The end of the beginning
My quarantined focus, like that of so many folks now, is the grocers in my immediate area.
If there is one consistent observation, it’s how inconsistent things are, such as my freedom to patronize grocery stores or Home Depot — but little else. If my day job ever falls through, I’m pretty sure I can get a job there, as I know where just about everything is located in the home improvement stores.
However, as states slowly begin to lift retail and restaurant restrictions, there’s a glimmer of hope that some level of normalcy is on the horizon. Food and beverage-based businesses can again stretch their wings, however limited, with factors such as simplified menus and reduced seating capacity.
Which reminds me of something that England’s prime minister Winston Churchill said during World War II in 1942. “Now this is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end, but it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning.”
There is hope. Prior to the COVID-19 onslaught, our country was enjoying perhaps the most prosperous period in decades. So, when it occurred, at least we were in the best position to absorb such a blow, not only to the fresh produce business, but the economy as a whole.
As bad as it is, we’ve endured worse. And while this has certainly rocked us on our heels, my opinion is we’ll bounce back stronger than ever.
However, full recovery won’t be overnight, and may not even be full, as we define it.
Which is why I began talking about the inconsistent-consistency observed in “my” narrow grocer network. On one visit the stock conditions are pretty good with limited out-of-stocks. The next visit? Half the produce department is wiped out, and visibly stressed clerks are scrambling to catch up.
The rest of the grocery store suffers the same inconsistencies. It’s like they’re always in catch-up mode, or as we always liked to quip in challenging times, management by crisis — dealing with shortfalls with labor, with stock availability and limiting some product quantities such as with meat or paper goods.
It isn’t like this consumer can’t find what he needs. It just seems I cannot find the same product, in size or brand on a regular basis in any department, including produce. Still, I’m not complaining. I feel fortunate that our food supply (and everything else that really matters), however jolted, is still very much intact.
Things are starting to look up. Perhaps this is the end of the beginning, after all.
Related content:
What really matters in produce
Returning produce to normal
Why become a produce manager?
