SEÁN QUISH owns two SuperValu stores in Tramore, Co Waterford and Ballincollig, Co Cork and has been responding to the downturn by keen prices, differentiating his offering from his competitors and focusing on customer service.
"People have said to me that I'm lucky as people always have to eat, but I tell them that people don't have to eat with me, they'll go elsewhere to get better quality and value if it's available", he says.
"In Ballincollig, I have competition from Dunnes, two Aldi stores, another SuperValu store and Tesco, and I have to compete with Tesco and Lidl in Tramore. That's challenging."
Consumers are responding to the new environment by shopping around more. "People are very worried and they are looking for value. They will shop with you one day and go elsewhere the next."
He believes his offering is very strong. "We work hard to differentiate ourselves from the competition. We concentrate on fresh food. We have five full-time master butchers in Ballincollig and three in Tramore. We have bakeries in both stores which means that people can buy fresh bread baked from scratch. We have nine bakers and confectioners between the two stores. In the fresh produce area, I have a great supplier from Rosscarberry who supplies the Ballincollig store and the quality is so good we have people coming in asking for the Rosscarberry veg."
He has also introduced innovations such as olive bars selling small portions of tapas- style food. "These are very popular but you have to offer value, you don't want to be perceived as expensive. Cost control has to be right up to scratch," he says. "Over the past two years, we have been engaged on a cost-reduction programme and we have taken 20 per cent out of the cost base in areas such as energy and operational overheads. The support from our staff has been phenomenal and has been critical for its success. Obviously, everyone suffers when there are no wage increases and so on, but we explained the situation to our staff and they have given us great support."
The support of the Musgrave Group has also been critical. "Having Musgraves behind us puts us on a par with Dunnes and Tesco in terms of prices. We are able to compete with them and after that it's a question of quality and service. We are very involved in our community. We are the largest employer in Tramore and sponsor GAA clubs in both towns as well as the rugby club in Ballincollig."
He appreciates the support he has received from Bank of Ireland as well. "You have to keep investing in the stores. You need to upgrade every five years or so and you need the support of your bank for that kind of thing. It's still tough for people and we have to keep working hard to keep our costs down and deliver the value that people are looking for."
