Small Bites
September 8, 2023
Creating opportunities to amplify & sell Vermont products to buyers in the northeast & beyond through regional relationships
while sharing big picture insights
affecting local food sales
|
|
Our small but mighty state continues to support our farmers, food manufacturers, distributors, & stores keeping the forward momentum of local food sales. We do this through our strong network of partners each supporting the "bigger picture" of our economic impact within the constructs & constraints of our globally connected food system & the impacts of climate change including the devastating floods in July. This "bigger picture" info is relevant to all our readers across the country because we are all impacted by the global forces in our relocalization efforts.
If you are a new or long-time reader of Small Bites, consider registering for the Farm to Plate News which covers many intersecting topics for a broader connection to work across the state. Post (& explore) jobs & events reaching a new audience of farm, food & forest connected people. Farm to Plate readership extends beyond Vermont to all areas of the country too!
In this issue we review intricacies of global supply constraints & consolidations while featuring Vermont businesses including farmers, food manufacturers, distributors, & stores. Read on for updates & goings-on that reflect our strong community relationships while still riding the waves of flood recovery & complex global variables.
|
|
Wake of the Flood:
Reopening in Woodstock
Woodstock Farmers Market store reopened on Friday, Sept. 8th! Thanks to the incredibly hard work of contractors, staff, distributors lining up deliveries & stocking help, & the community's financial support their doors opened earlier than anticipated. The excitement in the area is palpable.
Direct to store vendors & distributors will be regaining lost sales from the July closure due to flooding. Local customers are returning to their full-service store for all their shopping needs. Travelers get to taste the marvels of Vermont as the fall foliage season kicks into gear.
But equally important, the store staff who were able to continue being paid through a collective fundraising effort, have renewed enthusiasm & commitment to their jobs.
As part of reopening, hours at this location have been extended. Now open earlier from 8 am to 6 pm to best serve the community. A big cheer to all that the WFM staff have endured since July 10th in recovering & strengthening their community connection.
|
"There’s nothing unusual about any of these staffing problems at the moment—difficulty in finding dedicated, quality staff who care enough about what they are doing to do a great job. To me, the most important thing in ensuring good work is good training, having clear and measurable goals and great, easy to understand processes. We struggle with the same issues every day, and have for the past 30+ years, but are getting better with our training systems all the time. It’s one of the hardest things we deal with."
-Amelia at Woodstock Farmers Market
|
Newly Onboarded & Expanding Sales of VT Products
Each distributor is making the decision to create sales for their company's profitability. Bringing in new vendors helps create opportunities for our growing brands to reach more New England stores. Each decision helps drive sales for the vendor, especially when fully supported by a sales & marketing team by the distributor. It is not unusual for a vendor to be given an opportunity with a limited number of SKU’s rather than a full line. The distributor may ask for introductory pricing promos, “free-fills, & other trade allowances as part of the onboarding process (see pages 17 & 18 for some good info).
Associated Buyers has new & soon to be onboarded products from
|
Goodman's American Pie (pizza) has also seen steady sales & will likely gain traction with new opportunities since Half Baked Pizza "born in Vermont" (then moving production out of state), & recently permanently closing down.
|
Seasonal Displays
It is time to tweak displays & prepare for seasonal sales & go big with deep cleaning, refreshing displays, new props, & fresh signage. This is especially true in produce departments as summer gives way to fall crops. Be your best with a clean store & remember to consider some basics: heavy items lower, ADA compliance for aisle maneuverability, easy to rotate, stock, & shop products, & general attention to all details that includes cleanliness & signage in place.
|
St J: A Cooperative Community
Over a four year period & tackling many issues including a bit of "David & Goliath" the St J community is moving ahead with its effort for a food coop in the town center. The vision is for a community owned store to meet many needs with a large scale store supported by local vendors & as a "3rd place" for folks to gather & engage in events & activities to feed a down town renaissance. Check out the Seven Days article for more info!
|
Store Service & Sales Tips
Mutually aligned marketing benefits stores & their local direct to store (DSD) vendors. Gaining exposure within a community is valuable to small brands. Direct to store deliveries from “gateway producers” defined as super local to a community often created in licensed home kitchens, gain from store support.
