CIGBA/DCI Digital Newsletter Volume 5 Issue 3 |
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Thank You to our Neighbourhood Heroes! |
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From the East coast to the West coast, our CIGBA Board of Directors
We would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to our outgoing Board Members for their years of service: David Powell (Atlantic Grocery Distribution) & Tony Cataldi (Cataldi's Fresh Market).
We would like to welcome our two newest Board Members joining us in 2021: Michael Sharpe (Sharpe's Food Market) & Adam Powell (Atlantic Grocery Distributors).
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Top Row: Chairman Robert Galati (Galati Market Fresh Inc.), Vice-Chairman Nigel Oliver (Vince's Market), Treasurer Gordon Dean (Mike Dean's Local Grocer)
Middle Row: Past-Chair David La Mantia (J&B La Mantia Ltd.), Director Rocco Commisso (Commisso's Fresh Foods), Director Craig Cavin (Island Independent Buying Group Ltd.)
Bottom Row: Director Mike Sharpe (Sharpe's Food Market), Director Rick Rabba (The J. Rabba Company), Director Adam Powell (Atlantic Grocery Distributors)
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MESSAGE FROM BARRY LANTEIGNE, DCI PRESIDENT |
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The Board of Directors and myself would like to thank our CIGBA/DCI Members, Supplier Partners, and Industry Partners for your ongoing and continued support. With Covid-19 on the down turn, we are starting to see some normalcy as communities begin to reopen. This pandemic is far from over, but our members and partners have managed to continue to provide the best services possible to each of their customers across the country. To all of our Members and Partners who are frontline workers and who have continued to work to provide for the great people of Canada, thank you, and we appreciate all that you do!
CIGBA/DCI hosted its first ever Virtual Business Summit in June and the results were encouraging! We secured 68 Booths, that provided our members a snapshot of the products and services that our partners have to offer and we were able to offer our members the most Power Buy opportunities ever! If you attended the event, please take the time to complete the survey as we value our member and partner feedback. This info helps us develop stronger programs moving forward. We have been working hard to secure more business for our partners via the Virtual Business Summit and our 'Partner of the Month Program'. Our partners have the ability to showcase their products and services on a more frequent basis now more than ever! The Partner of the Month program is a great way to stay in touch with the members and also gives you partners the ability to showcase aggressive opportunity buys to generate additional sales and profits. Partners, please keep an eye out for our monthly requests to join in on this growing program. Another area of interest that we would like to work on with our partners is contests and promotions! Please connect with Barry to discuss potential opportunities.
Looking ahead for the remainder of the year, we will be connecting with Members to continue yearly business reviews, and return to in store visits, while simultaneously meeting with Partners to discuss further opportunities and CTA reviews.
Also, just a quick reminder that our yearly Annual Charity Golf Classic in September has been cancelled for 2021 and we look forward to seeing you all back in 2022.
As always, I am here to support our members and supplier partners so please reach out to me as required and I will be more than happy to help you in any way possible! I can be reached at 905-681-3933 or through email at barry@distributioncanada.ca.
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DCI CELEBRATED ITS 40th ANNIVERSARY WITH PAST & PRESENT COLLEAGUES |
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On June 23rd, 2021, DCI, along with CIGBA and EnsembleIQ celebrated its 40th anniversary in business by bringing together our Members, Partners, Media personnel, and special colleagues from our past to come together and catch up, celebrate, and relive some memories over our four decades of business! The 1.5 hour event included a 40 year presentation honouring our past and present Members and Partners, the history of past DCI presidents, board members, and management.
Thank you to everyone who joined us, and provided wonderful feedback about your experience at our virtual celebrations!
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NEW MEMBERSHIPS AND SUPPLIER PARTNERS |
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We would like to welcome Danial's Distribution (Mississauga, ON) to our growing Membership. If you are a Supplier Partner and require an updated membership list, please contact the CIGBA/DCI office.
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DCI has been continuing to on-board and create fresh opportunities with new Supplier Partners to better serve our membership!
