Progressive Grocer - June/July 2009 - (Page 86)

Restrooms Meat & Seafood Sushi Sandwiches Baked Goods Soup Coffee Produce Prepared Foods Hot Food 6 Frozen Deli 5 4 3 2 1 Natural Beverage Salad / Hot Bar Café Pharmacy Beverage Registers ket District, Giant Eagle Express and GetGo banners allow us to focus on specific consumer need states while still offering all of the traditional supermarket products and services.” Describing its Market District concept as the format “geared to customers with a real passion for food,” Srigley says the overhauled Giant Eagle Express “now has a renewed focus on providing high-quality meal solutions, both ready-to-eat and ready-to-heat, for our busy customers. And GetGo maximizes that convenience factor with quick in-and-out options. If we continue to meet and exceed these need states of our customers, we believe we will be well prepared for future success.” 6 Milk Eggs Butter Lunch meats Cheese 09GX9031GXSM_A 1MAY2009 1 Cough & Cold First Aid Oral Hygiene Eye Care Vitamins 2 Pet needs Cleaning Hair Care Skin Care Shaving 3 Soup Boxed Dinners Pasta Baby Needs Paper Towels 4 Juice Cereal Baking Bread Coffee & Tea 5 Snacks Cookies Crackers Beverages Water Dueling Front Ends state for our customers, and in large part it did. However, after being in operation for nearly two years, we realized some areas for improvement and acted on them.” Now armed with a playbook of diverse and carefully orchestrated store concepts, the bid by the company to blunt budding competition from alternative format operators mirrors an ongoing commitment to meet and exceed the various need states of various customer segments. “It goes without saying that no two customers are alike,” Srigley notes. “What we attempt to do with our varying formats is to appeal to the different need states of our customers. The traditional Giant Eagle supermarket has been, and will continue to be, the core of our business,” he affirms. “However, our Mar- So, is it safe to call Giant Eagle Express an alternative format in its own right? “We believe that the Giant Eagle Express concept works best as a solution for those grocery needs between a customer’s larger stock-up trips. In this sense,” Srigley continues, “it’s not necessarily an alternative to the traditional Giant Eagle supermarket trip. However, we do realize that the store’s smaller footprint allows us to potentially take it to areas that cannot accommodate our larger Giant Eagle format.” With the vast majority of the kinks worked out and things humming along quite nicely, the Giant Eagle Express format certainly seems ripe for continued expansion. However, Srigley says, while the company does not yet have additional locations confirmed, “The potential to better service our customers in the smaller or more urban communities where they live and work allows us to meet their needs in environments where we may otherwise not have a presence.” Situated near a bustling intersection of Route 910 and Freeport Road in Harmar Township, roughly 5.5 miles away from Giant Eagle’s corporate headquarters, an especially interesting aspect of the store is the “best of both 86 • Progressive Grocer • June/July 2009 A H E A D O F W H AT ’ S N E X T www.progressivegrocer.com http://www.mountainvalleyspring.com http://www.progressivegrocer.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Progressive Grocer - June/July 2009

Progressive Grocer - June/July 2009
Table of Contents
Nielsen’s Shelf Stoppers/ Spotlight: Cheese/Shredded Cheese
Market Snapshot: Sacramento-Stockton-Modesto, Calif.
Independents Report: The Advantages of Older Associates
Lempert Report: Food Experts Tackle the Economy
Industry Achievement: The Top 100 Women in Grocery
Multicultural Marketing: 2050 is Today
Retailer of the Year: Celebrating Kroger
2009 Deli/Bakery Operations Review: Shrink-Wrapped
Fresh Developments: Consumer Shifts Create New Complexities for Fresh Food Trading Partners
Produce: Brimming With Possibilities
Meat: Fired Up!
Store of the Month: Giant Eagle’s Express-Ohhh!
Cheese: Cooked Cheese and Other Spiritual Revelations
Beverage Alcohol: A Cup of Cheer
Frozen Foods: Frozen Vegetable Sales are Steaming
Real Estate: Bigger is not Always Better
Technology: At Your Service
Equipment Innovations
What’s Next: Editors’ Picks for Innovative Products

Progressive Grocer - June/July 2009