Oser Communications Group

BY LORRIE BAUMANN Chinese retailers are leading the way into the future of retail in the American market, according to Neil Stern, a Senior Partner at McMillanDoolittle, a Chicago retail business management consultant. Stern specializes in strategic planning and develop- ment of new retail concepts, and he spoke this year at the Private Label Manufacturers Associa- tion's annual trade show. The economic strength of China's population has been growing rapidly since President Richard Nixon visited China and began establishing normal diplomatic relations between To Everything Food, There's a New Seasons Continued on PAGE 9 Continued on PAGE 15 Continued on PAGE 13 and Christmas, profit-sharing and other benefits. "We focus a lot on fresh, qual- ity and local. All the merchandis- ing and marketing we do is around those principles," said Chris Tjersland, New Seasons' Di- rector of Brand Strategy and De- velopment. "You'll know when you walk into the store that we re- ally highlight produce. We do fresh, local sourcing of meat. At New Seasons you come and shop with the idea that it's an event. So- lution centers sample products every day, and you can taste what's fresh in the produce de- partment. We have a lot of shop- pers who come in on a daily basis because it's part of their routine." As a certified B Corporation, New Seasons commits 10 percent of after-tax profits to the com- munities it serves, and as part of that, the c o m p a n y supports a variety of programs to help local food producers succeed in the specialty food industry. Those efforts include "Getting Your Recipe to Market," a part- nership with Portland Commu- nity College and Oregon State University's Food Innovation Center. It's a 14-week pro- gram in which food producers can take their idea from con- cept to finished product that they can pres- ent to buyers. New Seasons also participates in Ventures, a What to Look for as American Charcuterie Movement Rises Chinese Merchants Lead the Way in Grocery Retailing the U.S. and China in 1972. That growing economic strength has led to development of a robust retail economy that's unfettered by any previous retail infrastruc- ture. Without that legacy, China's grocery retailers in par- ticular don't have to face the dilemma of American and Euro- pean grocers who are navigating a transition from traditional brick-and-mortar stores into the digital marketplace frequented by technology-driven consumers and their smart phones. China's consumers never had land line telephones, and their country's technology develop- ment skipped the era when a computer meant a desktop de- vice, so for many of them, their connection to the internet has always been through their mo- bile phones. In China, even the homeless have mobile phones, and it's possible to Venmo them a handout, Stern quipped. That has led the more prosper- ous to speedy adoption of online technology for smart phone shopping, and China now has a $1.7 trillion economy in e-com- merce sales, a marketplace that's 1.7 times the size of the Ameri- can e-commerce marketplace and 1.3 times the amount of all BY AMANDA HELT Millennials are equipping their kitchens with the latest and greatest gadgets and gizmos, and with Millennials standing at $200 dollars in buying power, accord- ing to the U.S. Chamber of Com- merce Foundation, Lori Colman, co-Chief Executive Officer of CBD Marketing, says companies are wise to keep a close eye on these young adults to track the major trends that shape the way we cook our food as a society as we enter the new year. "Millennials share their opin- Continued on PAGE 10 ions and buying habits online via social media platforms and on other sites. Businesses and brands that mine this treasure trove of online data will be the ones that market their products success- fully," says Colman, who for the last two years has conducted re- search on the food industry by collecting data from Millennials' social media profiles. Susan Turgeson, who teaches Family and Consumer Science at the University of Wisconsin and also manages her own cooking classes, tracks the habits of Mil- BY GREG GONZALES Dry-curing meats was a matter of survival hundreds and thousands of years ago, but in today's United States, charcuterie is all about fla- vor. Today's consumer will come to your store wondering where their food comes from and how its origin af- fects the fla- vor, and they're part of a growing m o v e m e n t that com- pares to that of gourmet cheese and craft beer, with no sign of slowing. To catch this ris- ing wave, it's crucial to be able to tell the difference between true gourmet charcuterie and the rest. Being ahead in this movement before it gets big means attracting a customer who can afford high- dollar items. According to Ariane Daguin, CEO of D'Artagnan, peo- ple seeking out American charcu- terie tend to have a higher salary, and they care about whether the meat came from a sustainable farm, whether or not the farm was local and how the animal was VOLUME 83, NUMBER 12 DECEMBER 2018 n $7.00 NEWS & NOTES n Meeting the Challenges of Today's Grocery Retailing PAGE 6 RETAILER NEWS n Kroger Shares Top Food Trends for 2019 PAGE 12 SUPPLIER NEWS n Brioche Popovers from St. Pierre Bakery PAGE 14 NATURALLY HEALTHY n Dress It Up Dressing Glamorizes a Salad PAGE 16 YEAR IN REVIEW n A Last Look Back at 2018 PAGE 20 News ..............................................6 Ad Index .......................................23 Calendar.......................................23 www.gourmetnews.com SPECIAL: Year in Review SEE PAGE 20 RING IN THE NEW YEAR: 2019 Buyers Guide SEE INSERT CONVENIENCE PRODUCTS: Schuman Cheese SEE PAGE 18 G OURMET N EWS T H E B U S I N E S S N E W S P A P E R F O R T H E G O U R M E T I N D U S T R Y ® Millennials: Modern Cooking in the Home BY LORRIE BAUMANN New Seasons Market sees itself not just as a grocery retailer but as a supporter of the regional food economy. New Seasons, founded in 1999, has 21 stores under its banner, with 18 in the Portland, Oregon, metropolitan area, two in Seattle, Washington, and one in San Jose, California. The com- pany also operates four New Leaf Community Market stores oper- ating out of Santa Cruz, Califor- nia. The stores employ more than 4,000 people. All of those who work 24 hours a week qualify for medical leave, health benefits, paid time off for Thanksgiving lennials to help her teach them to cook. As someone who's taught for over a decade, Turgeson says her college students are cooking differently than previous genera- tions. "It's little surprise," Turgeson says, that "Millennials care about the food they eat," pointing out that as Millennials have families, and as they become responsible for their children's health, nutri- tious foods are becoming more of a priority than before. "A lot of

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