Kevin Miller Reveals How to Put the "Fresh" in the Fresh Market

Mike Kaufman You39ve been at The Fresh Market TFM now for just under three years and those have been remarkable years for the company But organizations can be slow to change How did you manage such a remarkable turnaround in such a relatively short period of timeKevin Miller I had the benefit of coming to the company under a mandate for change At the time TFM was privately held by Apollo Global They had just replaced the previous CEO with a new CEO to help lead the turnaround of the business and prepare it for a possible IPO or MampampA So the first conversations we had were about what needed to change at TFM to drive unprecedented growth We both had similar beliefs and strategic outlooks and I ended up being the new CEO39s first hire as CMO with a mandate to innovate and drive changeKaufman Another truism of management is that change must start from within and it39s best to start by getting your own house in order But you received a pretty negative Glass Door rating Where was that on your priority list and how did you tackle itMiller Yes that was bad Bad for our brand perception and bad for the company morale at a time when business was not good Was that perception widely held within our organization and were drastic steps required If you look at the details in the ratings it was driven primarily by front line employees in the stores not having confidence in the executive management team after several years of instability and turnover at the top of the organization Where39s TFM on Glass Door now I39m not sure where we are but we do know our internal surveys indicate that our employees are happier with their jobs And that is reflected in our overall satisfaction scores and our Net Promoter scores from the customers they serve both of which have been near or at the highest levels ever for the company Additionally we were voted Best Supermarket in America for the second year in a row by USA Today and NewsweekStatista ranked us a Top 5 Most Trusted Brand in our category for 2022Kaufman Grocery has become crowded with entries that arguably step on TFM39s branding such as Amazon Fresh and Wegmans while established chains have received similar makeovers focusing on freshness How have you managed those challenges and kept the quotfreshquot strong in TFM39s branding in the face of the new competitionMiller We stay focused on our vision of becoming one of America39s most loved brands and our strategy for achieving that vision One of the key pillars of the strategy is to establish a reputation for being the best place to purchase the highest quality fresh food Unlike other grocers even the ones that have quotfreshquot in their names over 70 of what we sell is actually fresh product vs traditional grocery whose mix is only 25 fresh food Additionally we focus on three key fresh food occasions where to go to get your fresh meat seafood and produce Where to shop when there is a special occasion and where to shop when you ask yourself quotwhat39s for dinner tonightquot Freshness is at the core of each of these shopping occasions and clearly our quality service and experience differentiates our fresh offerings from anyone else39sKaufman That USA Today quot1 Best Supermarket in Americaquot honor is a remarkable credential for your brand and a CMO39s dream I suspect How have you leveraged that in your communicationsMiller It is a dream and it is well deserved by each member of The Fresh Market team We leverage the designation by including the logo and the Best in America messaging across all our advertising platforms TV ads digital social direct mail outdoor mobile search email campaigns etc Since we have the privilege of being voted No 1 in backtoback years of 2021 and 2022 we estimate that we have delivered over five billion advertising impressions that have touted to America that we are No 1 over the past two yearsClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Kevin Miller Reveals How to Put the "Fresh" in the Fresh Market

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"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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Kevin Miller Reveals How to Put the "Fresh" in the Fresh Market

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"About That with Carl Mayer": Involved Media Connected Audience Fall 2024 Report (Episode 5) - By Carl Mayer

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