Empire CEO tackles e-commerce
E-commerce is a new battleground that Empire is wellpositioned for to continue its growth, says Stefan Read, vicepresident, engagements and thought leadership, at consultant Jackman Reinvention Inc.
“Sobeys appear to have timed the launch of their delivery platform, Voilà, in the GTA perfectly,” he says.
“Whether by luck or by design, they’re reaping the rewards for that and it’s going to be an important part of their growth going forward.”
Read says turning a brand around is an incredibly difficult task, and one that can’t be done without a clear vision, an achievable plan of action and the buy-in of the whole organization. It also means getting the basics right, which in grocery means fair pricing, attractive
promotions, the right assortment and freshness of product, and clean stores with stocked shelves. But beyond the functional element, successful brand turnarounds are also typically characterized by making an emotional connection with consumers.
“In a way, Sobeys got quite lucky with its turnaround because its competition has been fairly static,” Read says.
“Loblaw's used to be a brand that customers associated with discovering new flavours and products, but from a customer perspective, they've let other players catch up to the point where the large grocery chains are pretty much interchangeable in their present state. That was good news for Sobeys, because it created the space for them to create a much more level playing field by catching up on the table stakes.”
Read also sees challenges for grocers in dealing with their customers, partly because they are more engaged than ever with their food: They're cooking more, but also looking for more inspiration and some new skills.
“That's something the large grocers seem to be missing because when we ask consumers where they turn to learn about food — from recipes to cooking skills to new ingredients — grocers aren't even in the picture,” he says.
“That's a big miss because it means that grocers like Sobeys are still seen as just a place to go to make a transaction, not as a brand that consumers actually feel some bigger connection to.”
For example, Read says grocers where Halloween was effectively banned could have led the conversation about how to do Halloween in a Covid-19-friendly way, which, of course, would have encouraged consumers to buy candy and chips.