The Atlanta Constitution from Atlanta, Georgia • PUB19

Publix An Advertising Supplement The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Thursday, Sept. 15, 2005 1 9 products. years ago there was an 8-foot organics shelf, from top to said Brenda Reid, Publix spokeswoman. customers are buying these items along with other products, so they want to see them throughout the Health-conscious, carb- counting American consumers are driving the change. That's why you can soy milk and dairy products in the same cold case.

Green Wise includes produce grown without pesticides. In the meat case you will beef raised on grain free of chemicals. The rollout of the organic and healthy foods is typical of the quick response Publix musters when it's time to adapt to change. The trick is to match the requests for new products coming from customers at the cash register with a steady supplier of quality products suddenly in demand. Take, for example, the Publix response as Latinos began arriving in large numbers in some Atlanta communities.

It wasn't as simple as putting extra cans of frijoles on the shelf. Latino customer in Atlanta is primarily a Mexican Reid said. Publix went to Mexico to research what products and brands were preferable, and we found out which pockets of Mexico they were coming Research helped Publix the product mix based on regional preferences of Mexican customers, just like a supermarket in the northeast might not bother stocking as many bags of grits as one in Macon. we went down there we established re lationships with the local farmers, negotiating with them to serve a big Reid said. When the demographics of a neighborhood change, your grocer may be the to notice.

information is abundant coming from the store level, where customers are asking for Reid said. survey customers about what they like and don't like to create a Finding niche products was much more not long ago. we're much more savvy about buying around the world Reid said, technology and the Internet have made it much easier to reach vendors around the Not that every new venture is a smashing success. In the late 1990s Publix set up an online grocery ordering system that started with a customer entering their grocery list on a Web site and with a van delivering the boxes of groceries to the customer's door. But the online grocery business turned out to be more buzz than boon and Publix dropped the service.

Some of the changes adopted by Publix have nothing to do with what's in the inventory. customer complained at a store in Alabama that we didn't have a family restroom that allowed a spouse to accompany the other for medical or health Reid said. that was the beginning of putting those in all of our new Most of the time Publix will do a little test marketing of a concept before rolling it out across its 850 stores. That's the case with the company's recent development of gas pumps next to a few Publix stores in Florida. will pilot something in small Reid said, we are with the gas Continued from page 18 Times Congratulations on your 75th Anniversary It's been our pleasure.