Sharon's convenience store report

Sharon Kane, area manager at Henderson Retail in Northern Ireland, on the success of local foods.

With many businesses still struggling to cope with the affects of the recession, we are seeing a big trend in customers preferring to buy local produce in order to support the local economy. The Henderson group buys about 90% of its fresh food from suppliers in Ireland although the products may not all be produced here. However, our produce, such as potatoes, vegetables and mushrooms, all comes from local suppliers.

One of our local suppliers, which has shown significant growth, is Mash Direct. This is a fantastic product, which is made from locally grown produce on the manufacturer's own farm. The range includes mash potatoes, champ, carrot and turnip, and leeks in a cheese sauce, to name a few. The dishes come in handy packs to suit the individual or the whole family. This is a great local product and to prove its popularity in Northern Ireland, Henderson saw the Mash Direct business grow by 35% in 2009.

Specifically in our company-owned stores, one initiative we have been developing over the past few years is to identify 'hero' departments and brand sections and highlight locally-supplied products. Stuart Cordner, our regional fresh food manager, has been actively sourcing the best in class to supply our stores.

In our bread departments we have the best local bakery in the area, supplying a range of its products. The section is branded with the supplier's logo on the shelf edge label strips, header boards and wings to draw the customers' attention.

Our butchery counters have been revamped with pictures of the local countryside and photographs of the butcher to emphasise the local produce and also the personal touch our customers receive in store. The striking black and white photography set against the red and black background has modernised our counters and made them stand out in store.

Many of our local suppliers' photographs, such as our egg and potato suppliers, also feature on our specially designed POS and the logo we use is 'a passion for local', designed in black, white and red along with the Spar logo.

We have seen great success in the hero sections we have introduced and our customers are asking for more local produce as they know and trust the brands. At the same time, shoppers are also doing their bit for the local economy by supporting local businesses and keeping local people in work.

Sharon Kane

Sharon Kane: driving local business