Supermarket Perimeter - February 2021 - 10

self-checkout, and leave the store, " said Golaszewski.
" We're providing a convenience factor without sacriﬁcing
quality and taste, with the value that ShopRite offers to
its customers every day. "

A ﬂexible meal kit experience

Supermarket retailers
can provide customers
with a meal kit program
that off ers more choice
and ﬂexibility, without
being locked into a
subscription service.

responsibilities, " said Stephanie Golaszewski, senior
brand manager for Keasbey, NJ-based Wakefern Food
Corp. " Our shoppers are scrambling to ﬁgure out the best
way to get a meal on the table, quickly, easily, and at the
best possible value. "
That's why the parent company of ShopRite launched
Fresh to Table at select ShopRite stores. With Shoprite's
Farm to Table program shoppers can ﬁnd several
meal solution formats: prep-and-eat, heat-eat and
grab-and-eat.
ShopRite's meal kits are housed in cases in the front of
the store so shoppers can easily get what they need on
the spot.
Within the Farm to Table cases ShopRite also offers the
One Stop Dinner Shop where the retailer houses main
ingredients-usually about ﬁve total-from that week's
three featured recipes that are merchandised together in
one area.
For instance, if one of that week's recipes is Chicken
Saltimbocca, customers could expect to see packaged
chicken breast, prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, basil, and
the corresponding or suggested side for that recipe.
Plus, the case offers an alternate protein for customers to
choose from.
" This seamless integration allows our customers
to very quickly, easily, and conveniently come in, get
everything they need for that recipe, hit the dedicated

Unlike subscription-based meal kits that have to be
planned out weeks in advance, supermarket retailers can
provide customers with a meal kit program that offers
more choice and ﬂexibility.
" Many customers ﬁnd an in-store offering appealing for
their ﬁrst meal kit purchase, because they can try a single
meal without needing to commit to a subscription online, "
said Scott Payne, vice president of retail of Chicago-based
Home Chef, a Kroger-owned meal kit service. " There is
also more ﬂexibility to make an impulse purchase, buy as
many or as few units as you want, and purchase as part of
your normal grocery shopping trip. "
Having meal kits available instore also takes away the
surprise factor of exactly what ingredients a customer
will receive in their kit. With subscriptions, customers
don't get a chance to view the produce or proteins until
they arrive at the consumer's doorstep. Instore, the
shopper gets to see exactly what they're taking home to
make a meal with.
There's also the fact that everything needed to make
almost any meal is right there in the store, leaving the
possibilities for meal kits almost unlimited. And, if a
customer wants to substitute one ingredient for another,
it's a pretty easy swap, noted Golaszewski.
" I believe that we will always win on variety and
value, " she said. " Compared to a meal kit that is
subscriber-based and sent through the mail, we can
always provide a larger assortment of foods. And of
course, there's something to be said for picking out your
produce, seeing its quality as it goes into your cart.

When it comes to picking the right meal kit
program, Home Chef's Scott Payne suggests retailers consider three things:
Ensuring the store's customer base
aligns with the target demographic for
meal kits - The typical meal kit shopper
values the culinary experience and convenience aspects of the meal, and tends to be
slightly more affluent than the average shopper. For grocers with a value proposition, it
may be challenging to ﬁnd a product-market
ﬁt for a fresh meal kit.
10 - FEBRUARY 2021

Profitability - As a fresh item, stores
must balance keeping available inventory on
hand, while also making sure to keep food
waste in check. An added challenge for meal
kits speciﬁcally is that the complexity of the
product is higher than other fresh foods,
meaning that quantities must be determined
further in advance.
Rotation frequency - Online meal
kit offerings tend to offer new meals each
week, but this may not always align with
how grocery store operations are designed.
supermarketperimeter.com

When designing a program, it is important to
consider customer preferences (variety vs.
familiar mainstays) and operational considerations to determine whether to have a
frequently rotating menu or static one.
With meal kits, shoppers are usually looking to be inspired. Meal kit shoppers usually
aren't going to be very excited about picking
up something they can easily make at home.
When choosing a menu that will resonate
with consumers, Payne suggested a test and
learn approach.

KROGER

PICKING THE RIGHT MEAL KIT PROGRAM
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Supermarket Perimeter - February 2021

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