Allison Delaney

PROGRAM LEAD, STOP & SHOP NUTRITION PARTNERS, QUINCY, MASS.

What’s one cool thing you’ve done in the past year to help elevate/promote health and wellness at retail?

Allison Delaney: At Stop & Shop, we successfully launched a fully virtual nutrition education program during the height of the pandemic. Our team of registered dietitians teach virtual webinars covering various topics, including healthy eating on a budget, meal planning, eating for heart health and diabetes, weight management and more.

We recently launched a new series on plant-based eating and another on eating for immunity, which are both incredibly popular. In these virtual webinars, our dietitians teach customers how to fill their carts healthfully. We provide product suggestions, tips for navigating the aisles (both in-store or online) and answers to commonly asked food and nutrition questions. Customers are able to interact with one another—offering their own tips and chiming in with questions or suggestions. In the past year, we have helped thousands of Stop & Shop customers make healthier choices—all from the convenience of their homes.

What’s next as we ease out of the pandemic?

While we are eager to get our dietitians into the stores for some face time with customers, we have found that we are able to help more customers from a wider geography due to the virtual nature of our program. For example, one webinar might have customers from over a dozen different ZIP codes, whereas if we were in-person, our attendance would be limited to one store/city. Our webinar attendance is high and participants are eager and willing to participate—asking questions and offering personal suggestions. Because of the success of our virtual programming, we definitely plan to keep these offerings, even as we ease out of the pandemic. If anything, we hope that you will see our program offerings expand, with new topics and more complimentary services!