The new Supplier Partners are:
Lemon Dream Disinfectant, Orange Breeze All Purpose Cleaner, Lemon Dream Disinfectant Concentrate, Lemon Dream Disinfectant Wipes, Dr. J. Disinfectant Wipes
Cherrish Original Cherry Juice 1L and Cherry-Pomegranate Juice 1L
St. Hubert Swiss Chalet Pies, Ribs, Sauces, Bonne Maman Jams, and assorted specialty foods and specialty cheeses.
Energy Management Solutions - Utility Bill Management, Custom Reporting, Utility Intervention, Grants and Rebates, Audits and Assessments, GA Cost Reduction, Strategic Energy Procurement, Financial Services
Omcan Equipment and Smallwares, Distributors of True Refrigeration, Vitamix, Delfin, Cambro, Winco, Turbo Chef, Biro, Elite, Hatco and More.
La Grotta Del Formaggio - Assorted Brands, Espresso, Coffees, Oils, Pasta, Olives, Sauces, Rice Bran Oil, Truffle, Vanilla, Fruit Jelly, Salsa, Pomegranate Juice and more.
Laundry Detergent Strips in Scented Fresh Breeze and Unscented
Taste of Nature Fruits and Nut Bars, Taste of Nature Granola Bars and Maze Bars Fruit.
Stay tuned for more Supplier Partner agreements currently in negotiations! All information will be posted onto the DCI Member Portal.
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49th Parallel Grocers Win FREE 2022 DCI Membership |
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As part of the 2021 CIGBA/DCI Virtual Business Summit, CIGBA/DCI Members were encouraged to visit booths and place meeting requests with Partner reps to win ballots for a chance to win a FREE 2022 DCI Membership! After pulling the winning ballot through a random number generator, we would like to congratulate 49th Parallel Grocery for winning their 2022 DCI Membership for FREE!
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CONGRATS 2021 CIGBA/DCI STAR AWARDS WINNERS |
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On June 23rd, 2021 the annual CIGBA/DCI Star Awards were presented virtually to the independent grocery industry. With attendance from members, retailers, partners, distributors, media, and VIP, this year celebrated DCI’s 40th year in business. This year the 40th Anniversary Mix and Mingle & Star Awards Gala were presented by Howell Data Systems Inc.
"Our industry relies on the efforts of our members and partners everyday, and I am proud to work with an amazing group of professionals that are passionate about the work they do supporting their teams and communities they serve,” says Barry Lanteigne, DCI/CIGBA President and Director of Operations, “I would like to give special shout out to all the members and partners that submitted nominations, and thanks to our events committee for selecting the winners! I look forward to seeing everyone in person in 2022!”
Taking the Partner of the Year category was CJR Wholesale Grocers, with members noting that they were the go-to partner to help them during the pandemic. After assisting a hungry shoplifter, Mike Williamson of Central Fresh Market and his team took home the category of Retailer of the Year. Continuing with member success, the new and upcoming Elora store ‘The Geddes Street Market’ took the award in Innovation with their new store concept, while DCI Partner, Jamieson Wellness took the award for Social Responsibility after assisting a mother of two kids with a rare disease that demanded a high supply of their vitamins, sourcing product from across the country and shipping them to her - free of charge. This year, the Leader of the Year award pluralized to become Leaders of the Year, after the joint nomination of Tom Shurrie and Gary Sands took the category win for their effective advocacy and representation of independent grocers at government level. Finally, the most prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award went to Steve Sharpe of Sharpe’s Food Market for his decades of service in the independent grocery industry and for being a staple in his community.
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RETAILERS, STAY CONNECTED WITH DCI! |
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Retailers, are you missing out on our messages? We are often sending out aggressive pricing promotions, power buys, new product announcements and informational resources dedicated to the success of your business.
If you are too busy to review our emails, we recommend having a dedicated person to receive all CIGBA/DCI related content that can report to you (such as category buyers or store managers).
