The Food Scout

Okay, I can handle the stock market shrinking for awhile, because it's going to come back, right? (Right?) But there are some things in life that, once you've crossed the threshold you can never come back (in this case I'll focus just on the food world), and that  I can't document the day when the coffee industry moved off its standard 16 oz. size, but I read online that that transgression began in the 1960s, where we now find a "pound" of coffee weighing in at just over 11 oz. Perhaps jars of spaghetti sauce (which now weigh more like 28 oz. than 32 oz. in previous years) and jars of peanut butter (only 16 oz. instead of 18), aren't as ...

Orlando and Tampa are shaping up to be the new playground for innovative food retailing. If you live in the Southeast, you know Publix supermarkets. And if you live in north Florida, you know that Publix is leveraging several sub-brands into new retail units and merchandising opportunities. Its Aprons brand, originally a cooking school, is now a meal-assembly concept, cooking demo kiosk, and a catering business. Greenwise is a brand Publix is using on its new tony Whole Foods-style units, BUT it's also a brand merchandised in most of its stores around natural foods including meats, cereals, and juices. And Sabor ...

I'm on a Food Scout mission right now, visiting some supermarkets in the Chicago area. Today at Dominick's new Lifestyle store downtown, I noticed this big kiosk with dozens of different gift cards from all kinds of companies, inviting you to put some money on some and give them as gifts. One whole side was dedicated to "dining out" gift cards from companies including PF Changs, Cheesecake Factory, Olive Garden, Red Lobster, California Pizza Kitchen, Starbucks, and McDonalds.   For someone who wants to give away money to everyone , and wants to ensure that the recipient actually treats themselves to a gift, rather than spends the money on groceries or gas, this is ...

Last fall, when the Starbucks announced slowing same-store sales (and experienced a subsequent dip in stock price), various press reminded us of the “Starbucks Economic Indicator,” wherein rising sales at Starbucks in the past had indicated strong economic waters ahead, and lagging sales predicted economic trouble ahead for all. In fact, while Starbucks got all the press attention last fall, subsequent months showed trouble for Dunkin Donuts, Wal-Mart, and recently a slew of quickservice restaurant chains.

When Starbucks hit a same-store sales wall last fall, industry pundits and analysts launched a wave of theories and explanations as to why Starbucks deserved to be in this situation. No one was more critical of the company’s situation of course, than the company’s own chief, Howard Schultz. In the wake of its fall from Wall Street grace, Starbucks has been launching wave after wave of innovations, from advertising, to promotions, to new products and menu items (mostly publicized courtesy of the press) including a blog site that invites fans to submit ideas (more cathartic for the fans than useful to Starbucks, I would expect).