The Food Scout

Okay, so Fresh & Easy doesn’t cut the mustard for me, and I don’t think it’s going to revolutionize grocery after all, perhaps because it’s too American (except for the major private label part). But it’s not just Tesco that’s evidently bringing British-style, fresh products to the American market. It’s America’s biggest coffeehouse chain.

If you walk into the right markets around the country, you may notice an open refrigerated case just below the bakery case at Starbucks (I’ve seen them in Chicago and L.A.). Not only is it stocked with a variety of chilled beverages and yogurt parfaits to help expand the breakfast selection beyond sweet baked goods, but there is also a healthy selection of gourmet lunch items like curry chicken salad, turkey ciabatta sandwiches, and even a fruit & brie cheese platter.

Just like the British model at Marks & Spencer, Tesco, Sainsbury, etc., these products have a date code that’s never more than a day away, and clearly this kind of variety is not being done in the back of each unit. So, in essence, it appears that Starbucks has quietly figured out how to do what U.S. manufacturers and supermarkets have not been able to accomplish: To set up a manufacturing and distribution chain that can deliver fresh, chilled, high-quality, short shelf-life meals to a region of this vast country on a regular basis.

And whereas supermarkets draw the consumer an average of 2.2 days per week, Starbucks probably has more like 4 to 5 visits per week on average, increasing the frequency with which their consumers have convenient access to a meal for consumption later in the day. The question remains, will enough Americans break out of their daily morning-coffee-deprivation trance to notice these items and actually choose to take them along?