WOOSTER, Ohio – Great-tasting beef helps bring consumers worldwide to the family dinner table. Their meals often begin at the meat case, where meat experts assist with their selections. On-trend retailers were recognized for their marketing and sales leadership at the Certified Angus Beef ® brand annual conference, held Sept. 17-19 in Marco Island, Fla. They gathered with ranchers, chefs and meat companies to hone their focus on delivering premium-quality beef.
“These retailers continue to identify new avenues for sharing our premium quality and farm-to-table stories with customers,” says John Stika, the beef brand’s president. “They offer a vital link between consumers and ranchers who are equally passionate about bringing their best to the table with the Certified Angus Beef ® brand.”
- K-Va-T Food Stores (Food City), Abingdon, Va., was awarded Retail Marketer of the Year – Large Chain. Food City promoted Certified Angus Beef ® products at University of Tennessee football games and NASCAR events, as well as through a backyard barbecue contest. Meat department staff attended training on the farm to learn more about beef quality first-hand.
- Fox Bros. Piggly Wiggly, Hartland, Wis., received the Retail Marketer of the Year – Small Chain award. Advertising, staff training and promotions with in-store meat cutters build customer loyalty in stores.
- HEB Mexico, based in Escobedo, was awarded Retail Advertiser of the Year. Advertising, circulars and billboards lead customers to HEB’s meat case. Monthly cooking classes and videos also give them more reasons to shop for premium beef at HEB, and confidence in its quality.
- Comercial Carnes Casa Blanca, Medellin, Colombia, took home International Retail Marketer of the Year. Customers find Certified Angus Beef ® products in meat cases on the main level and steak dinners in the restaurant upstairs. Billboards lead customers to Carnes Casa Blanca, and its premium beef, from the country’s busiest highway.
- Rose Kitchen, Taipei, received International Specialty Market Store. This specialty store offers cooking classes, product demonstrations and giveaways for customers. Social media and a Chinese New Year promotion helped customers honor friends and family with great-tasting beef.
- Conference attendees selected Reasor’s, Tulsa, Okla., to receive the People’s Choice Award for the most creative and results-oriented promotion. The 19-store chain’s bi-annual meat sale encouraged shoppers to stock their freezers with the finest cuts. Printed shopping bags, in-store signage and videos, social media posts and a television ad led customers to stores to select beef primals and have them cut and packaged to order.
Making the Case for Premium Beef
Seven companies received awards for the most Certified Angus Beef ® brand products sold during the past year.
- Meijer, Grand Rapids, Mich. – Top Five Sales Volume Large Chain Retailer and Top Retail Sales Volume Increase
- Strack & Van Til Supermarket, Highland, Ind. – Top Five Sales Volume Small Chain Retailer
- Skogen’s Festival Foods, Onalaska, Wis. – Top Retail Average Volume Per Store – More than 10 Stores
- Crest Foods, Edmond, Okla. – Top Retail Average Volume Per Store – Less than 10 stores
- DeKalb Farmers Market, Decatur, Ga. – Top Sales Volume Single Store Retailer
- TOPCO Associates, Elk Grove Village, Ill. – Top Sales Volume Cooperative
- Central Grocers, Joliet, Ill. – Top Sales Volume Retail Distributor
About the Certified Angus Beef ® brand
More than 16,000 businesses partner with the Certified Angus Beef ® brand, generating an estimated $6 billion in consumer sales annually, with retailers and restaurants in the United States and 45 other countries. The Certified Angus Beef ® brand is a cut above USDA Prime, Choice and Select thanks to 10 strict quality standards. Founded in 1978 by Angus cattlemen, this is the only beef brand owned by the American Angus Association® and brought to the table by its family farm and ranch members. For information, visit www.CertifiedAngusBeef.com or follow the brand on Facebook, Twitter or the www.GoRare.com blog.
Source: Certified Angus Beef ® brand
