Michael Schutt, produce merchant for West Sacramento, Calif.-based Raley's, provided some insight leading up to fall for our pumpkins merchandising feature. Here's more of his perspective on making the most of this unique produce item this season.
Q: What are the best-selling pumpkins in your stores?
A: Our most popular item is the large size jack pumpkins. This represents about 75% of the pumpkin category. The jumbo jack pumpkins have been added the past two years and are growing in popularity.
Q: Do you normally merchandise pumpkins for use in cooking or for decoration?
A: Yes, we display organic pie pumpkins as a perfect choice for our shoppers looking cooking pumpkins. We promote small jacks, large jacks and jumbo jacks for decorating fall displays, and customers often buy mixed varietals for displays at home.
Q: What are some of the most creative ways you’ve seen store/produce teams use pumpkins?
A: Our stores feature separate pumpkin displays based on pumpkin sizing, which helps clearly define pricing, making an easy shopping experience for the customer.
Q: What are some other produce items that can be cross-merchandised with pumpkins?
A: We cross-merchandise all of our fall decor items, including Indian corn, gourds, mini pumpkins, painted pumpkins and corn stalks. Also, our general merchandise department has a full line of household items that tie perfectly into the fall display.
Q: What kind of effect can a great pumpkin display have on the department as a whole?
A: We know the display is important to catching customers eye and sparking inspiration for their home décor. We have found that customers tend to return year after year as long as our displays has all of their needs: candles, cutting kits and all of the additional general merchandise items.
For more pumpkin merchandising perspective, check out insight from Schutt and eight other produce retail professionals in our recent feature story.
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