I never played much basketball, but even after all these years, I think I can still manage a layup.
Most sports people know this basic move. Furthermore, most can tell you without hesitation that they feel more comfortable leading into the basket, using either their right or left foot. I’m a righty, but my gimpy left foot still propels my layup.
It’s called putting your best foot forward. When it comes to merchandising fresh produce, we know this term well. Or should.
We’re now on the threshold of the most intense two to three months of fresh produce sales. I’m assuming you have your department real estate well planned for the duration, including any lobby and outdoor space. You should also have a solid labor plan in place, with extra clerks at the ready and trained to cover vacations as well as the expected increase in volume.
As actor Jim Carrey’s character, Lloyd, said to Harry in the movie “Dumb and Dumber” — “We’re there, man!”
What's left? The fresh produce merchandising of course. Northwest cherries, for example, are in full harvest mode now. Cherries boast perhaps the best per-square-foot sales of any produce item. A sweet item with even sweeter sales at the ready.
Two things to keep in mind: Cherries are seasonal (peak volume for only the next six weeks or so), and cherries need proper (and constant) attention. The category must be set up early, rotated with every stocking trip, placed in refrigeration (or extra-extra attention if displayed off refrigeration with frequent turns).
The summer produce setup involves so much more than meets the eye. See sweet corn for the next example is on everyone’s list. But corn also requires extra attention, as the item is messy and dries out quickly.
It requires a fresh setup in a display large enough to shop from several angles. Corn displays must be kept fresh, extra-clean and rotated with every stocking. Offer in-husk and overwrapped husked packaged corn for best sales.
Related: More insight from Armand Lobato
Stone fruit, fresh grapes, melons, watermelon are also on your customer’s Fourth of July (and beyond) list. Ensure these categories are set up with the freshest items available every morning. Keep your eye on every display during operating hours, as any of these can quickly sell down and need frequent attention to maintain the ‘just-stocked’ freshness level with ample offerings that compel customers to stop and shop.
Summer is all about fresh green salads too. Ideal wet rack maintenance is challenging, and most chains assign their best senior clerk to stay on top of standards. Leafy greens of all types will sell at a brisk pace every day, and with each purchase you can count on all the fixin’s as accompanying sales — avocados, tomatoes, cukes, peppers, radishes, carrots, mushrooms, broccoli, green onions, celery. Not to mention that there are all the grilling vegetables such as peppers, summer squash, potatoes (for potato salad of course) and onions of all colors, sweet and otherwise.
Every week’s lead ad item is usually displayed in a prominent, high-traffic spot or two. Maintain these displays well, as these are the focal points when your customers enter the store. If these representative ad displays are in low- or poor-quality stock condition, this will repel further sales. Alternatively, if the showcase displays are frequently attended to, well-signed and busting with eye appeal, variety and selection, that’s as good an invitation as any for shoppers to buy with confidence.
Summer in the produce aisle is a time for ordering, expecting the best quality, and for scheduling aggressively, expecting the best sales. It’s a time set up freshly well before the doors open; it’s a time for great crew camaraderie, hustling and maintaining good stock conditions all day long, as well as keeping everything neat and fresh.
You know, it’s just like a smooth layup or nailing a 3-pointer from the baseline — that sweet nothing-but-net feeling.
Armand Lobato works for the Idaho Potato Commission. His 40 years of experience in the produce business span a range of foodservice and retail positions.