“Dear July, I don’t want any trouble from you. Just come in, sit down, don’t touch anything, and keep your mouth shut.” This meme was all over social media the first few days in July. For most of us, this has been the new state of mind/attitude. Between COVID-19 and the extreme social unrest we’ve had in our country, we are more than ready for the lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.
We are missing out on so many wonderful summertime events as this pandemic hasn’t subsided yet, but none more than celebrating America’s 244 birthday earlier this month. Gone were the usual events we gather for – festivals and fireworks, small town parades and huge backyard barbeques. In Philadelphia, Wawa usually sponsors a week-long festival called Wawa Welcome America. This year it was virtual with events all over the City of Brotherly Love streamed for the week leading up to July 4th, including a performance at The Met Philadelphia by Jason Derulo with no live audience. The fireworks over the Philadelphia Museum of Art were also cancelled. In its 28th year and for the first time ever in history, at noon on July 1, all Wawa stores across six states and Washington, DC participated in Wawa Hoagie Day, building more than 45,000 hoagies to donate to local community heroes and organizations, including Philabundance, first responders, healthcare heroes, the USO and many more. Congrats to Wawa as they spread the hoagie word and turned it into a community give back. Speaking of Wawa, they have just passed one milestone and will soon see a second. First was on June 18, with the opening of the 900th Wawa, on Morris Turnpike in Springfield, NJ. This new store will provide Wawa’s customers with access to necessary supplies, fuel and support during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond. “At Wawa, our core purpose is to go beyond filling orders to fulfill lives, every day, and that has never been stronger than now as our 900 stores unite together to provide support in the form of food, fuel, food donations, funds and the one-of-a-kind Wawa experience that delivers care and hope no matter the circumstances,” said Chris Gheysens, president and CEO. “As a new store opens, we will continue to provide comfort and a sense of normalcy in the safest way possible, while listening to what our friends and neighbors need most throughout these challenging times.” Led by Wawa general manager Jenny Toledo and area manager Dan Holland, the team is committed to maintaining a healthy and safe environment while working to meet the needs of customers. Springfield mayor Chris Capodice welcomed Wawa to the neighborhood by personally congratulating the team and building the first ceremonial hoagie. Wawa also launched its Lending a Helping Hoagie initiative which donated $1,000 from the new store’s first week of sales to Community Food Bank of New Jersey to relieve hunger in the immediate area, demonstrating its commitment to serving others in need. Donations to local hospitals and first responder agencies were also made during the virtual ribbon cutting ceremony. The second milestone is due to occur later this year in the guise of Wawa’s the first drive-thru service, which is coming to Westampton, Burlington County, NJ just off Interstate 295. Here’s a sneak preview of Wawa’s drive-thru: it will feature a limited menu including coffee, Sizzlis, hoagies, soups, sides, and smoothies; hours will be from 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m; there will be menu boards and the drive-thru lane will hold up to 19 cars. “Wawa continues to test new store concepts with the latest being drive-thru, providing an opportunity for our customers to still experience and enjoy their favorite Wawa products while remaining inside their vehicle,” said Terri Micklin, head of construction for Wawa. This is going to be an interesting experiment.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity was already an emergency in our country. As many as one in six children were living in families that didn’t know where their next meal would come from. Today, as COVID-19 continues to take a human and economic toll on the country, as many as one in four children could still face hunger. To help alleviate the burden, the Albertsons Companies Foundation has given close to $10 million to schools and nonprofits for various summer meals programs. Part of their $50 million commitment to helping the communities in which they serve during the COVID-19 crisis, these grants range from $2,000 to $100,000. The funds, which are part of the ongoing commitment to fight pandemic-related hunger, are being used to maintain or, in some cases, create meal programs to help children whose families are suffering economic hardship during the pandemic. Right now, 250 schools, food banks, pantries, and other nonprofits across the U.S. are providing much-needed summer meals for kids with the help of a grant from the program. Through these grants, they are proudly keeping thousands of young bodies fueled for summer fun. “We wanted to really focus on helping people in the hardest-hit areas when awarding these funds. We focused on schools and organizations in areas with high unemployment and high participation in free and reduced-priced school meals,” said Christy Duncan Anderson, executive director of the foundation. She added that the grant committee also considered several other key factors to make sure the funds would have the maximum reach and impact. “We also looked at the number of people the school or organization serves and how much of their budget our grant would cover. We provided grants to support every stage of food distribution, including hiring staff, buying packaging materials for meals, buying trucks to transport food, and more. We wanted to be as flexible as possible and cast a broad net. I think we achieved that goal.” In addition to the Summer Meals Program, the Albertsons Companies continues to raise money for pandemic-related hunger in its stores. To date Acme has distributed funding to 177 local organizations totaling $1.2 million. Keep up the good work!
