2022 Midwest/Southeast Wholesaler of the Year

they can translate that into what they do for the independent,” he said. “That’s worked really well for them.”

The relationship between IGA and Laurel is “really pretty seamless,” according to Stone. In many cases, Laurel customers are taking advantage of IGA programs delivered by the wholesaler that they may not realize are from IGA because of the close interaction between the two.

Stone cited an old promotional program –IGA Days. “That was an IGA program, but Laurel has taken that on wholeheartedly and is now delivering that program seamlessly to the retailer.”

He said Laurel understands that delivering that program to the retailer, having that IGA product on the shelf and then having the consumer bring it home is “a seamless delivery of IGA programming and IGA opportunities for the retailer that will deliver superior results.”

Stone said Laurel really cares about its retailers and acknowledges that it wouldn’t be anywhere without them. The company also recognizes that “the retailers are always going to have to come first if Laurel is going to prosper. But then at the same time, if Laurel can prosper, the retailers also will prosper. It’s really integrated into how they work with the retailers. They’re very close.”

Stone also said Laurel has a “tremendous sales team of store counselors” who work with retailers to address any issues they may have.

“It’s a good team,” he said. “I have to really call out Jake Jennings, who is the IGA contact, our first point of contact within Laurel for IGA…Jake’s a great resource for the IGA retailers within Laurel, and we wouldn’t be half of where we are without having Jake and all his team there that are supporting IGA.”

Jennings, senior director of marketing and advertising for Laurel, termed Laurel’s association with IGA as one of its most beneficial partnerships.

“A high percentage of Laurel’s sales volume is from IGA retailers, and Laurel carries one of the very highest SKU counts amongst all wholesalers nationwide,” Jennings said. “We have worked hand-in-hand with John Ross and the IGA team to develop a program for our retailers that taps into all of the great tools that IGA has to offer – the National Digital Ad, the Coca-Cola Institute and much more.

‘Thrilled’ to be a customer

Durham’s Grocery in Stanford, Kentucky, is approaching its third generation of family ownership. Manager Craig Crain said the store was founded by his grandfather in 1957. His parents, Joe and Robin Crain, bought it from him in 1977. Craig and his wife, Sarah, will be buying the store from them as they prepare to retire.

Durham’s has been a customer of Laurel Grocery Co. for about 45 years, Crain said. While there are other companies in the market, the Crains are “just so thrilled with Laurel.’

“They do their best to keep us competitive,” he said. “They do a great job on pricing and helping us with different programs that we can use at the retail level.”

This includes in-store radio and personalized ads for print and online. Crain added that the Laurel team helped set up the store’s website.

“What a great job that Kip [Faulhaber] and Jake [Jennings] and that team have done with our online presence. It was such a big thing for us,” he said. :We didn’t have Facebook, we didn’t have a website, we didn’t have any of that stuff a few years back.”

Durham’s online presence has grown to 10,000 followers in a town of 3,000 people.

“That’s pretty huge,” Crain said. “We’re able to reach people that we just weren’t able to reach before, thanks to them making it possible for us because we didn’t know how to take those steps and make that happen.”

“Their team is just great, constantly thinking of ways to make us more successful –because we’ve got to be successful for them to be successful, and they really do a good job at that,” he said.

Crain said their retail advisor listens and responds to any needs. One example is when Durham’s had an issue with some old endcaps. He happened to mention it and within a week he found some endcaps, came to the store and helped set them up.

“They are just great at anything we need,” Crain said. “They are on top of it.”

“Laurel has combined IGA’s offerings with our own exclusive Laurel programs to provide a unique experience for our IGA customers that is second to none.”

Jennings added that Laurel has won several consecutive “Love the Savings” and “Fall into Savings” IGA marketing contests. He credited the wins to supplementing IGA marketing materials with Laurel’s content for social media, in-ad promotions and contests.

“We have worked very closely with Ashley Page and Heidi Huff, who have been tremendously supportive of Laurel from a marketing standpoint,” he said.

Jennings also noted the growth of private brands among shoppers over the past three years.

“IGA and other private brand products are a huge part of Laurel’s value proposition and will continue to be in the future.”

Praise for going ‘above and beyond’

Tate Cox became president of his family’s company, Cox Foods IGA, in February 2020, just before the COVID-19 pandemic hit. Coming into a new position at such a difficult time, he said he was grateful to have Laurel Grocery Co. as the company’s wholesaler.

Laurel helped Cox Foods’ six stores in eastern Kentucky get through the pandemic.

“There were so many retailers out there who were struggling to get product, and Laurel did a fantastic job of making sure that the independent was staying competitive with top retailers around the country,” Cox said.

He said he considers the relationship with Laurel Grocery as a true partnership. “We have to work together in order to continue moving things forward. They’ve really stepped up to the plate and done a fantastic job over the last two-and-a-half years. They’ve been more than just a retailer. In my opinion, they’ve been good friends.”

With Cox Foods IGA and Laurel Grocery being family businesses, Cox said it really works and “kind of goes hand in hand.” He said the Laurel team is willing to go “above and beyond,” offering a little extra special attention that isn’t found in some larger wholesalers.

When eastern Kentucky was hit with major flooding earlier this year, Cox had just one store that sustained damage. But Laurel Grocery made sure his company had what it needed, including extra pallets of water to distribute in the community.

“The president of [Laurel] was on the phone with me the next day, asking, ‘What can we do to support you?’ That’s just one instance of many where they stepped up in an area where they wouldn’t have had to have done anything, but they did,” Cox said.

While the stores came through the floods relatively unscathed, the same was not true for 25 to 30 of Cox Foods’ employees. “They lost a lot, and some lost everything. It was definitely a challenge as we’ve kind of worked through that season,” Cox said. “It definitely helped that Laurel was willing to jump in and do what they could.”

‘Care a lot about retailers’

Bill Price, owner of McMaken’s IGA in Brookville, Ohio, has been a Laurel Grocery Co. customer since 2001. He chose Laurel Grocery because “they weren’t the biggest guy around, but they seem to care a lot about retailers, and it was like doing business in the old days. And it’s still that way.”

With Laurel, Price said he doesn’t have to go through several people to get an answer for anything.

“I could make a phone call to Winston Griffin, the owner, or David Pearson, the president of the company, or Kip, the vice president of merchandising, and get an answer that day,” he said.

Laurel Grocery often has gone the extra mile for Price, especially when Hurricane Ike came through in September 2008.

“They sent us reefer trucks and some people to help us restock the store,” he said. “They’ve always just went above and beyond what they really need to do.”

Price also enjoys the seminars Laurel offers, along with a conference call where people share ideas “about what’s happening in today’s environment.”

He also appreciates the fact Laurel is an independent wholesaler that has been family owned for 100 years.

“I think that means something,” he said. “I just think they’re good, hard-working, honest people who are a lot like the independent retailers. I’ve always felt like, as far as their pricing and the people that they have running the organization, they’re top notch.”