Our Expertise

An Alliance with Nielsen

The Perishables Group leverages perishables industry expertise and detailed category development programs with data supplied by the world’s leading marketing information supplier, Nielsen. The alliance provides comprehensive access and insights into category performance of the five perishable food departments: produce, deli, bakery, meat and seafood. Together, the Perishables Group and Nielsen provide increased quality and depth of data, more frequent data updates, integrated random-weight and UPC data sets and total store performance reporting.

The Perishables Group's complete Web-based data analysis tool, FreshFacts^® Online, provides access to scan and shipment data, store-level information, custom clustering, category reviews and category plans. 

Information is the lifeblood of the perishables business. The FreshFacts^® category management system is designed to integrate fact-based analysis into your category development program. With FreshFacts^®, you're a mouse-click away from:

• User-friendly reports
• Detailed custom analysis
• Supply-chain analysis
• Activity-based costing analysis
• Industry performance benchmarks

FreshFacts^® - For the Life of Your Business

FreshFacts^® is the first fully-integrated category management system for perishables. Full integration allows suppliers and retailers to analyze and plan at both the operational and strategic levels. FreshFacts^® uses census data to analyze store-level characteristics such as shrink, item performance by store, store clustering, activity-based costs, labor, etc.  FreshFacts^® uses the analysis from the operational level to plan at both the department and category levels.

Fresh Works^® - Building Successful Partnerships

FreshWorks^® is a secure, centralized data forum. This Web-based collaboration tool allows information and idea exchange between retailers and their key suppliers. FreshWorks^® provides secure access to FreshFacts^® Online.

Key features of FreshWorks^® include announcements, meeting schedules, contacts, tools and actions plans. FreshWorks^® is an evolutionary process designed to grow with the needs of all category management programs through:

• Centralized access to partner program information including documents, schedules and action plans
• Secured access through password-protected areas that are customized to each user; users can post information to be viewed by a specific group of participants or for everyone to share
• Unparalleled access to view, store and edit information as well as monitor program progress

Services

PG standardizes and processes point-of-sale, promotion, shipment and space data for standard UPC and random-weight products. This data enables retailers and suppliers to analyze market-sensitive information about fresh product sales (i.e. product distribution, movement, share of custom market composite, price, promotion and assortment in comparisons to the market).

Data Features:

• Over 100 retail banners nationwide
• 50+ market composites
• Nearly 20,000 census stores
• Retailer/division data at the census level
• National rollup and nine region breaks
• Custom market composites
• Custom retailer-defined markets
• Monthly updates

52-Week Promotional Planner

This proprietary planning tool is customizable to a specific retailer for use in planning promotions, pricing, merchandising and advertising activities over the course of the year. A 52-week planner allows you to:

• Set realistic annual plans and goals that will improve overall performance and baseline sales
• Obtain retailer commitment with the ability to track the progress of pre-scheduled activities to the bottom line
• Quantify the incremental volume, revenue and gross margin to be gained from a menu of category building activities and their impact on the baseline

The 52-week planner is a proactive tool integrated with FreshFacts^®. The planner tracks performance using inputs such as:

Performance Tracking Tables and Baseline Sales Analysis

Tracks the previous year’s performance and shows the impact on volume, dollars and profit. It also tracks actual progress against projections and against baseline sales on a weekly basis.

Promotional Lift Model

Quantifies the impact of a variety of promotions, advertising and pricing strategies taking into consideration the following factors:

• Price reduction impact (percent off retail price)
• Cost/benefits of secondary displays
• Expected lift on a variety of ad types
• Expected lift on multiple promotional activities
• Seasonality adjustment factors
• Planned length of promotion

Retail Account Detail

Set annual retail goals by developing a 52-week planning calendar for each retail account. You will have the capability to:

• Input/calculate seasonally, adjusted baseline volume and average retail price
• Specify the range of promotional and category-building activities over custom time frames to determine the resulting lift and set realistic goals
• Organize and manage promotions on a weekly basis, and make adjustments to stay on track with pre-determined annual goals

Retailer Report Card

Retailer Chain Characteristics

• Region
• Number of stores
• Chain image
• Store demographics

Top-line Performance Measures

• Average per week/per store total produce department dollar sales
• Average per week/per store category dollar sales
• Average per week/per store category contribution
• Average per week/per store category volume

Best Practice Compliance/Participation

• Pricing
• Promotion
• Assortment
• Merchandising

Performance Trends

• Changes from year to year in category contribution, volume and other performance measures
• Impacts of specific activities on performance
• Ongoing value of best practices
• State of the Department reports