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Albertsons employees pick favorites in Own Brands Associate Choice Awards

Snack items earn top billing in companywide vote across 15 categories

Russell Redman

February 17, 2021

3 Min Read
Albertsons-2020_Own_Brands_Associate_Choice_Award_winners.jpg
The winning Own Brands Choice Awards products were picked by thousands of associates across Albertsons Cos.Albertsons

Snack foods starred among the winning products in Albertsons Cos. first Own Brands Associate Choice Awards.

The inaugural contest asked thousands of associates to vote for their favorite Albertsons Cos.-brand products in 15 categories during the Boise, Idaho-based grocer’s January Own Brands “Best for Less” campaign. The top overall vote-getter, as the “Favorite New 2020 Own Brands Product,” was Signature Reserve dark chocolate sea salt caramels, Albertsons announced yesterday.

“We’re proud of the quality and value of all our Own Brands products, but we were especially interested to learn which products our associates love the most,” Chad Coester, senior vice president of Own Brands at Albertsons Cos., said in a statement. “These are the products they are fanatical about and most proudly recommend to shoppers.”

The Signature Reserve sea salt dark chocolate caramels won in two categories, as the overall winner and as the “Favorite Guilty Pleasure Food Item.”

“Hands down the best sea salt caramels I’ve ever had!” commented Sharon Johnson, a front-end customer service representative at the Shaw’s supermarket in Wakefield, R.I.

Plaudits for the treat also came from the corporate level. “The Signature Reserve dark chocolate sea salt caramels are an escape into decadent deliciousness,” stated Cheri Harris, a senior IT auditor for Albertsons Cos.

Related:At Albertsons, innovation and diversity bring success to Own Brands

The full list of winning products, including food and nonfood items, is as follows:

• Favorite new 2020 Own Brands product: Signature Reserve dark chocolate sea salt caramels
• Favorite snack to eat on the go: Signature Select mix nuts, deluxe value size
• Favorite healthy alternative: Open Nature parmesan cheese crisps
• Favorite “pick me up” product: O Organics French dark roast ground coffee
• Favorite breakfast item: Open Nature uncured applewood smoked bacon
• Favorite “home-gating” food: Signature Cafe hot fried chicken
• Favorite chef-inspired meal item: waterfront Bistro Responsible Choice raw shrimp
• Favorite item to stock up on: Lucerne shredded Mexican style four cheese blend
• Favorite “kid-approved” product: Signature Select macaroni and cheese
• Favorite baby product: Open Nature Free & Clear baby wipes
• Favorite “guilty pleasure” food item: Signature Reserve dark chocolate sea salt caramels
• Favorite “treat yourself” product: Open Nature peppermint beeswax lip balm
• Favorite adult beverage: Signature Reserve Tennessee whiskey
• Favorite immunity boosting product: O Organics vitamin D3 gummies
• Favorite product for your “furry friend”: Signature Pet Cared chicken jerky dog treats

Related:Albertsons debuts flash-frozen skillet meals

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Signature Reserve dark chocolate sea salt caramels earned honors as the Favorite New 2020 Own Brands Product.

 

Overall, Albertsons’ Own Brands portfolio encompasses more than 12,000 products under a range of brands, including the Signature family of brands that includes Signature Select, Signature Farms, Signature Cafe, Signature Care and Signature Reserve, as well as Open Nature, O Organics, Lucerne, waterfrontBistro Responsible Choice seafood, Primo Taglio, Value Corner and debi lilly design. The products are sold in-store and online across the retailer’s 2,253 food and drug stores in 34 states and the District of Columbia, including such banners as Albertsons, Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Jewel-Osco, Shaw’s, Acme, Tom Thumb, Randalls, United Supermarkets, Star Market, Haggen and Carrs.

“Whether it’s innovative flavors of ice cream, including non-dairy options, or high-quality wines and award-winning spirits, Own Brands provides a wide offering of products with something for every shopper,” Coester added.

In reporting fiscal 2020 third-quarter results last month, Albertsons said Own Brands sales penetration surpassed 25% in the last four weeks of the period ended Dec. 5, keeping the company on track to reach its goal of 30% penetration in the next few years. The company has launched over 1,000 new items as of the quarter’s end, exceeding its goal of 800-plus new items for the fiscal year. The Own Brands roster’s more than 12,000 items span over 500 categories and generate $14 billion in sales annually across nine primary brands, four of which top $1 billion in sales.

About the Author

Russell Redman

Senior Editor
Supermarket News

Russell Redman has served as senior editor at Supermarket News since April 2018, his second tour with the publication. In his current role, he handles daily news coverage for the SN website and contributes news and features for the print magazine, as well as participates in special projects, podcasts and webinars and attends industry events. Russ joined SN from Racher Press Inc.’s Chain Drug Review and Mass Market Retailers magazines, where he served as desk/online editor for more than nine years, covering the food/drug/mass retail sector. 

Russell Redman’s more than 30 years of experience in journalism span a range of editorial manager, editor, reporter/writer and digital roles at a variety of publications and websites covering a breadth of industries, including retailing, pharmacy/health care, IT, digital home, financial technology, financial services, real estate/commercial property, pro audio/video and film. He started his career in 1989 as a local news reporter and editor, covering community news and politics in Long Island, N.Y. His background also includes an earlier stint at Supermarket News as center store editor and then financial editor in the mid-1990s. Russ holds a B.A. in journalism (minor in political science) from Hofstra University, where he also earned a certificate in digital/social media marketing in November 2016.

Russell Redman’s experience:

Supermarket News - Informa
Senior Editor 
April 2018 - present

Chain Drug Review/Mass Market Retailers - Racher Press
Desk/Online Editor 
Sept. 2008 - March 2018

CRN magazine - CMP Media
Managing Editor
May 2000 - June 2007

Bank Systems & Technology - Miller Freeman
Executive Editor/Managing Editor
Dec. 1996 - May 2000

Supermarket News - Fairchild Publications
Financial Editor/Associate Editor
April 1995 - Dec. 1996 

Shopping Centers Today Magazine - ICSC 
Desk Editor/Assistant Editor
Dec. 1992 - April 1995

Testa Communications
Assistant Editor/Contributing Editor (Music & Sound Retailer, Post, Producer, Sound & Communications and DJ Times magazines)
Jan. 1991 - Dec. 1992 

American Banker/Bond Buyer
Copy Editor
Oct. 1990 - Jan. 1991 

This Week newspaper - Chanry Communications
Reporter/Editor
May 1989 - July 1990

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