What to Look for When Shopping for a Showcase

Over the past 10 years the European way of displaying baked goods has become more predominent in the Northamerican market place. The major change is the realization that displaying less in a more attractive showcase is more for many reasons.

Refrigeration

Any refrigerated environment is hard on your product. The colder it gets the more humidity is taken out of the air surrounding your product. That's just simple physics and the only way refrigeration happens.

Subsequently, the humidity is taken out of your product leading to substantial losses.

For that reason it is important to display only what you can sell within 24 to 48 hours.

A typical Northamerican style high volume case with the capacity of holding, lets say, 40 cakes looks half full or half empty with only 20 cakes left on display in the early afternoon. A European style case, holding only 20 cakes and being restocked all the time will always look fresh, appetizing and appealing to your customer with a minimum loss of product humidity.

Also, keep the case temperature as close as possible to the legal limit of 4°C or 40°F. Lower temperatures will not increase the shelf life of your product – it will only increase the loss of humidity in your product.

There are still some of those 'dinosaurs' in the market that have the evaporator coil on the top of the case, right where the most attractive display area for your product shouild be. Because of the loss of space in the top area these cases usually go very low with their display to make up for it.

It is common knowledge in the supermarket industry – and this is true for bakeries also – that the further away from your custmers eyelevel your product is located the less likely he or she is going to notice it.

Modern, Europen style display cases have oversized evaporator coils below the display area with slow moving fans to disribute the cooled air evenly within the display area. Over sized evaporator coils are very important; they allow the coil temperature to be relatively high (around 25°F or -4°C) while still maintaining the required cooling for the cases. A smaller evaporator coil has to run at much lower temperatures (around 15°F or -10°C) in order to achieve the required temperature within the case and with that it does damage twice. First, the smaller colder coil will collect more humidity on the fins which it gets from your product. Second, air has to move faster to maintain acceptable temperature levels and to prevent the coil from icing up too quickly.

Fast moving air, however, has the same negative effect on your product as refrigeration itself: it removes humidity from your product!

Yes, a larger coil will cost more initially, but it will pay back in the long run by providing a much more gentle cooling environment for your pecious and delicate products.

Humidification

Although refrigeration is preventing your product from being prematurely spoiled, it will spoil it in time by extracting humidity. Some manufacturers have sophistcated humidification systems available to increase the humididty levels in your showcase and keep premature spoiling of your product in check. The usually high cost of maintenance is due to the fact that most of these systems have to be cleaned at least once a week. If those cleaning schedules are not followed meticulously the units break down due to calcium built-up or other water source related problems leading to costly repairs. Look for a humidification system that is self-cleaning or needs a minimum of maintenance.

IS A HUMIDIFICATION SYSTEM WORTH THE MONEY?

Here is one example: Lets assume you have to discard one cake or any other product worth $10 per day because it hasn't been sold within 48 hours and is showing some signs of fatigue in form of cracks and 'rubbery' creme. You have lost at least $3,000 worth of product in one year. Now lets assume that a humidification system could cut this cost in half, which it does.

One high tech humidification system, most likely an ultra-sonic system, shouldn't cost more than $1,500.

That sounds like a lot of money to invest upfront, but its an investment which has paid for itself in about 6 months. And you may never have to face an unhappy customer complaining about a dried out cake! We all know: a customer will always remember that one unfortunate time he was not satisfied, forgetting years of satisfaction in split second.

Display! Display!

In order to sell as much product as possible to each customer entering your store the display has to look absolutely immaculate in every way. Well-lit shelves with color correcting lights or color enhencing light covers and a clean surrounding are essentials.

If your product doesn't look appetizing it won't sell as much as it could. Look for lights that will enhance the appearance of your quality product!

A high volume case with four levels of display is not realy a display case in the sense of the word; its rather a better storage case holding a lot of product nobody is able to see anyways.

In such cases, less than 30% of the product is actually visible to the customer. A well designed European style showcase must display at least 60% of the product within the case without your customer being forced to do bending exercises.

What your customer can see easily will sell more likely! Here again: Less is more!l

Showcases are not a status symbol - they are only a merchandising vehicle to sell more product. Lots of chrome or brass are not necessarily the help you need from your showcase. Of course, from a distance the showcase has to look attractive to get your customers attention. Once your customer has approached your case the predominant visual effect should be your product – nothing else! In fact, if the showcase visually almost disappears and your product is the only thing that realy stands out you have got the vehicle that gets you on the road to success.

Look for a showcase that presents your product in the best possible way, a showcase that enhences the appearance of your product with well lit shelves and absolutely no visual distractions like moldings, trimmings, front support or solid side gables. End gables with mirrors inside may look impressive when your customer is standing right in front of the case. But they are a visual barrier when the case is viewed from the side.

And you should get the milage out of your case from every possible angle. Of course, if your case ends at a wall a mirrored end is an attractve enhencement.

Another very important feature of European style cases is the rear work shelf. It enables the sales staff to reach the product with ease and to wrap the goods without losing eye contact with the customer. Let's not under estimate the importance of eye contact. A break-down or interruption of communications between the sales personell and the customer may cost you a very profitable additional sale.

Fulfilling a need is poor selling!

Selling above the need is making additional profit with the same cost.

Clean! Clean! Clean!

You put a lot of pride in to creating a top quality product and you spent the money to get the best display case available. Don't let untidiness or the lack of cleanliness get your product and your image down. Modern, well designed European style showcases offer avariety of features that make keeping it clean and tidy a snap. Curved front glasses that tilt forward or lift up out of the way for easy cleaning and access to the refrigeration compartment are standard affaires. Side glasses and rear sliding doors that are easily removable, without any tools, are features to look for.

To empty a 6' European style refrigerated or dry case and clean it thouroughly should not take longer than 15 minutes at a labor cost of, let's say, $3 per day. Those $3 invested yesterday will multiply today as you show off your product indicating freshness, clenliness and the kind of care your customer expects from you.

Don't let last weeks crumbs lessen your sales today.

If you believe that profit is not at all a dirty word, if you want to increase your sales and decrease your losses, if you feel your product deserves to appear as good as it has been made, then look for a showcase that can do all this for you, your product and your customer.