Broker/Wholesaler Corner

Supervalu announces 2015 National Expo dates

Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Supervalu Inc. said it will host the 2015 National Expo Aug. 11–13 at the RiverCentre convention center in downtown St. Paul, Minn. The event is open to the more than 2,000 independent retail customers served by Supervalu, as well as hundreds of vendors and industry professionals.

Nearly 1,500 retailers attended Supervalu’s first national expo in 2014, which featured 145,000 square feet of show floor space, 330 exhibitors and 25 education seminars. This year’s show will have an expanded emphasis on fresh departments and products while again including the “Education Day,” offering consumer insights, training seminars and other resources for operators, Supervalu said. Additionally, the Master Marketer Awards ceremony, which rewards the best marketing campaigns across Supervalu’s vast independent business network, will highlight this year’s event.

Unified Grocers wins package design award

Commerce, Calif.-based Unified Grocers said its newly redesigned Springfield logo and packaging were named a winner in the 2015 American Package Design Awards sponsored by Graphic Design USA magazine. Unified teamed up with San Francisco-based Murray Brand Communications to redesign and refresh the Springfield packaging, make it relevant to today’s consumers and attract new shoppers to the brand.

After conducting extensive consumer research, the Murray Brand team designed a new brandmark and packaging system for the Springfield portfolio of more than 800 SKUs, Unified stated. The new packaging was designed to support the brand’s core essence of neighborly, trusted quality and to provide shoppers a consistent, eyecatching look throughout the store. It also includes “Facts Up Front” icons developed by the Food Marketing Institute and Grocery Manufacturers Association to help consumers easily recognize fat-free, low-sodium, low-cholesterol and other attributes and benefits.

Supervalu refreshes Wild Harvest brand

Eden Prairie, Minn.-based Supervalu Inc. said it is unveiling a refreshed brand positioning, a new logo and new packaging graphics for its Wild Harvest brand of natural and organic foods and beverages. Additionally, the brand, introduced in 2008 and featuring more than 300 products in 60 categories, will expand by 200 SKUs this year.

As part of the brand refresh, Wild Harvest will shift to new “free-from” messaging that addresses consumers’ desire for clearer ingredient statements. All Wild Harvest products are free from more than 100 undesirable ingredients, including artificial and synthetic ingredients, and nearly 70 percent of its products are certified organic, Supervalu said.

In addition to a new line of hormone-free, antibiotic-free meats and poultry launched in the fall of 2014, Supervalu said it will introduce the following new Wild Harvest items this year: five Italian frozen prepared meals made with authentic Italian sauces and premium pasta or rice; 14 vegetable offerings with sauce and ancient grains, five of which are vegan; single-serve coffee cups to complement the Wild Harvest bagged coffee offering; and cereals, appetizers and veggie burgers.

The Wild Harvest brand refresh also brings subtle visual changes to the logo and packaging that make it easier for shoppers to find Wild Harvest products throughout the store, Supervalu said. The updated logo delivers a positive, clean aesthetic that calls to mind the warmth of the sun and nature, and the product packaging redesign features bright graphics with a vibrant field of green reminiscent of fresh grass. The refreshed design helps convey that any flavors or colors added to Wild Harvest products are derived from natural sources. Each product package also will prominently display the new “free-from” messaging. In addition, the Wild Harvest website was updated to coincide with the brand refresh.