Large, varied liquor selection boosts traffic with popular sales

Harry Cherkesyan has been with Super King Markets for 17 years. He is the director of center store, which includes liquor, dry groceries and mixed nuts.

Cherkesyan worked for Jon’s Markets for 16 years before starting at Super King. He said he had decided it was time to see what else was out there.

While he had experience in grocery, he said his hobby is liquor. “So that’s how I became a grocery buyer, liquor buyer, mixed nut buyer, bakery buyer. I did everything, and then I started training other people so I could move up and manage.” He now has six buyers on his team.

While all of the departments are important to him, the liquor department at Super King is a bit unique. “We do find items that are very limited in the industry, and not many people could put their hands on them.” This includes several international selections, such as Japanese whiskies and Armenian brandies.

The large and varied selection is a draw itself, but the department sees even more traffic when Super King has a sale on liquor. “When it’s a sale, it’s really a sale…we want to make sure you know it’s on sale. And everybody in the industry is going to know that we’re running the lowest price.”

The company also has an alcohol e-commerce division, shopsk.com, where it offers same day local delivery, ground shipping and pickup. The liquor department is a store within the store, making it seamless for customers and giving them a five-star experience outside of the grocery store.

Cherkesyan said his buying team does a great job across all departments. “We trained them, we picked them. A lot of them got promoted from in store. They move up; the [Fermanian] family cares for their employees.”

According to Cherkesyan, that is one reason he joined the company. From his first day, the family has treated him like family. “I feel like I’m a family member. I’m not related to them, but I feel like they’re family to me.”

Cherkesyan and the Fermanian family share an Armenian heritage. He was born in Armenia while they came from Lebanon. Cherkesyan is married with two daughters, neither of whom is following in his career footsteps. “The grocery business is a very good business, but it’s not for everybody. You need to like the business to get into this.”

Reliable team always exceeding expectations

“We’d like to express our gratitude and appreciation for all the support Super King has given to Green Life Farms. The Super King team has always been professional, reliable and exceeded expectations. It has been a pleasure working with Super King, and we wish them continued success and a long bright future.”

– Jaime Torres, CFO, Green Life Farms