Wholesaler AF Blakemore & Son has introduced a value range of fruit and vegetables in its network of Spar stores.
Five products for £1 were launched in October, and a further line was added in January for the same price. The lines include onions, potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, apples and a vegetable stew-pack.
The move coincides with AF Blakemore’s aim to drive sales and profit in 2009. The wholesaler distributes to 660 Spar stores, including 210 company-owned stores - the rest are independents.
Over the course of a week, AF Blakemore met with 200 of its Spar retailers, holding four regional meetings and visiting more than 80 Spar stores to discuss how to overcome local competition and protect profitability. Over 120 Spar store owners, representing 185 Spar stores, attended.
Dennis Evans, managing director of Spar Distribution, opened each two-hour session by giving an economic overview of the market, market trends and the impact it will continue to have on Spar businesses. He explained how Blakemore aims to help its independent Spar retailer network drive more sales and profit. “We need to do something different to react to the dynamic changes that are taking place in the market; customers are looking for better value, prices and promotions,” he said.
“Retailers cannot rely on a business model that does not offer real meal solutions and better choice. The old approach with too much reliance on cigarettes and alcohol is defunct, and we need to outperform our competitors and provide a greater value perception. We should inspire our customers to try new lines and ideas, improve store standards and promote, promote, promote. To help with all this, Blakemore will support our loyal retailers by making SPAR membership a more attractive proposition,” he said.
Meanwhile, Spar (UK) Ltd is embarking on an ambitious project to completely redevelop its own-brand proposition.
‘Extra Value’ is Spar’s new value range proposition and will be the first of many new changes to come into place in 2009. The range will consist of core price-sensitive lines .