The #1 message we receive from our Members and store owners are that you are very busy in stores, however, we ask that you take this time to review:
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that our emails are going to the correct person at your company
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that our emails aren't getting sorted into your Junk/Spam folder. If that is the case, be sure to whitelist our domain (@distributioncanada.ca) to ensure you are receiving all of our information
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that someone from your company is registered to order products on OrderEase (the DCI Power Buy ordering software)
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that someone from your company is registered and has access and login to the Member's Portal
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that you send in your reports when asked to allocate proper rebates with certain vendors
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that you check your mailboxes every month on the 1st for the Partner of the Month deals and promotions. Make this routine and know that you only have until the 15th to order products with aggressive deals.
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Breaking news, industry announcements, new agreements, Partners of the Month, and other opportunity buys are always sent out through email. This allows us to target our communication by location, type of store, and relevancy as well as give us detailed reporting on who is opening the announcements, which links they have clicked on and where to allocate our efforts for outreach if members haven't opened up these communications.
By ignoring emails or allowing them to go to your spam/junk folders, you could be missing incredible buying opportunities, programs, or helpful industry tips to better the success of your company.
Please email Matthew Brown to see which members of your company currently receive our communications (we segment by multiple lists, so be sure touch base with Matthew if you aren't aware as to who is receiving which communications).
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Only have a couple of minutes? Check out the DCI Social media pages on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Major public announcements are always posted on our social media and you can often find other industry bits of information shared on our pages.
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By logging into the portal, you will get access to your company's rebate reports. As well, any important announcements regarding changes in agreements will also be posted internally on the portal.
What else does the portal provide?
- new supplier partner agreements
- new programs and promotions
- revised supplier partner agreements and rebate scales
- your member reports
- the DCI by-laws
- the CIGBA by-laws
- summary of volume rebates
- AGM information
Once you've checked the portal for information and still don't see what you are looking for, please email or call the DCI office with your inquiry.
Please note: the DCI Member Portal is for Retailers only.
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SAVE THE DATE: CIGBA/DCI BUSINESS SUMMIT 2022 |
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SAVE THE DATE:
June 14, 2022
Looking forward to bringing together our industry in person! This event may be a hybrid model with in-person meetings and a virtual platform to compliment the Summit! Details to be announced!
LOCATION:
Toronto Airport Marriott Hotel
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CHARITY GOLF CLASSIC 2021 |
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Date: Postponed due to COVID-19
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Due to the ongoing pandemic, the hosting golf course has decided to cancel all tournaments for 2021.
We hope to see you in 2022!
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PARTNERS OF THE MONTH PROGRAM WITH DCI |
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Let DCI help you with any seasonal programs, new item or product launches, and quick sells. Our "Partners of the Month" program highlights up to 10 different Supplier Partners each month, and provides DCI members with monthly deals and incentives. This program is great for an increase in exposure (as a Partner) and to capitalize on great product deals (as a Member).
Email matthew@distributioncanada.ca to get started and become our next DCI "Partner of the Month" and start promoting your company and or Power Buy deals to our Members!
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GROWING THE INDEPENDENT FOOD INDUSTRY |
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DCI Members & Partners,
As you may know, we are partnered with the Advanced Business Match (ABM), a company that offers online technology to facilitate business connections.
The DCI Network has been invited to participate in the following event series:
Thursday, August 12 (12 - 4 PM EST)
Thursday, November 18 (12 - 4 PM EST)
Thursday, February 10, 2022 (12 - 4 PM EST)
This event is being held in partnership with Distribution Canada Inc. (DCI).
It brings together decision-makers that are in food production and the grocery retail business.
The event is highly valuable for:
- Indigenous and non-Indigenous food producers who want to grow, get on more grocery shelves and find partners to increase capacity and reach;
- suppliers from custom food manufacturers, to branding, marketing, labeling, software, hardware etc.
- companies that want to procure food from Indigenous and non-Indigenous producers;
- Indigenous communities that are, or want to be, in the food production, distribution or grocery retail business; and
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DCI Members who want to make connections in the Indigenous business space and explore the untapped potential of a food sector that is fresh, innovative and resonates well with customers looking to purchase ethical and local products with a compelling origin story. (Members & Partners of DCI attend for free!)
