PEMBROKE, N.H. -- Associated Grocers of New England Inc. has formed Associated Convenience Grocers (ACG), a new division focused entirely on service to convenience retailers.
"The dynamics of convenience store retailing is different from that of supermarkets and other store formats," said Mike Bourgoine, president and CEO of AG New England. "In recent years, we have significantly expanded our services and expertise to meet the specialized and changing needs of convenience retailers…. This has been made possible in part by the additional space and capabilities of our new distribution [image-nocss] center that opened two years ago. Since then, we have put together a highly experienced convenience retailer team with customer service counselors, category managers and support specialists who have worked in convenience retailing for many years."
He added, "We have been gradually increasing our services to this segment in recent years and the response from retailers has been excellent. We are now taking a further step in our commitment to meet the needs of convenience retailers by giving this division its own name."
Division general manager Steve Felton heads Associated Convenience Grocers. "We've combined the resources and variety of a full-service supermarket supplier with the specific needs of convenience stores," said Felton, "to provide a level of service that simply offers stores more product choices, better programs and expanded services."
Added Felton, "Convenience retailing is the fastest-paced, most dynamic arena in the retail food business today. At one time, [c-stores] were all similar in their merchandising techniques and product selection. They offered a very limited product selection and the focus was mainly on cigarettes, tobacco, beer, snacks and gasoline. All that has changed."
"Today's most successful convenience retailers are continually fine-tuning their product offerings as they craft their own individual store identity as an ongoing, evolving process. Today's consumers respond to quality and the right variety of products at every level of a store's operations. But there is much more to it than just added variety. The space limitations convenience retailers are restricted by require the right balance of variety to maximize sales per square foot. Multiple foodservice offerings, fresh produce, meats and quality deli items are paying big returns to convenience retailers who have broken the traditional mold by offering customers more fresh product, a better variety of quality prepared food items and a more creative approach to satisfying customer tastes in an age of evolving consumer lifestyles and shopping trends," he said.
"As convenience retailers have reached out to satisfy customer tastes with expanded variety, their traditional suppliers have been unable to provide retailers with the depth of products they want. That is what has lead to AG New England's expansion into this segment of the market," said Bourgoine.
AG New England is a major retailer-owned wholesale grocery supplier, serving nearly 500 independent supermarkets and convenience retailers across New England and into the Upstate New York/Albany area. "We currently serve over 150 convenience retail stores, and our customer count is growing every day," Felton said. "Our targeted variety helps retailers meet their category management goals of sales and profits per square foot. And special arrangements with key partners allow direct store delivery with the ease and cost-saving advantages of bill-through programs and single-source ordering through ACG."Members help make our journalism possible. Become a CSP member today and unlock exclusive benefits, including unlimited access to all of our content. Sign up here.