Spar wholesaler and distributor for Scotland, CJ Lang & Son, has created a new role of fresh food sales executive to help the convenience store rival the competition in the fresh food sector.
Jason MacLeod is moving into the position after four years developing retail and wholesale sales in the Glasgow area as CJ Lang’s field sales executive.
MacLeod will work on speeding up Spar’s fresh food sales growth by helping implement plans for fresh food development and training programs.
He will also analyse the store’s competitors to find areas for growth in the Spar Scotland fresh food range.
Claire Bolton, sales and marketing director of CJ Lang said: “Jason’s new role will enable him to make full use of his experience and key skills.
“The appointment further demonstrates our commitment to dedicate resource to fresh food development and continue to make significant progress in that field.
“The Rewards package, which we introduced at the start of the year, has been created to support Jason’s efforts by encouraging independent retailers to focus on chilled foods and fresh produce.”
The rewards package launched in May offering retailers a three per cent rebate on their annual fresh foods purchases.
It was designed to remove some of the risk from investing in the category and help develop existing business faster than would otherwise be possible.
Bolton said: “With Jason in his new position, our Rewards incentive and our increased focus, we aim to significantly increase fresh food participation in our independent stores in the short, medium and long term.”
Before joining CJ Lang, MacLeod developed his understanding of the fresh food sector working as produce and provisions manager at Asda.
