Discussing and working on business plans in class has triggered me to focus on interesting concepts I hear about in the media. Recently I heard about an unusual business plan proposed by the former president of Trader Joe’s grocery stores. He is opening a grocery store/cafe, The Daily table, which will sell food items that have passed their sell by date. However, there is a difference between sell by and expiry dates. He recognizes that there is a whole sector of the population which is currently under-nourished due to their income levels (healthy foods tend to be expensive), so why not utilize good food which would otherwise be thrown out. What a brilliant concept as the inventory for his store will be available to him at an extremely low cost, and in some cases free, thereby keeping his overhead low. As well, if you factor in a federal tax credit as well as the positive public relations a project like this generates resulting in reduced need for a marketing and advertising budget, his potential for a good return is high. His business plan focuses on selling groceries, but what makes the Daily Table’s model different is that it also addresses another problem: time. By providing prepared, nutritionally sound meals at pricing equal to fast food, he can appeal to more customers. I wonder if his interest in pursuing this endeavour is a response to the criticism he received while president of Trader Joe’s, in regards to the amount of food they discarded? It is possible that his involvement in traditional entrepreneurship has led to this social enterprise?
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2013/09/21/222082247/trader-joes-ex-president-to-turn-expired-food-into-cheap-meals