Repackers are faced with changing customer demands

Posted by Matt Stillwell on Apr 3, 2017 6:20:36 AM

Repackers are faced with changing customer demands

Fresh food contributes a healthy 30-60 percent of total grocery spending. It boosts foot traffic, drives strong brand equity and is a key differentiator for retailers competing in both physical and digital marketplaces.

This growth in fresh produce provides new opportunities for you to tailor your offerings to best meet changing retailer demands.

To achieve this, you’ll need to find new ways to increase the throughput and flexibility of your operation to offer short lead times, deliver greater variety and be more responsive to customers. 

In this blog, we look at the key drivers of change for retailers and the impact on your repack operation. 

So what’s happening?

Savvy retailers understand that consumers want selection, quality, value and the option to choose and receive fresh foods anytime and anywhere.

They are fighting for the ‘fresh’ share of the wallet, acutely aware that losing the fresh produce basket may result in losing additional spending in the store.

To find out more about how you can meet changing retailer demands, download our free new guide: Repackers face the big squeeze: Increase the profitability of your operations while responding to customer demand.

Why is it happening?

There are 3 key drivers of change for retailers:

  1. Convenience shoppers: Fresh produce is a key driver of store traffic, shopper spend and store loyalty. Consumers have become increasingly piecemeal regarding where and when they shop, and any retailer that succeeds in putting fresh fruit and vegetables in a shopper’s basket is far more likely to capture the rest of their grocery list.

  1. Demand for premium produce: More sophisticated consumer demands continue to drive a fundamental shift in the mix of fresh produce being consumed. Growing numbers of consumers have moved away from processed fruit and are looking for a more convenient and healthier mix of fresh produce, resulting in demand for premium produce from the fresh produce sector.

  1. Digital disruption: The grocery retail sector is transforming the online and in-store customer experience. Retailers are investing in mobile apps and digital technologies to deliver new customer experiences and communicate with their customers in unique ways. Consumers are no longer shopping entirely online or offline, but are taking a blended approach using whatever channel best suits their needs and lifestyle. The most successful retailers are at an intersection of the physical and virtual worlds, leveraging technology to satisfy shoppers however, wherever and whenever they want to shop.

What’s the impact on you?

You’ll increasingly be asked to deliver a more complex and customized proposition to attract shoppers, with a greater variety of products and package sizes, more private label and brand options and increased value-added products, such as diced fruit.

That will require investments in the right technologies, processes and partners to maintain your competitive advantage and increase the speed, accuracy and flexibility of your sorting, packing and distribution.

The end result is a more agile, profitable and responsive repack business that is better equipped to build customer loyalty, acquire new customers and increase revenue.

To find out more about the top trends impacting repackers, download our free new guide: Repackers face the big squeeze: Increase the profitability of your operations while responding to customer demand. It describes the big trends changing the fresh food industry, as well as examples of companies that are successfully evolving their business models.

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Matt Stillwell

Written by Matt Stillwell

Digital Marketing Manager - TOMRA

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