You are NOT required to attend all of them. Pick what is of value to maximize your time.
Each event features ten twenty-minute appointments. You do not have to fill all 10 slots. You are able to block times when you are not available and only accept or select appointments that are of interest to you.
To learn more, or to get started: connect with Katrin Harry, Managing Partner at ABM, first.
Cell: 604-483-6421
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CELEBRATE SUMMER WITH CANADA'S FAVOURITES PROMO 2021! |
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From May 10 - July 21, 2021, CIGBA/DCI in partnership with Maple Leaf Foods and Weston Foods, is running our joint promo: Celebrate Summer with Canada's Favourites! Members were encouraged to create product displays promoting cross merchandising, use admats created specifically for this program, and set up weekly promotions in their store flyers to accumulate ballot entries towards winning the grand prize!
Keep an eye out for the winning announcement for the grand prize and best displays as well as the upcoming Back to School promo running August 23rd - October 1st, 2021!
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Be a part of a community of retailers, manufacturers, suppliers and service providers to network and grow at Canada’s only virtual grocery event. Dedicated AI powered meetings, and opportunities to engage and network with all facets of the grocery trade. Showcase your brand, product or company through our virtual GIC LIVE @ HOME event and targeted communications. Click here for more information.
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FROM OUR SUPPLIER PARTNERS |
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Lactalis Canada Gives Back Using Blockchain Currency |
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Lactalis Canada has joined Canadian fintech company WhatRocks as a founding member and first Canadian partner to offer Canadian consumers digital currency to support their favourite charities. WhatRocks is a mobile wallet for good that brands credit with fixed-value blockchain tokens whenever online users view or click on their WhatRocks-labeled ads across the web for them to donate to the charities of their choice. In turn, beneficiary charities can then cash out in actual dollars by reselling their Rocks to the participating brands that will reuse them to reward users exposed to their next WhatRocks-labeled advertising campaigns.
“As we continue to play a vital role in feeding the nation, WhatRocks provides us with an innovative opportunity to further empower consumers and take a lead in driving charitable giving which has seen a sharp decline since the onset of COVID-19,” said Mark Taylor, president and CEO, Lactalis Canada.
“Lactalis has a long history of supporting charities. This was an amazing new concept, so innovative! To engage not only ourselves as a corporation, but even more so, the people who watch our advertising. This is a circular giving economy,” says Vincent Metz who is the the general manager for the fluid division at Lactalis Canada and one of the managers of this fintech-marketing collaboration.
Metz explains that the initiative will be carried out entirely across the digital landscape. Using WhatRocks tags on digital ads of Lactalis brands, people who engage with the ads will be able to designate a charity of their choice through blockchain currency.
“We are very confident and proud to be the first Canadian company to join this effort from WhatRocks and be a founding member,” says Metz. He highlights the importance of engaging more, especially younger, generations to participate in charitable giving by engaging digitally. Metz says this is a winner for the company, for brands, and ultimately for the charities and the people they benefit.
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Plant-Based Eating, and How Animal Foods Fit |
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Written By:
Margaret Hudson
President, Burnbrae Farms
I’ve been an advocate for healthy, balanced diets for many years, and love learning about how our eating habits affect our health. My plate is always filled with a bounty of vegetables, some delicious whole grains, and a good source of protein. And, I’ve eaten this way long before it became the model of healthy eating on Canada’s Food Guide plate.
The science behind Canada’s Food Guide includes studies that show how a healthy diet can help prevent chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some types of cancer. A balanced eating plan needs to include enough vitamins, minerals, protein and fibre to protect your health.
