Give Your Retailing Local Quality

Stop & Shop and Giant Food, both of them parts of Dutch conglomerate Royal Ahold, announced that Starbucks kiosks in a number of the stores would be replaced with another coffee supplier. Discussions about this by retailing consultants, such as on the RetailWire membership site, reminded me of the value of all retailers keeping local quality.
     Here's what I mean: With some of the current Starbuck's installations, the replacement is Dunkin' Donuts, whose home is Canton, Massachusetts. That's much closer to the Stop & Shop/Giant stores than Starbucks, which although often seeming to have a presence on every street corner in the world, is most strongly associated with the aroma of Seattle.
     Keeping it local is an intention of even the largest of large retailers, Wal-Mart, which gives a bow towards the neighborhood with their Local Supplier initiative. And last time I checked, McDonald's in Bangor, Maine offered lobster sandwiches, but in my California hometown, that slot on the menu board is taken by burritos. When your shop—McDonald's or not—offers hamburgers in Pittsburgh, you'll sell more potato chips if you stock only local favorite Utz than if you stock only Frito-Lay, even though Frito-Lay makes the best selling potato chips in the U.S.
     Better to stock both brands. It's also best to realize that keeping it local works only when local is associated with attractive quality. Some of the retailing experts discussing the Ahold decision said that the staff manning the Starbucks kiosks acted more like grocery clerks than baristas; there was no WiFi; and the kiosks didn't accept Starbucks gift cards. This was not the Starbucks experience.
     What are you doing to keep the local quality in your retailing? Quality meaning the local touch, and quality meaning the full value of the shopping experience for the customer.