Capitalising on growth while making chilled foods easier to shop
Chilled foods continue to be a popular part of the grocery mix. Consumers appreciate freshness, quality and convenience, from ready meals and fresh dairy to cold cuts and food-to-go, and a vast majority of shoppers include chilled items in their baskets as part of everyday shopping.While volume trends can vary across markets, value sales are growing, particularly for products that deliver on convenience without waste.
Shoppers expect chilled cabinets to be:
- Easy to browse
- Consistently stocked
- Well organised
Busy lifestyles drive frequent chilled purchases, but the variety of pack formats and high turnover rates make it hard to deliver on these expectations day after day.
What stores struggle with
In chilled areas, store teams often have to manage a combination of fast shopper turnover and demanding working conditions. High shopping frequency means shelves empty quickly, while frequent replenishment can interrupt other tasks and workflows.
The wide range of packaging sizes and formats can easily look disordered without constant attention, and working in cold environments can slow manual handling – not to mention the discomfort for personnel. On top of this, longer door-open times during restocking can affect temperature consistency and energy consumption.
Together, these factors make it more challenging to maintain strong product visibility and a consistent perception of quality for shoppers.
“To sum up, I would not have chosen anything else if I would do this again.”
- Rasmus Andreasson, Store Manager, ICA Supermarket Trollbäcken, Sweden
How HL helps chilled perform
HL offers merchandising solutions tailored to chilled food realities, helping stores deliver on shopper expectations while supporting operational efficiency.
Automated front-facing and pusher systems
Shelf pushers and systems like Multivo™ Max and Next™ ensure products stay front-faced and orderly throughout the day, reducing manual front-facing and improving presentation.
Shelf organisation tools
Shelf dividers and custom organisers maintain separation of varied formats, helping products stay neat, visible and easy to browse even at peak times.
By streamlining replenishment workflows and reducing manual handling, HL solutions help stores save time and keep chilled displays performing from open to close.
“We’ve worked it out to be about 45 minutes every day where staff don’t have to merchandise the store sections that are using Multivo™ Max.”
Harj Dhasee, Store owner, Morrisons Daily, Mickleton, UK
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