Edeka: The false impression concerning the finish of the recent meals counter | EUROtoday

Counter it straightforward – that’s the slogan of a digital marketing campaign by Edeka with quick movies on social media and streaming platforms. In it, a younger lady walks purposefully via a grocery store aisle, heading straight for the recent produce counter. “You don't know the name of a piece of sausage?” asks a deep male voice. “Then you just point to it at the counter. Because here it's not about eating or being eaten, here it's just about enjoying.”

With the marketing campaign from the spring, Edeka desires to enchantment to youthful teams of buyers and take away their fears, in line with the accompanying report from Germany's largest grocery store chain. This is as a result of they’re typically nonetheless not sure about how one can use the service counters.

But they’re the “heart of Edeka when it comes to quality, variety and personal advice”. Just 4 months after the launch of “Theke it easy”, this coronary heart is now transferring into focus in a very totally different means: Edeka is making restrictions on its recent meals counters.

In many areas, the counters will not be manned throughout the complete opening hours, studies the “Lebensmittel-Zeitung”. The Edeka regional firms Southwest, North Bavaria-Saxony-Thuringia, South Bavaria, North and Minden-Hanover are affected.

In the long run, so-called hybrid counters can be utilized within the markets there, which may be shortly transformed into self-service areas with just some easy steps and supply items pre-packaged by workers. This implies that the recent produce space may also operate with out workers throughout off-peak occasions.

The most important purpose for this want is the rising scarcity of workers. “Especially for the meat counters, food retailers can no longer find enough employees,” says Michael Gerling, the managing director of the EHI Retail Institute, the analysis and training institute for retail in Germany, to WELT. This impacts each the gross sales workers and the butchers' specialists.

100 Euro bonus for expert employee placement

And in truth, hardly anybody desires to turn into a butcher in Germany anymore. While there have been 9,537 apprentices within the butcher commerce in Germany in 2000, by 2023 there have been solely 2,309, in line with figures from the Central Association of German Crafts (ZDH). The business is due to this fact wanting overseas, as Gerling studies.

Even to far-away nations. In the district of Lörrach in southern Baden, for instance, 19 Indians are presently finishing an apprenticeship in butcher outlets; two years in the past there have been already 13. In Hamburg, then again, related tasks with trainees from the Philippines have been reported.

The grocery store chain Klaas+Kock, based mostly in North Rhine-Westphalia, additionally entails its personal prospects and has prior to now promised readers of its weekly brochure a procuring voucher value 100 euros in the event that they efficiently recruit an worker for the meat counter who stays employed for no less than one month.

However, Edeka Südwest believes that the expanded recruitment effort is not going to be sufficient in the long run. The firm wants to take a look at how the supermarkets' buying and selling efficiency may be achieved with fewer individuals, says Rainer Huber, head of the Edeka Southwest regional firm, whose gross sales space contains Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, southern Hesse and elements of Bavaria.

He expects 20 p.c fewer workers and dealing hours. “We have to refine the service concepts in various ways in order to be able to guarantee the freshness and variety even with a reduced workforce,” he’s quoted as saying within the “Lebensmittelzeitung”. In checks with versatile cheese counters, Südwest even achieved elevated gross sales and turnover in comparison with the basic service, says Huber.

However, he doesn’t need to hand over the service counters fully. The Edeka headquarters in Hamburg additionally made this clear. “Fresh counters with service for meat, sausage or cheese are and will continue to be an important element with which the Edeka stores differentiate themselves and raise their profile in the competition. They are not up for discussion at all,” stated a spokesperson when requested.

But after all there are totally different ideas on the regional and native stage as to how the recent meals counters' choices may be optimally tailor-made to the respective situations and buyer wants.

Similar statements come from competitor Rewe. “Service counters still have a future for us,” assures an organization spokesperson. In round 2000 of the 3800 Rewe supermarkets nationwide, there are service counters for meat, sausage, cheese and, the place applicable, fish as a complement to the self-service providing.

“They are – provided the market size, product range and demand are appropriate – an integral part of the concept and an important building block in competitive differentiation.” And this additionally contains intensive opening hours, because the spokesperson emphasises. “After all, many customers at the counter particularly value the expert advice, the individual portioning of the goods and food produced in-house.”

Cheap shouldn’t be accessible on the counter

Of course, Rewe can also be feeling the scarcity of expert employees. However, the rising digitalization within the markets is creating scope to more and more use workers in service-oriented actions.

EHI skilled Gerling shouldn’t be stunned by these clear statements and commitments. “Serving counters are a given in supermarkets, and will continue to be a part of the future,” says the retail researcher. This is as a result of it’s a very powerful instrument for distinguishing oneself from discounters. Nevertheless, changes and adjustments to the idea should be made, whether or not this implies shorter opening hours for the recent produce part or smaller areas and adjusted product ranges.

“Staff shortages are just one of the problems,” explains Gerling. In addition, there’s additionally a normal decline in gross sales at meat counters. “Consumer sentiment remains poor, consumers are saving and, above all, buying cheaply.” The inflation price has just lately fallen again to regular ranges. “However, the significantly higher prices from last year have remained.”

However, the development in direction of low-cost merchandise is an enormous downside for the service counters. “This is the most expensive and most complex area of ​​a supermarket,” explains Gerling. According to the EHI, over 40 p.c of gross sales are eaten up by prices there.

For comparability: The common value ratio for a grocery store as a complete is 27 p.c. However, the 40 p.c normal prices should not sufficient, explains Gerling. Then there’s the acquisition worth for the products.

“The products must therefore have an appropriate price in order to be sold profitably. Only then can a supermarket afford the service counter.” And that’s something however a given for the time being.

This is a dilemma for retailers. For impartial retailers particularly, gross sales on the counter are essential for the earnings of their shops.

Carsten Dierig is a enterprise editor in Düsseldorf. He studies on Handel and Consumer items, Mechanical engineering and the Steel business in addition to Recycling and Medium-sized firms.