Creative Ways to Celebrate in the Deli
Create a Valentine’s Day promotion so attractive that your customers fall in love with it! They won’t find a better way to say “I love you” than by picking up something special in your deli. Don’t limit your creativity – there is no food that can’t be prepared in a way to look like a heart. With a little imagination, you can make masterpieces that make Valentine’s Day really special. See what you can do when you use these simple examples for inspiration.
Why not create sushi in the shape of a heart? Or create a two-heart shrimp kabob like the one pictured to start any meal off with the perfect appetizer that says I love you in the simplest way. And don’t forget, kids love celebrating Valentine’s Day and eating pizza, so why not offer heart-shaped take and bake pizza for this special day? Just don’t forget dessert. You can use a heart-shaped cookie cutter to create just about any heart shaped bakery item, from Rice Krispies treats to brownies, or try using mini heart-shaped foil pans to create that perfect dessert for two, like a chocolate-dipped cake.
Here’s some other thoughts on how you can capture the attention of your customers with products that say I love you:
- Bake meatloaf in a foil heart-shaped pan or pipe a red heart on each meatloaf slice and package two slices in a container.
- Create heart shaped grilled chicken breasts by packaging two fillets facing each other to create a shape of a heart on a bed of lettuce.
- Use a heart-shaped cookie cutter as a mold and create salmon or crab cakes and Florentine burgers shaped like a heart.
- Cut heart-shaped servings of lasagna with a large cookie cutter and merchandise in a high profile location in your grab and go or service deli case. Chop the lasagna trims left over up into smaller chunks, then package and merchandise as a lasagna casserole.
- Dip whole strawberries in melted chocolate and package in heart-shaped foil tins with a cover.
Don’t forget to check with your meat department to see what center plate items they are promoting and create sides that will complement it. You might even offer a bundled meal that can be ordered in advance.
-Linda McCann, Prepared Foods Program Manager
How About a Romantic Dinner at Home?
Valentine’s Day is one of those secondary holidays that can provide huge dividends for co-op meat departments through meat- and seafood-focused promotions.
The National Retail Federation estimates that 23.3% of Americans eat out on this holiday, spending on average $87.00. If the numbers are correct, you have 76.7% of shoppers looking for other ways to celebrate – and a big opportunity to drive sales and margin.
The best promotional delivery vehicle for Valentine’s Day is a meal solution promotion. It’s all about persuading customers to purchase a delicious and healthy ready-to-cook meal from your co-op rather than dining out.
Traditionally, the proteins driving the most significant sales for Valentine’s Day are high category sale products including middle meats such as tenderloin, ribeye, New York strips and sirloin. In the seafood department, the opportunity lies in cooked/raw shrimp, salmon, lobster tail, scallops and crab legs.
When planning a Valentine’s meal solution promotion in your meat department, consider the following key elements for maximizing the sales potential:
- Product – select high category products with the attributes currently driving the sales such as the locality of the products source, humanely raised, organic, grass fed and sustainably sourced. Assume that the customer may not know their way around the kitchen, so feed them with easy to follow cooking instructions at point of sale. Offer the convenience of a meal solution including prepackaged salads, breads and other easy-to-promote grab and go sides.
- Price – aggressively promote the products price in line with your competition, as long as the products attributes are comparable.
- Promotion – The promotion should be aggressively advertised ahead of time to plant the seed. Meal solutions should be displayed together and conveniently priced as one unit, if possible. Boldly promote the product’s attributes — this may be the deciding factor in its sale.
-Greg Johnson, Meat & Seafood Program Manager
