Steve Parker has his fingers crossed in the hope of earning a first-place price in the Idaho Potato Commission's 2017 Idaho Potato Lover's Month retail display contest. The odds are pretty good that his wish may come true.
Parker, produce team lead at a Raley's Supermarkets location in Reno, Nev., is an eight-year veteran of the competition and says he usually ends up among the top five entries in his category – stores with 10 or more cash registers. He won the second-place prize in 2015, he says, but first place has eluded him so far. He's at a different, larger store this year and already was thinking about his 2017 display in December.
“I can go a little bit bigger with it this year,” he says. “I should be able to pump out some volume.”
He's second-place display was impressive – about 20 feet wide and 6 feet deep. It featured about five cases each of Idaho russet, red and yukon potatoes, including 5- and 10-pound bags and loose product. He stacked dummy bags in front and enhanced the look with point-of-sale material from the commission. Perhaps the real eye-catcher was the three-dimensional wooden map of Idaho that he built with his brother-in-law and filled with potatoes. The entire produce team gets involved in devising the look for the display.
“Everybody brings something to the table,” Parker says.
Setting up and fine tuning the display takes about three days.
Parker receives strong support from his boss, Raley's produce merchant Mike Schutt, and says that most Raley's stores participate in the contest.
“It's a big, friendly competition for us,” he says.
The store experiences a 5% to 10% increase in sales of Idaho potatoes during the promotion, Parker says. Location of the display is key to ensuring good results.
“As soon as you walk in, it's like, pow, right there in your face,” he says. “If you have it tucked away in a back corner, not a whole lot of people are going to see it. It might look pretty, but you won't be selling anything off of it.”