SPINS and Unified Grocers Announce Partnership
SCHAUMBURG, IL March 4, 2009 – SPINS, the leading information and service provider for the Natural Products Industry, announced a new partnership with Unified Grocers, the largest retailer-owned wholesale cooperative in the western United States. Together, the two companies will join forces to expand SPINS’ reach into the Specialty and Gourmet grocery channel.
By uniting with SPINS, Unified Grocers will advance its understanding of the natural, organic, and specialty products arena, while leveraging SPINS industry expertise to make sound business decisions and better support its independent members' stores.
As part of the new partnership, a full time, dedicated SPINS business consultant has been hired to work collaboratively with Unified Grocers to ensure efficient category management and identify opportunities for their members' and customers' independent retail stores. SPINS fact-based information services and onsite support will enable Unified Grocers to work more effectively with their vendors and business partners.
Since its establishment in California in 1922, Unified Grocers has experienced steady and consistent growth. Its recent acquisition of Seattle-based Associated Grocers expanded the Company's reach throughout the Pacific Northwest and added a number of new independent retailers to the Company's growing roster of members and customers. Today, the cooperative provides greater buying power, superior logistics, retail support services, and diverse sources of supply to approximately 3,000 retail locations throughout the western United States.
“Unified Grocers is excited about the partnership we’ve formed with SPINS,” says Dirk T. Davis, Vice President of Marketing at Unified Grocers. “We have a great opportunity to support our independent retailers in capturing new sales and new customers in the exciting Natural, Organic and Specialty world. SPINS’ expertise and efforts will be a key to that success. We look forward to working with SPINS to deliver a world class product to our retailers and the consumers they serve.”
“SPINS is excited to further develop our foundation to include the dynamics of the Specialty and Gourmet channel through its new agreement with Unified Grocers,” says SPINS CEO Tony Olson. “SPINS’ business was built on the principles of providing insight into rapidly expanding niche markets through close alliances and partnerships among key players. The collaboration between SPINS and Unified Grocers, and their retailers, enables a host of new opportunities for our respective organizations as well as the at-large manufacturer community. The new Specialty Gourmet service will enhance the cooperative’s ability to track sales and implement better business practices, as well as enable its stores to effectively compete in the changing marketplace.”
About SPINS
SPINS was founded in 1995 as the first company to offer Natural Products sales data to the industry. Today, it is the premier provider of industry reporting and consulting services for this rapidly expanding sector. SPINS’ comprehensive offering includes retail measurement services, content-based reporting, consumer information and consulting services. Learn more at www.spins.com .
Please direct any press-related requests to Jennifer Fuller at 847.908.1224 or jfuller@spins.com.
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