Supermarket Perimeter - August 2022 - 65

Hy-Vee has expanded the varieties it offers, including barramundi
which is growing in popularity, according to Pride. " Salmon is our topselling
species, including fresh responsible farm raised, as well as highquality
sustainable wild Alaskan and Prince William Sound Sockeye
varieties. "
" We have not reduced anything offered; we've actually added some
offerings, " Branin said. " We want to do all we can to attract people to the
department and that means continuing to push the envelope on new
and innovative ideas and products to sell more. "
The Giant Co. has also not reduced its assortment of fresh fish or
shellfish. Instead, " variety has been key to engaging our customers to
continue to shop in our seafood departments, " Kreider said. " We have
expanded offerings during the weekends by adding fresh fish varieties
such as rockfish, halibut, and blue catfish. "
On the other hand, 210 Analytics Principal Anne-Marie Roerink said
some grocers have closed fresh service counters and have reduced
fresh seafood selection in response to inflation. " Some retailers have
closed service counters altogether to save on labor and shrink; others
have reduced operating hours, and others are simply putting out less on
display, " she noted.
Many grocers are also retooling seafood's total package size, similar
to changes in the meat department, to keep the unit price within a
certain range, according to Roerink. " Many items have what we call a
price cliff, a maximum after which you see a much steeper drop-off in
volume, and retailers are often very aware of where they need to sit for
the total package price, " she said.
Poway, Calif.-based Barons Markets has reduced its selection of fresh
seafood and is now only carrying the top selling SKUs, said Rachel
Shemirani, senior vice president at Barons. " This helps reduce spoilage
as well. "
Fresh seafood sales have been impacted " quite a bit " by inflation -
more so than other departments in the store besides meat, according to
Shemirani. " We're seeing costs go up by dollars, not cents (like before),
and in turn our prices on fresh fish go up. As prices go up, customers
are buying much less fresh seafood than before, " she said.
But, for fresh seafood items that the retailer has discontinued, it has
found a replacement in its frozen foods department, which is working
out well, " Shemirani said.
Since its fresh seafood departments are now visually smaller, Barons
replaced the empty space with fresh items that are less expensive, such as
chicken. " It makes the department still look full and fresh and appealing
to the customer. " Shemirani notices significant changes in customer
shopping behavior. " We're seeing customers buy only what they'll need
for a few days from our fresh department while stocking up on larger
format products in our frozen and grocery departments, " she said.
Barons' pre-made meals, rotisserie chicken, and grab n' go salad and
hot bars are still performing very well, " since we keep prices low on
these items, " Shemirani added.
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