“My dad always taught us that we’re guests on the Navajo Nation, where we currently have seven stores, and it’s been a privilege for us to serve them for over three decades.” —Edward “Trey” Basha, president and CEO, Bashas’ Family of Stores
“I’d rather lose to the top-notch team by two points than beat a weak team by 10. I’ve always liked going up against the big boys.” —“Jungle” Jim Bonaminio, founder and CEO, Jungle Jim’s International Market
“Frustration can be a powerful catalyst for innovation.” —Jennifer Pomerantz, founder, chairman and CEO, American Natural
“It was not without some challenging times along the way, but I absolutely wouldn’t trade what I’ve done for any other profession in the world.” —Steve Smith, president and CEO, K-VA-T Food Stores
“When I was CEO the first time earlier in my career, I made a bad mistake that put the company in a bad position. I was being disciplined for it, but the board and my parents wanted me to stay. But I realized that I could never feel good about myself had I stayed because I knew that if I was anybody other than a family member, I’d have been fired. And so I stepped down, and the lesson I learned was: Do the right thing by being true to yourself. I quit, I focused on the character flaw that got me in trouble and I worked on it. And I’m a much better person today because of it.” —Mike Teel, owner and chairman, Raley’s Family of Fine Stores
“Success in today’s evolving landscape requires a commitment to creating a consistent brand experience that meets your customers’ needs in whatever way they choose to shop with you.” —Tres Lund, CEO, Lunds & Byerlys
“I’ve found that three qualities—respect, honesty and clarity—are the foundation of all great relationships, and that’s how you build mutual trust. And where there is mutual trust, there is a clear path to achieving great things.” —Joe Sheridan, president and COO, Wakefern Food Corp.
“The retail apocalypse is a great headline but the data doesn’t bear it out.” —John Ross, president and CEO, IGA Inc
“We must be eyes open to what is going on in our industry and with consumers, but careful to not abandon who we are. Local is a powerful brand and independent grocers need to own it.” —Greg Ferrara, president and CEO, National Grocers Association
“Innovation drives value. Period. And sustainable innovation is no different.” —Virginie Helias, chief sustainability officer, Proctor & Gamble
“It seems like once we added cooking schools, we were seen in a different light. They gave us credibility that we do know a little something about food (wink, wink).” —Amber Harmon, VP of customer experience, Harmons
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The stresses of the ongoing pandemic, coupled with mounting economic uncertainty, social unrest and more have fueled a pressure cooker for grocery and convenience store customers and their employees.
U.S. consumers in 2022 were nothing if not channel surfers. Tuned into a widening lineup of local retailers offering fresh food, consumers were willing to shop around and try new retailer categories as they sought to ease the pinch of grocery inflation, which stood at 11.8% in December.
New store updates are important to our readers, so we’re adding a monthly feature to highlight them and demonstrate supermarket growth trends around the country.
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