Merchandising inspiration: Flaunt your tropicals

Like the regions where the produce originates and the people who eat them, tropicals are a diverse, beautiful lot.

Some produce items are spiky or feathery, while others are rough or silky-shiny — and that’s just the outside texture.

It’s worth making more display space for these varied fruits and roots, especially according to your store neighborhood’s demographics, if you have that flexibility.

Today, 1 out of every 5 U.S. residents is Latino, according to an Oct. 27 report from the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute.

Inflation or recession aside, this growing consumer base can spend at grocery stores.

As the nation’s Latino population has grown from 35 million in 2000 to more than 62 million in 2022, so have Latinos’ overall levels of education, home ownership and economic security.

The Latino population comprises distinct groups from across the Americas and the Caribbean and is racially, culturally, linguistically and socioeconomically diverse.

While those of Mexican descent still make up the majority, at almost 60%, the percentage of Paraguayans, Hondurans and Guatemalans has quadrupled, and the Venezuelan community has increased more than sixfold.

So, make room for the produce of the Southern Hemisphere.   

These are some displays we saw during random store checks nationwide in 2022.

Ralphs in Palm Desert, Calif. Photo: Amy Sowder

Amazon Fresh in Schaumburg, Ill. Photo: Amy Sowder

Jewel-Osco in Schaumburg, Ill. Photo: Amy Sowder

Bristol Farms in Palm Desert, Calif. Photo: Amy Sowder

H-E-B in Austin, Texas. Photo: Brooke Park

Show us your displays!

Send us photos of your beautiful produce displays for a chance to be featured in PMG and The Packer — in print, on the websites and on social media. In our seasonal PMG Produce Artist Award Series contest, the top merchandiser and top produce manager win prizes and bragging rights too. The deadline for entry in the spring contest will be in June.

To enter:

• Send six to 10 large photos, ideally 1-2 MB in size.
• Shoot Vidalia onions, berries, mangoes, melons, sweet corn and anything that looks good in your produce department because there's the overall Best Produce Manager and Best Produce Merchandiser/Specialist awards too.
• Tell us your name, job title, store/company and location.
• Email it to artists@producemarketguide.com.

(Top photo: Bristol Farms in Palm Desert, Calif., had a nice tropicals display. Photo: Amy Sowder)