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During a keynote presentation at the National Retail Federation’s Big Show, Joshua Schulman, Burberry’s new chief executive officer, argued that there’s opportunity in authenticity. Applicable to his efforts to revitalize the venerable British fashion house, the dictum is equally relevant to the retail business.
Jack Sinclair, CEO of Sprouts Farmers Market, expressed a similar sentiment at a later session on shaping the future of grocery retailing. Sinclair is implementing a strategy that calls for the company to adhere to its farm-stand heritage and provide health-conscious consumers with a carefully curated assortment of foods and beverages that support their well-being – an approach that gives Sprouts a clear identity in a crowded field of supermarket chains.
“What we’ve been trying to do is double down on the health-conscious customer,” Sinclair said. “There’s probably one in seven or one in eight in the U.S. population. It’s gradually growing. There are more people more interested in what they’re eating and why they’re eating.
“We’ve been refining our format to the smaller 23,000-square-foot store, where you can see across all of the store and customers can navigate their way through their choices – doubling down on vitamins, doubling down on bulk, doubling down on fresh produce.”
By specializing in those foods and products that are keto, paleo, vegan, vegetarian, plant-based, and gluten-free, Sprouts aims to build a community of like-minded consumers. Meeting the needs of members of that group also provides strategic advantages.
“We’re a complementary retailer as opposed to a competitive retailer,” Sinclair noted. “We love to sit alongside anybody. There’s nobody we don’t want to be right next to, because we feel that the offer that we have is so different. And we do it in a format that’s a bit smaller, cheaper to build, cheaper to operate, and that allows you to make return faster.”
Adhering to its roots and being clear about its mission have enabled Sprouts to prosper.
“We’ve been very articulate about the purpose of our business,” Sinclair said. “That can be a galvanizing factor for the team. It’s based on the DNA of the people, the Bonny family, who started this company in 2002. The premise of that DNA is if people eat a bit better, they’ll be a bit healthier and they’ll live a better life. It sounds a bit preachy, but it’s what we base our business on.”
Sprouts’ example demonstrates that authenticity still resonates with consumers, even in a marketplace where that attribute is often in short supply.
