Automatic Merchandiser - 26

high-quality - ways to service locations. He also said these trends are
likely to persist through the reopening of locations. He said the FrameWorks merchandisers were designed
with these factors in mind.
"We don't like to think it, but as
the economy starts to reopen, there
will be markets that close and new
ones that pop up," Reifert said. "Operators will look for equipment that can
stand a move to a new location and
still be in top condition. Along with
that, they will want the ability to open
markets quickly."
KEEPING THE SPACE CLEAN

Sanitization in the micro market is
also key. Regular cleaning of fixtures,
equipment and product packaging, and
making disinfectant wipe dispensers
available is critical, Wegener said. He
added that the industry may see additional standards or special regulations.
Arrington remarked that operators' customers have varied in their
responses to the pandemic when it
comes to micro markets.
"Just as we see a wide divergence
in concern and response to the virus
among the public, there are the same
differences in concern among the
location managements," he said. "Some
are asking for markets to be separated
out for social distancing, some want to
break them into smaller markets and
some have no concerns at all. This is
continuing to evolve."
26

Automatic Merchandiser * June/July 2020

Burch Food Services, an operator
headquartered in Sikeston, Mo., uses
All State Manufacturing micro market
fixtures in its operations.
Burch Food Services

Fixturelite's offerings include multi-tier
countertop display collections.
Fixturelite

Arrington said micro markets need
to exude a sense of safety, which benefits from a look of quality and regular
maintenance.
"We could build the most expensive,
amazing décor in the world," Arrington
said. "But if you do not keep it clean and
well stocked, then you are wasting your
money with us. Our cabinets cannot
fix poor route service. So, to be totally
frank, if you only have the money to
spend on one or the other, hire good
route people and make sure cleanliness
is a top priority. Our décor can definitely
enhance sales in a well-kept market, but
otherwise you are wasting money."
Reifert anticipates that customers
might want break rooms scaled down
as workplaces may not be operating at
full capacity.
"Size, more than design, is what I
think will change, along with whatever
it takes to be able to enhance cleanliness, because that's on everybody's
mind, probably from now on," he said.

Orlando recommended operators use fixtures that clearly indicate
cleanliness.
"You want surfaces that are easy to
clean, and you want surfaces that show
their cleanliness so no one is left guessing as to whether they've been attended
to or not," Orlando said. "We can convey
a clean environment by how we manufacture our products, how we design a
market and how we think about traffic
flow within the market space."
REFRESHING MARKETS

Designers hold different views on the
value of market redesign. Reifert said
that product reset is more important
than an overhaul of the market's overall design.
"A market does not need to be totally
refreshed as much as a regular retail outlet, as it is serving a captive market," he
said. "A product reset, however, draws
eyes to new areas in the market and
also indicates an operator's interest in
providing good service to an account. It
also shows the location that you're taking care of them and you're interested."
Arrington said the requisite cycle
of updating markets depends on the
nature of an operator's competition
and customers.
"From a supplier standpoint, I
would like to say every six months,"

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