According to the Food Guide, a healthy plate is made up in the following proportions:
- Half the plate is from vegetables or fruit (plants)
- A quarter of the plate comes from whole grains (plants)
- A quarter of the plate comes from protein-rich foods, which may be from plants (beans, tofu) or from animals (eggs, dairy, meat, fish and poultry)
As you can see from the proportions, about ¾ of the plate comes from plants (vegetables, fruit and whole grains), which is the platform behind “plant-based eating.” The final quarter of the plate – the protein portion – can come from plant or animal-based foods. And there is science to support both!
Being plant-based doesn’t mean you have to skip animal foods altogether. According to Harvard dietitian Katherine D McManus, a plant-based diet “doesn’t mean that you are vegetarian or vegan and never eat meat or dairy. Rather, you are proportionately choosing more of your foods from plant sources.” And we do that naturally just by following the Food Guide, where ¾ of the plate is plants!
Some plant-based diets carry the risk of inadequate protein, vitamin, and mineral intake, especially when they are not well-planned. It turns out that there are nutrients found in animal-based foods that are not as abundant in plants, such as:
- Choline in eggs
- Iron and zinc in meat
- DHA omega-3 fats in fish
- Vitamin B12 in animal-based foods
The best diet includes a wide variety of foods so that you meet all your nutrient needs.
Food for thought
Animal-based foods can play very important roles in the diet. There have been some recent studies that show that diets are BETTER when they include some animal products. One study showed that antioxidants including vitamin E are better absorbed from vegetables when they are paired with eggs, and another study showed the same result for carotenoid antioxidants.
An observational study showed that the rates of stroke were 20% higher among vegetarians, but this pattern was not observed in pescatarians (vegetarians who include fish in their diet).
It’s also important to note that many plant-based proteins do not contain a complete amino acid profile, which means they are not “complete” proteins. Animal-based foods, such as eggs, poultry, meat and fish are complete protein. Scientists frequently use eggs as a standard for measuring the protein quality of other foods. Protein is measured based on the rate of efficiency that it’s used for growth. At 97.3 percent, eggs score higher than any other food and are considered the gold standard for high quality protein.
Finally, it’s important to note that there is a difference between whole plant-based foods (vegetables, beans, grains) and ultra-processed plant-based foods (potato chips, veggie burger or plant-substitute liquid ‘eggs’).
The Food Guide advocates for more whole foods and fewer processed foods, whether they are plant-based or not. But too many people see “plant-based” as a health halo and mistakenly think anything made from plants – even if it’s been highly processed – is nutritious. That’s just not the case.
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SUPPLIER PARTNER SPOTLIGHT:
H2O!
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See below for some opportunities for you to consider for your businesses.
Retailers, you can view their CTAs & volume incentives/special pricing by clicking on their logos and signing into the Members Portal!
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ESKA Inc.
Products: ESKA brand spring water
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Ice River Green Bottle Co.
Products: Ice River Green Natural Spring Water and Distilled Water, Osprey Organic Maple Water
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Powell's Supermarkets Donate to Autism Society of Newfoundland |
"During the Christmas season, our sister company Atlantic Grocery Distributors, was the exclusive distributor of the discontinued mint and orange flavours of Moritz Icy Squares, thanks to the amazing team at Regal. With Regal’s support, we committed to donating $1.00 from the sale of each tub sold at all Powell’s Supermarket and Value Grocer locations in NL, with $0.50 going to the Alzheimer Society and $0.50 to the Autism Society NL."
"As well, while the pandemic prevented AGD from hosting their annual Herbert J. Powell Memorial Golf Tournament in support of the Alzheimer Society, they still wanted to contribute to this important organization in memory of our founder, Mr. Herbert Powell. In lieu of the fees associated with attending the memorial golf tournament, industry partners joined AGD in supporting the Alzheimer Society of NL with a donation of their choosing.
The response was overwhelming, and $18,218.76 was raised!
Thanks to the amazing team at Regal and our fantastic customers, our supermarket's Icy Square fundraiser this past Christmas was a huge success. As a result, an additional $12,500 was donated to the Alzheimer Society, for a GRAND TOTAL of $30,718.76!"
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Geddes Street Market Opens with Soft Launch! |
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“This has been my dream [...] Elora loves supporting local and I want to support this community.”
