent a lot of time on the site, looking at different exhibitors, seeing what's new. He's a guy who always wants to get better ... and I think that's what you have to do.
“If he's going to succeed, he doesn't have the capital that some retail chains have, he doesn't have the dense urban markets with hundreds of thousands of people really close,” Stenzel said. “He's got to serve a little more rural area, people make a choice where to drive to go to the grocery store, his produce assortment's got to be right. So I think he's just always looking for some advantage to keep his company in the game.”
Produce and floral specialist Rick Wright described Tops' progress during such an unusual time as remarkable.
“Look at the numbers, look at the pictures,” Wright said. “Look at all the fun we're having right now.”