The vendor can effectively promote their products by posting pictures of deliveries to stores. Stores can use the full force of their marketing team to highlight emerging or new smaller producers with social posts, effective displays & optimal product placement, cross promotions, & samples. Another tip is to broadcast awards that brands have received. This provides customer assurance of quality & recognition.
The shared approach can help drive sales for new brands which leads to a stronger business learning curve as they approach new potential accounts. Here is a short list of best of Vermont winners of the 7 Daisies, from Seven Days readers for favorite businesses... Myers Bagels, Lake Champlain Chocolates, Cabot Creamery
|
Farmer as Retailer
We have been keeping a close eye on the apple crop since the May 18th freeze which impacted the state. Apple growing regions were not uniformly affected. The Champlain Valley fared rather well, while portions of the Connecticut River Valley received deep freezing at the time of blossom.
Now that it is harvest time, many orchards hit hard are buying fruit from those with available apples. Pick your own orchards that lost crop are still engaging with folks with events, music, etc. Orchards are one of our great seasonal farm experiences. Our orchardists are a tight bunch of folks working to support each other in this challenging year.
Across the state, every orchard looks a little different. “I’m not really seeing a good pattern here,” said Terence Bradshaw, a tree fruit specialist with the University of Vermont Extension program. “I’ve seen growers who have no Honeycrisp, and I’m seeing orchards with a full crop of Honeycrisp.” He estimates the state probably lost more than half its apples overall, but not evenly." Listen to Vermont Public's apple story here.
Despite the decrease in apples & less fresh-pressed cider, there will still be reasons to gather & enjoy the seasonal shift on our beautiful autumn days.
|
Farm Store Security & Self Serve
Every farm store is a unique business balancing quality products & smooth operation with minimal labor. Of the many decisions retail farmstands make is how to reduce theft, minimize check-out errors, while offering a pleasant shopping experience whether the store is staffed or self-serve.
Farm store cameras are a good deterrent to theft even if you do not monitor them consistently. They can provide 'peace of mind' & windows into the efficacy of your shopping experience & signage. "How does it shop?" can be seen through a camera then analyzed to improve operations.
|
Business Support Services
Do you want to evaluate your growth or operational strategy? Try these non-profit services are geared to farm, food manufacturing, distribution & retail store businesses. Please note that each is unique in its application process.
|
Become a VFN member & support relationship building within our food system. |
Reminder: VT "Local"
Vermont is the only state in the northeast with a local food definition. This came about over a long period of time & included quite the "thought process" of considering the many factors of our VT products’ brand identity.
|
|
Here's the Deal:
Understanding Complexities
The global food system is fraught with complexities, starting with profit motives & methodologies to attain shareholder returns. This happens at the corporate farm/vertical integration level all the way through distribution consolidation & into corporate store purchasing strategies. The dissolution of Robinson Packman antitrust law in the 1980's paved the way for a weakening of social & environmental guardrails along with the breakdown of competition among supply chain businesses. This results in higher profitability.
From 2013 to 2016 Oxfam’s Behind the Brands campaign put social & environmental public pressure on the “Big 10” food conglomerates to improve their policies. A recent Oxfam report finds some positive changes (partially advanced due to covid disruptions in sourcing) yet, "722 of the world’s biggest corporations together raked in over $1 trillion in windfall profits each year for the past two years amid soaring prices and interest rates, while billions of people are having to cut back or go hungry." Read more from Oxfam
|
Corporate Consolidation:
The Emperor's Clothes
If this is seen as a "positive" to make a merger happen, then we have reached the point of the 'mad running the madhouse' where corporate capitalism is so deeply entrenched it appears the emperor has new clothes. In essence, the sale of 400 stores broadens the insidiousness of what it takes to make a sale tenable, while worsening the food retail & distribution system as a whole.
"While SoftBank typically opts for technology-related deals, it has ties to C&S executive chairman Rick Cohen, because it has a joint venture with warehouse automation company Symbotic Inc, where Cohen serves as CEO" read more or even more
|
More Insight: The Retail Focus
We have said it before in Small Bites, but it is important to understand some of the "global" systemic variables that influence the decisions of independent & coop store buyers. Corporate decision-making at the largest retailers including Walmart & Dollar General has an impact on “local sales in every region of the country.
