Artisanal Brands Inc. has been approved to expand into Costco's southeast division while also establishing its new retail CheeseClock program permanently in 14 locations in Costco's northeast division and conducting road show events at Costco locations in the northeast. Artisanal continues to work with its Costco broker-representative, Anderson Daymon Worldwide, to explore further expansion into Costco's Los Angeles and San Diego divisions.
This month, Artisanal's distribution partner KeHE started placing the CheeseClock program into Schnucks supermarkets in the Greater St. Louis region and is expected to start shipping into stores operated by Spec's Wines and the supermarket chain HEB expanding the CheeseClock program into Texas.
Daniel W. Dowe, President and Chief Executive Officer of Artisanal stated, "Artisanal has worked incredibly hard with KeHE, Costco and Anderson Daymon to make the strides we announced today. We have run several successful cross-merchandising wine and cheese events at Costco, offering Costco members a unique shopping experience by introducing the Artisanal CheeseClock program to pair cheeses and wine for them to take home and enjoy. During the events, Costco members were able to purchase different colored boxes of our cheeses with compatible wines right across the aisle, identifiable by the matching colored hangtags on the necks of the wine bottles. Consumers appreciate this concept because it simplifies the process of buying cheese and wines.
"In each box we've also started enclosing individual cheese tags in the shape of our logo that enable customers to present Artisanal Premium Cheeses in their homes with a tag that identifies our brand, the name of the cheese and the milk type. It's like having mini-billboards in consumers' homes that brand Artisanal Premium Cheeses at the point of consumption. Our program is novel and we are working to expand it across the U.S. Over the next couple weeks we will be showcasing the Artisanal CheeseClock retail concept at the International Deli Dairy and Bakery and Fancy Food Shows as well as at KeHE's bi-annual customer shows. Additionally, we are placing ads in trade journals that will be distributed at the summer shows and look forward to the publication of a feature article on the Artisanal CheeseClock that is expected to run in an upcoming issue of the industry publication Cheese Connoisseur, reaching approximately 20,000 subscribers, the majority of whom have buying authority in the industry. All of these efforts are being undertaken in support of our national expansion plan by giving retail buyers a close look at the Artisanal CheeseClock program and how it provides a solution for consumers looking for an easier way to select cheeses for enjoying and entertaining at home."
About Artisanal Premium Cheese
Artisanal Brands, Inc. markets and distributes a line of specialty, artisanal and farmstead cheese products, as well as other related specialty food products under its own brand to food wholesalers and retailers, as well as directly to consumers through its catalogue and Web site, artisanalcheese.com. Artisanal Brands, Inc. is based in New York, New York.
Safe Harbor Statement:
Forward-looking statements made in this press release are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on current management expectations that involve risks and uncertainties that may result in such expectations not being realized. Potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the risks described in Company filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Source: Artisanal Brands Inc.