Potatoes are typically a top-selling item at retail, especially during the fall and winter seasons when friends and families gather for home cooked meals.
The tubers rank among the top 5% of produce sales at Piggly Wiggly LLC, a chain of 241 stores based in Bessemer, Ala., says Jeff Vigil, director of produce and floral.
Potato sales are higher in the six Southeastern states the co-op serves than in other regions where Vigil has worked.
“The Southeast is very, very aggressive with potatoes,” he says.
Piggly Wiggly stores feature about 10 SKUs of bagged red, yellow, yukon gold and Idaho-labeled potatoes; four kinds of bulk potatoes; 15 SKUs of packaged potatoes, including trays and foil-wrapped tubers, and four kinds of sweetpotatoes.
“Potatoes are always a staple, but winter always has higher movement because there is more baking going on,” he says.
Five- and 10-pound bags of russets are the top-selling potato offering at W. Lee Flowers & Co., a Scranton, S.C.-based chain of 52 supermarkets, says Jim Williams, director of produce and floral.
Red and yukon gold potatoes are the next best sellers, and the stores also feature organic red and russet potatoes, bulk russets, sweetpotatoes, red, yellow and a trios blend of mini potatoes, microwaveable russets and sweetpotatoes, and small microwaveable bags.
In all, stores carry about 17 potato options, and they rank among the top five bestselling produce items, Williams says.
Potatoes rank among the top 10 produce items at Hattiesburg, Miss.-based Corner Market, a chain of 21 stores located throughout Mississippi and Alabama, says Josh Smith, produce supervisor.
Stores offer about 20 potato options, including 3-pound bags of red and gold potatoes, 5- and 10-pound bags of russets and, for special holiday promotions, 8- and 15-pound bags of jumbo russet potatoes to accommodate large family gatherings, Smith says.
Five-pound bags of russet potatoes are the bestsellers.
Corner Market locations also offer bagged Green Giant potatoes from Potandon Produce LLC, roasting potatoes from Little Potato Co. and a large selection of Tasteful Selections from RPE LLC.
At Pete's Market, a chain of 20 supermarkets based in Tinley Park, Ill., white potatoes and bagged russets are the two bestsellers, says buyer Patrick Morales.
“We also move a lot of 3-pound yukons,” Morales says.
The stores feature a number of specialty potatoes, including Green Giant brand Klondike potatoes in 1.5-pound bags and 3-pound packages of Green Giant Carb Smart yellow potatoes.
“A lot of specialty varieties have really picked up since 2020,” Morales says, while conventional potatoes have only experienced a slight sales boost.
Bagged potatoes account for about 60% of the chain's potato sales.
Consumers buy large baking potatoes for summer grilling, he says, “but winter is when you're really moving volume.”
Merchandising That Moves Product
Although all the Piggly Wiggly stores have different layouts, potatoes and dry items are usually merchandised toward the back of the produce department, and seasonal fruits and vegetables are displayed up front, Vigil says. The size of the potato displays varies from about 4 feet to 12 feet, depending on volume and the size of the produce department.
Potato four-packs also may be displayed in the meat department near the steaks, he says. Potatoes are also cross-merchandised with items like potato toppings from Concord Foods LLC.
Vigil says Piggly Wiggly stores highlight potatoes regularly, running at least one variety of potato in every ad.
The W. Lee Flowers potato table is about 20 feet long, with about 12 feet dedicated to bagged tubers, Williams says. Bags outsell bulk product because consumers consider that option to be a better value, he explains.
“Even if a 10-pound bag sells for $6.99, it's only 69 cents a pound,” Williams says.
W. Lee Flowers stores also feature a bagged or bulk potato on ad just about every week.
Stores cross-merchandise potatoes with bacon bits, salt and pepper, aluminum foil for wrapping baking potatoes, and Fresh Success packets of bacon and chives among other flavors of toppings.
“If a grocery department has shelf-stable butter, we tie that in, too,” he says.
Brown sugar, marshmallows, glaze, pecan and meats are cross-merchandised with sweetpotatoes.
In most Corner Market stores, potatoes are displayed in the back of the produce department, Smith says.
The main display table is about 8 feet wide, and promotional items are featured in 4-foot displays.
Bacon bits as well as other kinds of potato toppings are cross-merchandised with potatoes.
Although the modest price of potatoes might encourage sales, price alone does not prompt purchases, Smith says. Shoppers typically arrive with potatoes on their grocery list, yet volume is also influenced by location, promotional displays and the fact that potatoes are featured in nearly every ad.
Pete's Market stores usually merchandise potatoes and onions in the back of the produce department because they're not impulse items.
“You don't need to put them in [consumers'] faces in order for them to buy it,” Morales says.
But their stores might place a rack of specialty potatoes toward the front to add a secondary space.
Potato tables are about 24 feet long with about 4-foot end caps. Spuds are cross merchandised with bacon bits or other toppings. And their stores usually feature at least one potato on ad each week.
“Onions and potatoes are still two of the lower-priced categories where things are still 99 cents,” Morales says. “Price is definitely a selling point.”