Congratulations to Debra Kropf and her team at Geddes Street Market for their successful soft launch! We are looking forward to seeing your success!
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Pasquier Opens New Location in Delson, QC |
On May 27, 2021, Pasquier Grocers opened thier newest store location in Delson, Quebec. DCI would like to extend our congratulations and we wish you much success with the new location!
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Rabba Fine Foods reasserts its commitment to supporting intensive care units |
"On May 13, 2021, Rabba Fine Foods issued a cheque for $20,000 to Trillium Health Partners Foundation in an effort to support the region’s great need for intensive care services and facilities. Part of Rabba Roots, Rabba’s community giving program, the donation builds on a longstanding relationship between Rabba and Trillium Health Partners that dates back to 1995."
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Quickie Convenience Stores Donate $27,500 to Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario |
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"Quickie Convenience Stores was thrilled to present CHEO with a cheque for $27,500 from our "Ask at the Cash" event that was held this past May. A big thank you to all of our generous customers who contributed to this great cause, and also to our store dealers and their teams who made this possible. Our top performing store was our Poulin Avenue store which collected over $2000!"
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Summerhill Market donates over $7,000 worth of prepared meals to Emily's House |
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“Because of their generosity, children and their families of Emily's House have had ceremonial meals and nutritional support while receiving their hospice supports. Summerhill's delicious and wholesome food nourishes families at EH in times of true need, when maintaining their health and care is of utmost importance. The Summerhill team know that food is an important aspect of care and comfort, and they faithfully continue to support our organization year after year.”
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Central Fresh Market Raises $1500 for Cystic Fibrosis Research |
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"Josh and the team at Central Fresh Market were among the first to say "yes" to adding our barbecue sauce to their shelves. They even added our "condiment with a cause" to their weekly newspaper ad (and rumour has it there might still be a few bottles on the shelf from the 10 cases they purchased). To top it all off, Josh and the team at Central added another $500 to their donation to our campaign. Thank you for getting behind our new idea and making it so easy to raise another $1500 for cystic fibrosis research!"
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Kudrinko's Celebrates Pride 2021 with Demand for Action |
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"The toughest thing about being queer and living in a small town and not being out is when you're in the presence of people who might make a homophobic remark, and you don't say something because you're worried about your truth being exposed," said Neil Kudrinko. "You feel shame. You feel like a fraud."
Kudrinko, father of two teenage sons told his wife before they got married and also confided with close friends, but it wasn't until earlier this month that he decided to make it public in a Facebook post launching a new Westport Pride group, for the community that sits about 120 kilometres south of Ottawa.
Kudrinko teamed up with fellow Westport resident Jessica Roberts, a 43-year-old culinary instructor who works at Jake by the Lake, a popular gift shop on the village's main street, asking the town council to declare an official Pride Week, May 31-June 6, and to raise a Pride flag in recognition.
The town council has indicated it will agree to Westport Pride's request.
Kudrinko said the response to his initiative has been positive. "The support has been amazing. We are a village of 700 people. We already have 300 people following Westport Pride," said Kudrinko."
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3 ways grocers can unlock new value in a digitally driven world |
"There has been a dramatic shift in how consumers expect to interact with their grocer, including how they pay for their purchases. Consumer demand for omnichannel experiences and advanced digital commerce solutions, including curbside pickup, online ordering with delivery, scan-and-go and touchless payment options, has propelled the proliferation of these capabilities and continued to drive growth for the industry. Online grocery sales grew 54% in 2020 to reach $96 billion."
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If you would like to submit news from your company (Retailers & Supplier Partners) or would like to feature an ad (Supplier Partners) please email matthew@distributioncanada.ca
Click below to stay connected with CIGBA/DCI!
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On behalf of the DCI Management Team, Happy Summer to you and your company! If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to email us!
Barry Lanteigne - President:
Michele Vermeltfoort - Administration & Accounting:
Matthew Brown - Events, Communications & Technologies:
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