Innovation

The dietitian program first came to be in the stores of Nutley Park Shoprite and Shoprite of Belleville when it was first approved and implemented into the Nutley store by the owners’, the Lo Curcio and the Infusino family. The program was expanded to the location in Belleville when that store location opened for business in 2013. Responsibility went to management and human resources with finding the right dietitian(s) who would fit in well with the store’s culture and with implementing the program into the store’s operations. The biggest hurdles would have to have been integrating the dietitian into the store and how their role affects what the store does and also in spreading the word of the program when it was new. Funding for this program came from the store and its owner’s, but came with support from Wakefern. Expenses associated with the program were justified as it tied into Shoprite’s purpose of caring for its customers, but also that the program was very well-received and has high customer engagement, leading to the program still being active and further expanded when Shoprite of Belleville opened.

Stephanie Bini, the registered dietitian at Nutley Park Shoprite says that “As a dietitian, we just want to help people have their best life and be as healthy as possible...and that one of the best things that I like about this job is helping children and people of all different age groups and medical conditions.” As someone who has passion and excitement for health and wellness and a general desire to just want to help people, the store dietitian program allows for and inspires her to continuously help people in a way that she greatly enjoys and also benefits customers, associates, and the community.

Inspiration

The dietitian program is heavily tied to Shoprite’s purpose “to care deeply about people, helping them to eat well and be happy.” Simply saying that Shoprite cares about the health and well-being of its customers if there is nothing done to prove it. Furthermore, the chain always looks for ways to further serve their customers and enhance the customer experience. Given the saying actions speak louder than words, the dietitian program at Shoprite came into existence. By having dietitians on staff and dedicating the resources to help them succeed, Shoprite shows it cares about its people by providing its customer and communities with services that are free-of-charge. These services, alongside Shoprite’s traditional offerings, in turn provide people with the knowledge and resources they need to be able to eat healthier and be well and happy, should they choose to do so.

Overall impact

Some the qualitative impacts of the dietitian program is that customers will change their diets and focus on health goals such as losing weight or controlling their blood sugar, which in turn improves their health. The most common issues tend to be weight loss or control, blood sugar, and heart health related issues. The benefits produced is that patients who follow the recommendations generally see improvements or stabilization to their health conditions. The business is also impacted and benefited because it generates greater customer satisfaction which improves the reputation of the organization in the eyes of the community.

Some of the “short term impacts, when we work one on one with someone, obviously we’re making short goals to work that will better your health,” says Stephanie. People will initially change their diet, make goals that they would like to reach, and start to eat more healthier foods. These changes, goals, and knowledge that are made in the short run pave the foundation for any long-term effects. “Long term [is] helping people to better control their diseases, blood sugar control in the long term, heart health in the long term,… work with kids to try new foods, picky eaters to try new things and be open to new foods…trying to set kids up to be better eaters and healthier in the long run.” The long terms effects are that the people who do keep their diets healthy and follow advice given form healthier eating habits and see reduction or stabilization of their health problems, which in turn leads to living healthier and longer lives.

Business benefit

On the business end, in the short run, customer service engagement and satisfaction is increased. In the long run, customer retention and sales increases as the customers that continuously see and work with the dietitians will likely keep coming back to the store and shop there, and may also recommend the store and the program to their peers. Employees are also affected since if they take better care of their health, they won’t need to take as many sick days off, which benefits the store since it won’t be understaffed on certain days if many people do not call out sick.

Social and environmental benefit

Data regarding the patients who utilize the dietary services is recorded, but is mostly handled by Wakefern Food Corporation. Furthermore, information with regards to the number of people that are helped or interact with the dietitian is not kept track of. Stephanie does say that “every Shoprite is different, this Shoprite in Nutley is more focused on community events, 3 days a week I’m usually out in the community...2 days a week I set aside to try to definitely be in store and take consuls, and I’ll take from three to four per day, so about eight a week.” This roughly equates to 400 one on one consultations a year in just one of the stores, and with the other store location that also has its own dietitian, that number is much greater. Furthermore, the community events engage many other people, such as the cooking classes where there are generally at least 4 to 5 children and their parents. Additionally, there is much interest in this program since with “so many programs to offer and definite interest; as for events, I book out 3-4 months in advance, that I am full and booked as people are interested,” says Stephanie. Though the total number helped in these two stores alone isn’t counted, one can safely assume that hundreds to thousands are helped because of the dietitian program.

* taken from https://newsroom.shoprite.com/shoprite/news/survey-reveals-dietitians-favorites.htm

**taken from https://foodyadventure.wordpress.com/2014/04/28/shoprite-dietitian-program-offers-help-to-eat-healthy/

Interview

Stephanie Bini, Registered Dietitian