"Ted Mittelstaedt" > wrote in message
...
>
> "Melba's Jammin'" > wrote in message
> ...
>
>>
>> It's called a slotting fee and comes because there is a finite amount of
>> space in a supermarket or store and it's all about the bottom line.
>> Profit margins, I understand, are pretty slim for grocers so if they're
>> going to make space available for an un-tried item, I guess they want
>> compensation for it. Too bad it has to be like this. It is done here.
>>
>
> Whole Foods has long championed the fact that they do NOT accept
> slotting fees - product placement on their store shelves is purely due
> to customer demand of an item.

Do you thik this contributes at all to Whole Foods' pricing? AFAIK slotting
fees are not used here, but even so WF prices tend to be higher than regular
grocery stores. I shop there occasionally, and some of their products are
worth the extra cost, but some are not.

>
> Only the larger grocers who order huge amounts can demand slotting
> fees, so your small independent corner grocer likely isn't getting any
> of that pie. But, no grocer can demand slotting fees for high-demand
> items with strong brand identity, such as Coca Cola. Coke and Pepsi
> can pay other ways, though. For example the local Haggen's here carry
> both Coke and Pepsi - but, only Pepsi products are in the cooler that
> is next to the deli counter. So if you go buy a sandwitch there and want
> to drink Coke you have to walk the entire length of the market to the
> other end of the store to get it, then walk back to where the tables are.

I wonder how big a name a product has to have to avoid slotting fees. Many
years ago I worked for Keebler, and they paid slotting fees in certain parts
of the country.

Anny