As with many events that were supposed to be held in person since March, the Pennsylvania Food Merchants Association (PFMA) held its annual meeting virtually on June 22-24. Outgoing chairman Jeff Brown, Brown’s SuperStores, received accolades from PFMA president Alex Baloga: “He fights for the best outcomes in food retail establishments and really focuses a lot on enhancing the overall communities and helping them prosper through his work in food deserts. His advocacy and determination has been a force in the face of extraordinary challenges.” The new slate of officers, headed up by chairman Tom Cormier, manager of government affairs at Retail Business Services (RBS), a subsidiary of Ahold Delhaize USA was installed during the meeting. Next up for PFMA is the Fall Legislative Conference, scheduled for October 27-28. This event will also be held virtually this year due to the coronavirus pandemic and will include educational sessions focused on legislative activity, cybercrime, workforce inclusion, and other important topics. More details, including registration, educational sessions and speakers, will be posted on PFMA.org in the coming weeks. Save the date!
Bruce and George Zallie Jr. have gone fishin’. At the end of June, the two elder Zallie brothers sold their shares in the eight Zallie ShopRite stores that have been jointly owned by George J., Bruce and David since the passing of their father in 2011 to their younger brother, David. Prior to the sale, David was the sole owner of three ShopRites in South Jersey. With the sale, the boys have totally retired from the retail food business. Their children, third generation family members George, Michael and Giuliana, have all chosen to remain with the company and will be working with their uncle going forward. I have known George, Bruce and David for over 35 years. One could say we grew up in the business together. They have always worked hard serving their communities. So happy they are now able to enjoy the fruit of their labor. Congratulations to all!
Congratulations to Paul Madarieta, director of urban retail (Heirloom Markets) at The Giant Company, who has been honored by Philadelphia Business Journal as one of its 25 Top 2020 Minority Business Leaders. A career-long retailer, Madarieta joined The Giant Company in February 2016 as district director, overseeing store operations for a group of stores in the Philadelphia suburbs before being tapped in 2018 to head up the retailer’s urban retail expansion in the form of Heirloom Markets. Well deserved, Paul!
Comedian Sebastian Maniscalco substituted as host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! earlier this month. He’s funny under any circumstance, but his first night’s monologue hit home for those of us in the retail food industry. At the end of the day we are all consumers subject to the trials and tribulations of going food shopping (it is by far the most anxiety inducing chore I have to do these days). He likened a trip to the supermarket to that of a bank heist – get in and get out; talking though masks and “hockey glass” at the checkout and more. It’s a funny piece, quintessential Maniscalco. Available on YouTube, it’s a nice break from the solemnity we face each day.
Public service announcement: since March when COVID-19 took hold and everyone was advised not to use cash as it was thought it could possibly transmit the virus, retailers have been unable to get their usual currency orders from their respective banks. Simply put, there is a coin shortage. Making change at the point of sale is difficult if the store associates do not have an adequate supply of coins. An additional problem is that self-checkout machines will only work if there is an adequate supply of every denomination of coin. So, empty your piggy banks and bring them to your retailer and exchange the coins for paper money. The retailers will thank you.
Birthday shout outs for the patriotic month of July go to: Mike Rothwell, Pennington Market; Joe Fantozzi, Allegiance Retail Services; Jim McCaffrey III, McCaffrey’s Markets; Maurice Christino, Cento Foods; Mary Washinko, Acme Markets; Wayne Couts, Burris Logistics; and Dr. Joe D’Angelo, SJU. Special birthday wishes to my son Gino Marfuggi. Buon compleanno a tutti!
Quote of the month: “Legacy. What is a Legacy? It’s planting seeds in a garden you never get to see,” Lin-Manuel Miranda, Hamilton: The Revolution
Maria can be reached at maria@foodtradenews.com.
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