The consolidation of every aspect of supply through distribution into retail has had deleterious impacts on our store buyers seeking to balance their national product mix with local & regional brands. They are juggling margins with every decision & are sometimes unwillingly participating in the push for profits from the large retail players with their over-reach in product selection & pricing strategies.
Stacy Mitchell of ILSR wrote an informative piece debunking the reasons for food inflation shared in the New York Times. Now there is a short TikTok shedding light on the factors impacting relocalization. If you are new to food system work, the TikTok is worth a listen.
|
Going Big:
A Balancing Act for Coops
Vermont is home to more food coops per capita than any other state. Each has evolved to meet distinct community needs. This generally aligns with seven coop principals & 'common economic, social, & cultural needs & aspirations through a jointly owned & democratically controlled enterprise.' This often translates to ties to the local economy.
Group purchasing power among coops has been taking place since 1999 when the National Co+op Grocers Association was incorporated. One of the NCG goals was to help create a competitive pricing structure for its member stores, which now are at least 148. The organization works with specific distribution partners & contracts with food manufacturers, much the way non-coop businesses work to obtain the lowest pricing through contract pricing programs. This can limit decision making at coops & is known to conflict with their "local" products & pricing strategies.
Not all coops in Vermont participate as members of NCG. This can allow for more flexibility in sourcing from local independent distributors which with its multiplier effect supports local food manufacturers.
Associated Buyers of NH (AB) is a distributor working to get Vermont & New England products to store, including NCG coops & those independent of it. One thing they offer as a differentiator to UNFI & KeHe is their support for our regional emerging brands. Their team takes care to work closely with store buyers with a true understanding of their store's mission & their customer base. It should be noted that distributors such as AB, Lesser, Pumpkin Village & many other local ones have staff that are not on salary, this creates a reciprocal relationship that supports the relationship beyond "just low-price structures".
Part of the conundrum for all coops is the saturation of "natural & organic" products across all sectors of stores. This weighs heavily for everyday low pricing & monthly products on special through NCG's buying power. However, a push for margin gain can create a threat to local brands being supported by coops as they are often not able to compete on low pricing.
The insidiousness of coop store pricing is as complex & entwined to the greater consolidation & business ethos as the largest retailers. Finding the yin & yang is fraught with lessons learned & reflection on each store’s mission & values espoused to support local & regional food producers.
|
"Today’s food supply chains stretch around the globe, making them not only complex, but vulnerable to shocks like the pandemic or the war in Ukraine. In the wake of such events that have put a spotlight on supply chain resiliency, how can states strengthen their local food production systems?
New research published this summer by the New England Food System Planners Partnership — a collaboration of six state-level organizations representing Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont — offers a possible answer". read more by clicking the box below
|
More Good Vermont
Local Impacts are Brewing
|
Stores! Save the Date
November 8th
We are working out the details to bring Jeanie Wells of Mighty Community Markets to Vermont! Her skills are just what we need now to build & rebuild community stores!
|
Food Producers...
Trade Show Grants Available
The grants are useful for emerging brands to learn the language of sales & gain confidence to get brands in front of more buyers, at the store & distributor level.
Thinking of growing your brand beyond Vermont? This might be a good application to consider.
|
Expanding Capacity for VT Meat: Good News!
Eligible meat & poultry processors can expand their capacity & improve supply chain resiliency. Applications are due November 22nd, 2023 with possible awards between $250,000 -$10 million.
Interested producers can Register here for a VT-specific webinar reviewing details & requirements Thursday, Sept. 14th; 2:30-3:30
|
|
Small Bites comes to you via USDA & High Meadows grants. Content is created for farmers, food manufacturers, distributors, & grocers to increase VT food sales
Small Bites supports the New England State Food System Planners Partnership
Contact: Annie Harlow
smallbites802@gmail.com
Unless otherwise noted, photo credits are from company social media, websites or Annie Harlow
Special Thanks to Mary & Shadrach at Associated Buyers
All info is subject to change; thank you to all who contributed to this issue
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
