Produce retail veteran Caitlin Tierney joins Mastronardi Produce

Caitlin Tierney, who most recently was the senior director of fresh for 99 Cents Only Stores, has joined Mastronardi Produce as business director for western operations.

In that role, which is a new one for the company, Tierney will be supporting business growth for new and existing retail partners of Mastronardi in that region, according to a news release. The company has recently made two notable investments in the West: an expanded facility in Castroville, Calif., and a new distribution center in Surrey, British Columbia, that allows for shorter transit times to destinations in the western U.S. and Canada.

“Caitlin is the perfect fit for this role, and we are very excited for her to join the team,” Peppe Bonfiglio, vice president of sales for Mastronardi, said in the release. “Her industry experience and knowledge, combined with her tenacity and growth-minded approach to the business, align well with our company and specifically with our objectives for the West.”

Tierney’s experience in the industry includes positions with SpartanNash, FreshDirect, Fresh & Easy and Bayer CropScience Specialty Seeds, along with her most recent role at 99 Cents Only Stores, Tierney also serves on the board of the Fresh Produce & Floral Council and the board for the Produce Marketing Association’s Center for Growing Talent.

In 2018, Tierney was included in The Packer’s annual recognition of industry leaders, the Packer 25. Here's a look back at that article, which covers how Tierney worked with suppliers to build a better produce offering at 99.

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Her major goal when she arrived at 99 was to improve the consistency of the produce offerings. She has done so through collaboration with growers, finding out what items they produce that do not make it to retail shelves, and then creating new specs just for 99.

It took roughly 18 months to build the current program, and feedback has been glowing both from the company and from shoppers.

“Our 99ers love it,” Tierney said. “We’ve established our baseline and we now continue to have double-digit growth, so it shows that our customers acknowledge that they see a difference and they’re purchasing more.”

When she became director of produce, Tierney knew a steady selection would be important both from a shopper loyalty standpoint and a business standpoint.

Previously, creating that consistency had been difficult due to price; as an extreme value retailer, the company focuses on offering affordable fresh food to the underserved.

“We sell a great deal of strawberries, but strawberries aren’t always consistent in their growing patterns,” Tierney said.

“Sometimes they come on early, sometimes they come on later, and when we were out of strawberries, we were down 15% in sales. And everyone, upper management would run and be like, ‘Why are your sales so bad?’ and your one answer was strawberries. So when you’re tied to a budget, and you’re not meeting it just due to Mother Nature, no one likes that answer.”

To solve the problem, Tierney mapped out seasonal time frames, growing regions and suppliers and began talking with companies about the possibility of buying their imperfect produce items — strawberries smaller than normally accepted for retail, for example, or ones with white shoulders.

“Her understanding of produce from the ground to the store is what makes her so good at her job,” said Rich Winters, vice president of fresh for 99. “She has a complete understanding of the supply chain, she’s rebuilt our supply chain, and she’s done a fantastic job doing it.

“Probably her greatest attribute is just how genuine and upfront and straightforward she is with everybody,” Winters said.

“She lets them know what she’s trying to achieve and how can we work with the grower-packers ... We’re servicing the underserved, and she’s very good at conveying that to the grower community.”

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In July of this last year, Tierney and 99 made a splash with farmers-market events designed to help increase foot traffic amid the pandemic, which led many shoppers to make fewer trips, particularly to formats not designed to be one-stop shops.

Tierney said the events have also served as a way to start to tell the story of fresh produce at 99.

“What people don’t know is that 90% of our product is actually packed out for us with programs,” Tierney said in July. “They also are delivered to our stores within 72 hours of being harvested, so because of our velocity and the closeness to the farms ... we are (able) to service our customers with extremely fresh product from local farmers.”

The farmers market events took place at stores in Montebello, Calif., Hawthorne, Calif., and Chula Vista, Calif.

Tierney said the Montebello store saw produce sales more than double for the days of the event, while Hawthorne saw an 85% increase. The Chula Vista store, which has been struggling due to the U.S.-Mexico border being closed for non-essential travel, went from produce being down 26% to up 11%, a large positive swing.

Even more significant than the increases for produce was the growth for floral, which Tierney described as “through the roof” at upwards of 300%.

“It shows (that if) you put it up in abundance, give that feel to that customer, and they’re going to shop with their eyes,” Tierney said.

In addition to the farmers market events, 99 was rolling out a new signage program for produce. With a hand-drawn look and baby blue background, the signs and bin wraps feature messages like “Handpicked for the 99: Fresh, local produce for every season!”