A Small Town Grocery Store and So Much More

Whether it’s Washington, D.C., or Lamar, Colo., (pictured here), Safeway does so many things right. We’ve worked with Safeway for a few years now, but we’re always observing new things.

The small-town version of the store proves you can be small town and still stock the essentials and so much more, from an extensive line of yogurt to gourmet soft drinks to select Washington cherries for pies or for eating out of hand.

With a little local color, of course. The assistant manager insisted on helping with our groceries (including four six packs of Henry Winehard’s root beer because it’s not available back home) and kept them aside while Mama Spoon finished some other shopping. And you’re not going to see the extreme low prices on meat that’s getting close to expiration date in every market. It just feels right here.

The Safeway store brands, such as Rancher’s Reserve and O organics find a home in this Colorado town as easily as in the Safeway at Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco.

The multi-tier, segmented private label approach is one thing that sets Safeway apart. You may have heard that the company is even trying to sell its own labels in other channels in an attempt to give the brands a life of their own and build equity in the Safeway masterbrand.

Fortunately, you can cash in on those Safeway card savings even if you live outside a Safeway market area. For someone who grew up with Safeway, only to see it leave the Midwest with the likes of A&P and others, it’s nice to be connected to a familiar brand. So we’ll keep that Safeway card as handy in the wallet as the Dillons card on the key ring. Because the Spoon believes in supporting really good brands.

Vacation 2008: The snack food frontier

Four days and counting, and the Spoon takes it on the road for a two-week vacation of hiking, fishing, horseback riding, fishing, sleeping, fishing, sightseeing and, of course…driving. Lots and lots of driving.

And nothing goes better with all those activities than all of your favorite snacks. Here’s what the Spoon is packing for the trip:

• Oberto natural beef jerky
• Archer Farms real fruit strips (pomegranate is the tastiest)
• On the Border restaurant-style chips and salsa
• Odwalla chocolate chip peanut butter snack bars
• Homemade granola
• Pink lady apples
• Roasted, salted pistachios
• Ocean Spray Craisins
• Plenty of Lipton diet citrus green tea for the Spoon and Little Spoon 1 (Mama Spoon likes Diet Coke; Little Spoon 2 prefers Harvest Surprise)

It’s always great to stock up on your favorites before you leave town. But part of the fun for a true snackie is checking out regional brands, flavors and preparation methods unique to the areas one is visiting.

There are still a few regional potato chip outfits. For beverages, root beer is a fun one because regional bottlers and microbreweries are keeping the tradition alive. And we might just fall in love again with an old favorite like Doritos or Slim Jims on a 7-11 stop.

Vacation is a perfect time to snack. If you’re active, you’re burning off the calories, and it’s fun to fill your tummy with snack foods during the day so you can save up for a delicious dinner at a local restaurant.

While we’re on the road, we’ll also keep our mind open to ways food marketers can capitalize more fully on the great American road trip.

Meantime, look for guest posts on marketing food to men interspersed with our reports from the road.

And, as always, we want to hear from you. What are your favorite vacation snacks? What’s the most unique food you’ve found on the road that you can’t find anyplace else?

Happy snacking!

Profiting from inflation: What does Wall Street tell us?

Wondering how gas prices are affecting dining habits in the US? Let’s take a look at stock performance in the quick service restaurant (QSR) sector, compared with family casual/grill and bar.

McDonald’s stock has nearly doubled in price since this same week in 2005, going from $30.99 a share to $60.16 as of Wednesday’s close.

Interestingly, unleaded gasoline prices have done the same, going from $2.32 a gallon this week in 2005 to a record US average price of $4.11 yesterday, according to AAA. Pretty strong correlation. Not causation, but consider some additional evidence.

Over that same period, Brinker International (owner of Chili’s) stock has fallen from $27 to $18. DineEquity, the parent company of IHOP that acquired Applebee’s last year has fallen even more precipitously.

The Street tends to price value appropriately. There are exceptions, but these performances seem to line up with fundamentals.

That is, fast and cheap is better when most-not all, but most-people are on tight budgets and tight schedules that are tightening daily due to inflation and our culture of busy-ness.

The plight of Chili’s, et al, is a reminder that food marketers must react quickly to unanticipated changes.

We can all learn from watching these two markedly different parts of the foodservice sector. It’s a good lesson in finding opportunity within challenges. We can’t just throw up our hands and say, “Well, it’s just tough. Our business model isn’t built for this kind of market.” We have to find ways to compete.

We can do it. Let’s talk about it.

To take advantage of a megatrend, just focus on the family

For some, the most wonderful day of the year comes once in the fall, but it’s not a paid holiday or a religious celebration. It’s Family Day, and this year, it falls on September 22.

So why talk about it today of all days? Summer vacation have visions of loud, sweaty nine-hour minivan rides dancing through your head? Well, just briefly, let’s consider a few facts:

• According to Yankelovich MONITOR, more than three-quarters of adults wish they had more time to spend with their kids.
• About the same portion says they receive their greatest satisfaction from their children.
• When pressed, many children echo these sentiments.

In a Post-911 world, the American family unit has regained its position as the epicenter of the social network. This is heightened by the influx of other cultures which bring an even more profound emphasis on staying connected with family.

Which begs the question: Are we as food marketers doing all we can to leverage the emotional power of family ties? You don’t have to look far to find that there is profit potential in the most mundane occurences of family togetherness.

It’s true, Family Day gives an almost unavoidable reason to focus on family, but our chance for relevance rests in how well we relate to the reality of consumers’ family interactions on a day-in, day-out basis.

Today, I encourage you to examine the basic components of your family life that make it special. You may just uncover an insight that leads to your next packaging innovation or promotion.

Viva la familia!