Republicans have lost their way, Tony Snow tells N.G.A.

Republicans have lost the enthusiasm of many of their previous supporters, newsman and former White House communications director Tony Snow said at the opening keynote of the 2008 N.G.A. conference. They are plagued with three significant issues:

• They are viewed as responsible for the Iraq war, which now has no favorable foreseeable ending short of victory.
• They have relied on Reagan-era nostalgia rather than appealling to the public with new ideas.
• They have become supporters of high government spending.

Republicans will only manage to recapture support, Snow said, when they once again learn to "bottle the magic" that results when government defers to the power of individuals and small business to innovate and drive the economy.

On the other side of the aisle, Democrats must learn to again speak the language of leadership characterized by strong leaders of the past, said former House majority leader Tom Daschle. Although Republicans have dominated the dialog over "national security," Daschle sugggested Democrats can recapture traction on the issue by redefing today's national security to include these other threats to security:

• Fiscal insecurity
• Trade imbalance
• Skyrocketing healthcare costs
• Reduced access to education
• Climate change and energy shortages

For information on ordering a recording of this panel presentation, see below.

Become an entertainer, "Green Grocer" advises

"I am not in the food business," Canada's "Green Grocer" Pete Luckett told N.G.A. attendees. "I am in the feel-good business. We are all in show business now."

To become a high-value shopping destination in today's competitive environment, the grocer, author, consultant and motivational speaker said, you have to build excitement. Here are a few of his best ideas:

• Use your vehicles as rolling billboards and your drivers as brand representatives. Make sure both are clean, courteous and helpful.
• Look for opportunities to surprise your customers, with little perks like no-strings-attached giveaways and in-store showmanship. "It's magic," he said.
• Look for every opportunity to take away customers' pain. It takes motivation, good training for all staff and a bit of showmanship.

Click here to learn more about Pete Luckett

Make your management incentives work for you

According to the 2008 Supermarket Management and Compensation Benefit Survey released here and reported by Fred Martels, of People Solution Strategies, many grocers may be inconsistent and off target with their incentive plans. Martels' survey of 85 companies encompassing 3,330 managers found that although 78 percent of companies put store managers on an incentive plan, between 32 percent and 65 percent didn't extend similar plans to other department managers. In addition, Martels noted, the top reason for incentivizing managers, cited by 34 percent, was to achieve gross margins. Meanwhile, less than 10 percent cited increasing customer satisfaction as a measure upon which incentive plans are based.

"This is one place we're really missing the boat in this industry," he said.

To study the detailed comparative salary and compensation data available in the report, contact Jennifer Brant at (703) 516-0700, or click here to e-mail her.

To learn about People Solution Strategies, click here.

For information on ordering a recording of this educational seminar, see below.

Don't miss out on the growing Hispanic market

By Kathryn Garrison and Kathleen Ciccoli, N.G.A. 2008 Student Interns

Hispanic purchasing power is projected to be $1 trillion this year, and Latino households spend 46 percent more than the general population on groceries, said Susan Puentes, Western Region retail marketing manager for the National Cattlemen's Beef Association. Hispanics spend an average of $130 a week on groceries, she cited.

To make your store the primary food destination for this important demographic, Puentes said, you need to be prepared to provide a bilingual meat department, as well as fresh meat and a wide variety of cuts.

NCBA has developed a line of POP and other merchandising tools aimed at the Latino meat customer, developed in conjunction with retailer input. To learn more about NCBA, click here.

For information on ordering a recording of this educational seminar, see below.

Dogs and cats could be your most loyal customers

By Vimala Gutti, Miranda Owen, Michael Zajas and Thomas Caruana, 2008 N.G.A. Student Interns

The $38 billion U.S. pet care market offers great opportunity for retail grocers, according a panel seminar Wednesday. Seven in 10 of America's 69 million pet-owning households say the health of their pet is at least as important as their own. Meanwhile, however, other surveys show only about half of your customers go down the pet food aisle. Andy Knoblauch, vice president of sales and marketing for Coborn's Inc. reported dramatic increases in sales following establishment of a loyalty program he called the "Pet Club." Pet-focused loyalty programs can help the independent retailer better differentiate itself from the mass merchants and increase pet food sales.

For more information on Coborn's, click here.

For information on ordering a recording of this educational seminar, see below.

N.G.A. conference attendees were treated to an exclusive, first-time screening of the new National Lampoon movie "Bagboy," based on N.G.A.'s real life U.S.A. Best Bagger Championship. "Bagboy" is the rags to riches story of a lowly grocery clerk who hits the road in an effort to win the international competitive bagging championships and the girl of his dreams. Starring Dennis Farina and Brooke Shields, "Bagboy" opens nationwide Feb. 29.

To view a trailer of the movie, click here.

Wakefern's Gowin named Woman of the Year; N.G.A. announces new board members

The Women's Grocers Association named Mary Ellen Gowin, vice president of consumer and corporate communications for Wakefern Food Corp., as this year's WGA Woman of the Year on Wednesday. In addition, N.G.A. announced these new additions to the association's board of directors:

• Mike Byars, president and CEO of Minyard Food Stores in Coppel, Texas.
• Gerry Norkus, president of Norkus Enterprises in Pt. Pleasant Beach, NJ.
• Jim Nilsson Jr., president of Geissler's Supermarkets in East Windsor, Conn.
• George Lankford, president and CEO of Affiliated Foods in Amarillo, Texas.
• Jim Ried, president of Olean Wholesale Grocey Co-op in Olean, NY.
• Marc Smith, co-president of C&S Wholesale Grocers in Keene, NH.
• Jim Rogers, president and CEO of the Food Industry Alliance of New York State in Albany, NY.

How much is one good idea worth? Plan now to find out.

If you're reading this special issue from your store, instead of from Las Vegas, you're missing the premiere educational event gathering independent grocers, wholesalers, suppliers and industry supporters under one roof. N.G.A.'s annual convention and Supermarket Synergy Showcase enjoyed increased attendance for the seventh year in a row this week.

If you'd like more information about the wealth of educational and networking resources present here, click here to read more, and then plan ahead to attend in 2009.

Did you miss the conference? Don't miss the information

Get a copy of the full recorded session of approximately 40 presentations, seminars and panels from this year's N.G.A. convention. Available on a single CD-ROM in crystal clear digital audio, they bring the live recordings to your PC, Mac, laptop or any MP3 compatible device.

Don't miss this valuable resource and reference, call:

Professional Programs Inc.

(661) 255-7774

Or click here to get more information.

Got feedback? We'd like to hear it.

N.G.A. is committed to meeting the educational and business needs of the independent and community-affiliated grocer and retailer. If you have suggestions as to how we can do that better with next year's conference, please click here to e-mail your comments.