I really cut my teeth writing (what else?) retail produce bulletins. Mike Aiton, our director, was the real writing wizard and had a couple of us supervisors rotate to cover the task.
Occasionally a store manager would call for assistance, usually after their produce department’s gross profit turned out low, and the shrink figure high. They wanted a fix. Right away.
I feel a disturbance in the force — in several produce departments and in all the other grocery stores this produce scribe patronizes. In numerous markets I hear this familiar phrase too frequently: out of stocks.
There’s a lot to be said about simple momentum. Take for example, my regular workweek. Like many other produce professionals, I have my share of paperwork.
Sir Terance Conran said this about customer service: “That’s what I say about restaurants – the back part is manufacturing, the front part is retailing, the theatre is what holds the whole thing together.
