Today’s shopping landscape has certainly changed and so has the everyday consumer. Gone are the days when a consumer’s loyalty allowed retailers some sense of guaranteed business, what we once referred to as our regular shoppers. In today’s world, if you do not have what a customer wants, they go where they can get it, and might not come back!
Even if you are the only game in town, you might be missing a great opportunity by not engaging the spending potential of your existing customers, letting them mosey along from item to item, only buying what is exactly written on their shopping list. The customer never reaching out of their comfort zone does not create new sales.
By offering artisan cheese and the gourmet items that accompany it, along with more emphasis on merchandising, you can capture the most desired consumer or customer behavior: the super consumer. You can also re-engage your existing customers with a new experience and ignite their super consumer within.
Super consumers are those customers who spend significantly higher than the rest of the customers and they are emotional about their purchases. They are also the ones who can drive at least 30% of sales, 40% of growth, and 50% of profits.
Statistics show that the perimeter shopper purchases higher quality ingredients, tends to buy more impulse items, and in general, responds to the hottest new trend or experience they encounter. The super consumer is often the parameter shopper. This is why the deli and the bakery are in a prime location to fulfill that desire.
Merchandising: It is challenging to change floor displays and end caps daily and weekly, but not for the deli. The shuffle of the small retail section on and around the cheese case and the cheese itself lends itself to a daily quick shuffle. The customer will always perceive and respond to these shuffles as a new experience each time they walk through. This often creates the desire to come back more often to see what is new.
Culinary: The deli department is actually a microcosm of the entire store. The deli uniquely has the ability to fulfill almost all a shopper’s needs and desires in one stop.
- Grab-and-go, from quick protein to complete meal options.
- Jellies can be glazes and sauces.
- Crackers and nuts can fill the snacking or accompaniment category.
- Mustard can be used as rubs, sauces or ingredients.
- A shopper can find ingredients that will work for mixology drinks, soups, salads let alone the classic charcuterie or Grazing tray.
The popular Mediterranean diet is deli all the way: olives, nuts, cheese, and roasted veggies.
All of these gourmet ingredients that a deli can offer for a great charcuterie board
fulfill many other needs and uses besides just a cheese tray.
Tell the story: Artisan items belong in the perimeter so their independent stories can stand out. Artisan by description means products that are often hand-crafted and come from small batches, small businesses, or family farms. As shoppers become more and more aware and self-educated, they look for a connection to their products and they want to know the story. This becomes part of the experience the super consumer is looking for. When they share this story with friends and family, this enhances this sought-after experience and conversation piece.
An example of a general story that every store should be telling is about Wisconsin cheese, truly an allAmerican story. Not only do Wisconsin cheeses share on the world stage their quality product from the American Midwest that they are derived from, but the American experience of the Midwest family farmer as well. It’s a truly “Made in America” product that many people overlook.
This all leads us back again to the deli shopping experience. Not only does the shopper build the beautiful charcuterie board from the deli with its plethora of items, it also shares the stories of these items and how they came to be on our retail shelves, which all enhances that customer experience.
Creating the Charcuterie experience: Having a good variety of artisan cheese does not necessarily mean 30 to 60 feet of cold cases. It simply means offering a variety of tasting profiles to contrast each other and having enough of these to make a board interesting. With strong cheese sales also comes increased sales on accompanying items from the deli, like dips, spreads, roasted and marinated veggies as well as antipasto and mozzarella salads. All these items add to the charcuterie offering and make each outcome unique for each consumer. Most of these items also offer less shrink potential than an average deli hot or cold case.
Engage the customers: Artisan cheese is an excuse to engage and helps to build that report with a customer base.Even if it is a shared learning experience the manager has with customers on how they build their board, which cheese they loved best, how a recipe turned out.
When you add gourmet cheese and accouterments to your deli how this can help you attract a more desired shopper, that chooses higher ring items and more items per basket. Isn’t this what we all would like to have?
