We're delighted to have as our guest on this episode Rick Stein, vice president of fresh foods for the Food Industry Association, also known as FMI. Before Rick joined FMI in 2014, he spent more than 20 years at Safeway in various leadership roles across marketing, merchandising and operations, and he has overseen all sorts of large-scale special projects in that capacity. In this conversation, Rick and The Produce Retail Podcast host Ashley Nickle discuss why produce saw greater unit sales growth in 2024 than any other perimeter department except deli foodservice; what percentage of retailers are using produce programs as differentiators and how satisfied they are with those programs’ performance; the mindset shift and supply chain improvements that have bolstered the availability of local produce in grocery retail; the role that retail media networks play for grocers currently and how that may evolve — and how fresh fits in; preserving the shopper experience as retail media grows; the growing importance of digital even as the vast majority of purchases remain in-store; the need to merchandise with meals in mind to better meet the needs of shoppers; and other topics including sales per labor hour, electronic shelf labels, stabilization of labor and supply chain challenges, and more. Hope you enjoy the conversation, and thanks for listening!

<p>We're delighted to have as our guest on this episode Rick Stein, vice president of fresh foods for the Food Industry Association, also known as FMI. Before Rick joined FMI in 2014, he spent more than 20 years at Safeway in various leadership roles across marketing, merchandising and operations, and he has overseen all sorts of large-scale special projects in that capacity. In this conversation, Rick and The Produce Retail Podcast host Ashley Nickle discuss why produce saw greater unit sales growth in 2024 than any other perimeter department except deli foodservice; what percentage of retailers are using produce programs as differentiators and how satisfied they are with those programs&rsquo; performance; the mindset shift and supply chain improvements that have bolstered the availability of local produce in grocery retail; the role that retail media networks play for grocers currently and how that may evolve &mdash; and how fresh fits in; preserving the shopper experience as retail media grows; the growing importance of digital even as the vast majority of purchases remain in-store; the need to merchandise with meals in mind to better meet the needs of shoppers; and other topics including sales per labor hour, electronic shelf labels, stabilization of labor and supply chain challenges, and more. Hope you enjoy the conversation, and thanks for listening!</p>

The Produce Retail Podcast is the place for thought leaders in the industry to talk shop. Join us for conversations on strategy, business partnerships, planning, training, leadership, communication, merchandising and much more. We'll have regular guests as well as more occasional visitors, and the goal is always to deliver conversations that inform, inspire and ultimately illuminate opportunities for growth. This podcast is hosted by Ashley Nickle, produce industry enthusiast and founder and CEO of Ashley Nickle Growth Strategies.  

<p>The Produce Retail Podcast is the place for thought leaders in the industry to talk shop. Join us for conversations on strategy, business partnerships, planning, training, leadership, communication, merchandising and much more. We'll have regular guests as well as more occasional visitors, and the goal is always to deliver conversations that inform, inspire and ultimately illuminate opportunities for growth. This podcast is hosted by Ashley Nickle, produce industry enthusiast and founder and CEO of Ashley Nickle Growth Strategies.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p>

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