Au naturale. Grocery stores prefer their produce departments located front and center. Why? Because customers want fresh, now more than ever, and nothing says fresh to shoppers more than produce.
The ongoing theater of produce tantalizes and energizes shoppers, engaging all the senses: the zesty aroma of fresh citrus, the friendly clerks stocking, the contrast of neatly stocked russet potatoes next to gleaming white onions, the sounds of the water mister kicking on, the pebbly-skin feel of an avocado or the burst of flavor from an offered sample.
Fresh, indeed — and fresh sells.
Yet, produce departments have removed much of the fresh appeal: produce in its natural state.
Take carrots, for example. While shopping, how often do you see fresh carrots with green tops? Seldom, for good reason. Retailers, trying to shoehorn as many SKUs into the produce department footprint, are reluctant to devote a 24-inch linear spot for this higher-shrink item, even if it does shout fresh like nothing else.
Likewise, customers aren’t keen to buy the bunch carrots (as we used to call these), as the item tends to be at a higher price point, doesn’t fit well or store well in the common produce plastic bag and, while tasty and nutritious, it’s rare that the carrot greens are eaten by a person.
Same is true for many other fresh produce items with tops: beets (all colors), turnips, parsnips, radishes and more. They’re seldom stocked, for the same reasons.
Even the most hip or natural chain tends to stock convenience-based produce items, without the fresh, just-picked greens attached; bulk root items are more likely trimmed and stocked in little trays. Customers prefer the convenience of prepackaged, and retailers do as well.
This shopper regularly buys whole, 5-pound bag carrots, and purchases packages of baby (whittled-down) carrots for snacking — a long way from the au naturale state. That’s the reality. It’s a safe routine, and it’s also kind of boring.
Customers love seeing fresh produce in the raw or natural state.
I knew several extra-effort produce managers who arranged for local growers to supply, say, Brussels sprouts still attached to the stalk to hang along the wet rack. Most customers have never seen this, so when displayed, it was a real attention-getter. Some shoppers even picked the sprouts right off the stalk.
We loved special-ordering bunched multicolored beets and radishes, and the aforementioned carrots with tops for a new store or remodel, as we typically enjoyed having and utilizing more linear space — if for no other reason than to show off and celebrate the fresh factor the added space provided.
I suspect this is why tomatoes on the vine are such a key item now. The vibrant colorful clusters and fragrance are a powerful draw, compared to what was once a drab, gas-green one-choice commodity.
I used to regularly special order a stalk of bananas for one busy store I managed. We had enough business to justify the expense, and it was suspended over the banana display (being rather heavy) using a chain, and finished with a sign explaining some banana and country-of-origin facts. It was a showstopper. Customers lingered in the department, curious about this fresh oddity. They loved it.
And as everyone knows, if you slow down shoppers for this or any reason, they tend to buy more fresh produce. Think potted herbs, sample stations or even garlic or chili ristras for added visuals.
So, whenever possible, displaying or stocking a natural produce item helps sell the idea that your store is indeed fresh, be it tangerines with stems, untrimmed green onions, artichokes on-stem or offering a respectable array of specialty produce items (which may not always sell, but the investment helps drive home the fresh image for your store). Fresh helps slow down the shopper and helps sell more produce overall.
Just like Bugs Bunny, extra effort to sell fresh will prompt customers to turn their heads and say to themselves, (crunch, crunch) “Eh, what’s up, Doc?”
Armand Lobato’s more than 50 years of experience in the produce business span a range of foodservice and retail positions. He has written a weekly retail column for two decades.
