Longo Brothers Fruit Market Inc. BB #:154544 Vaughan, ON, is known for innovation, often predicting and addressing changes in the marketplace before competitors.
Early into ecommerce
One example of the Longo family’s prescience is ecommerce.
“Longo’s hasn’t been as aggressive on the acquisition front as some of the large operators, yet its acquisition of Grocery Gateway in 2004 demonstrated farsightedness on the online delivery front, and a willingness to look beyond its borders to speed up innovation,” says Carol Spieckerman, president of Spieckerman Retail in Bentonville, AR.
Jon Hauptman, senior director of analytics at Inmar Intelligence, Winston-Salem, NC, agrees, crediting Longo’s for keeping an eye on the future, especially when it comes to ecommerce. “In the last year, that future got here a lot quicker than expected, but Longo’s was already set up for it.”
Stores were early into ecommerce in general, Hauptman says, including central picking and shipping to stores for pickup. The company made a “great investment and commitment to it before Covid.”
“Our ecommerce business, Grocery Gateway, has always been a big part of our business, but over the last year, through this pandemic, it has definitely grown,” Mimmo Franzone, director of produce and floral at Longo Brothers, confirms.
“Over the years, we’ve built a very strong and trusted brand when it comes to fresh offerings, so our guests were always comfortable ordering produce (online). But I can tell you—it’s not an easy task. Managing and forecasting what our guests need for a next-day delivery is extremely difficult when you’re dealing with perishables.”
Charlebois cautions that a growing number of well-financed competitors have entered the market, perhaps threatening the lead Longo’s has built when it comes to ecommerce. He cites the example of Voilà by Sobeys and its ecommerce initiative, which has a state-of-the-art data-driven warehouse operated in partnership with technology company Ocado.
Empire Company Limited BB #:137787 Stellarton, NS, and owner of the Sobey’s retail chain,
stepped up its ecommerce game even further with the acquisition of Grocery Gateway, bought along with its stake in Longo Brothers. This, too, will help the grocer keep competitors at bay.
Yet few doubt Longo’s prowess when it comes to ecommerce. “Everyone is chasing Longo’s when it comes to that. It took a while until the ROI was workable, but the company has twenty-odd years of experience and has it figured out,” says John Russell, president of J.E. Russell Produce Limited BB #:115731 in Toronto.
Heeding change
Overall, Longo’s innovation and foresight are tied to its agility.
“As markets and trends change within the grocery landscape, we do our best to satisfy the needs of our guests and adjust to them,” says Franzone. “Introducing new categories within all of our departments is very common for us.”
Spieckerman concurs. “The company’s willingness to try new things and ‘fail fast’ exemplifies its innovation orientation and open-mindedness,” she says.
Yet how will its new status, as part of the Empire Co., affect Longo’s freedom and ability to make strategic investments or take the long view?
“Given that Empire is taking a majority stake rather than full ownership, that Longo’s leadership team will remain in place, and the Longo’s banner will remain,” Spieckerman point out, “I don’t see Longo’s fundamental advantages and brand premise changing.”
There will, however, be an impact when it comes to decision making.
“Longo’s will have new stakeholders in the room when investment decisions are made,” Spieckerman says. “With Empire being a publicly traded company, Longo’s ability to make long-view decisions may be curtailed. Empire will also have the upper hand when it comes to scaling the Longo’s concept and increasing its footprint.”
For his part, Charlebois believes having a new corporate parent may shift Longo’s growth plan, but he doesn’t believe the experience or brand will change at all.
This is an excerpt from the Toronto & Ontario supplement to the May/June 2021 issue of Produce Blueprints Magazine. Click here to read the whole issue.
