Murray’s Cheese Opens 300th Store Inside Kroger
Murray’s Cheese opened its 300th store inside Kroger earlier this month.
The location that set the milestone is up for debate. The venerable New York cheese retailer opened three on the same day – Chesapeake, Va.; Auburn, Ala., and Collierville, Tenn., explains Nick Tranchina, executive vice president of Murray’s Cheese.
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“We are opening new stores every week.” Currently, Murray has 314 locations across all of Kroger’s banners.
The past 26 months have been marked by rapid-fire growth. When Murray’s Cheese was profiled in theJune 2014 issue of The Gourmet Retailer, there were 114 stores inside Kroger.
“We have been very, very busy,” states Tranchina. Murray’s and Kroger has been able to roll out these new stores very quickly, thanks to its training program and Murray’s team of cheese educators.
A Team Effort
“When we started doing this in 2008, there was two of us, then for a couple of years there was three of us,” says Tranchina about Murray’s 16-person team of cheese educators. “As we get bigger and better at what we do, we can move faster,” says Tranchina.
These Murray’s employees live in or near the Kroger division hubs such as Denver, Atlanta, Cincinnati and Los Angeles, to name a few.
Having a knowledgeable team in-store is critical for the success of the Murray’s in-store locations. They are manned by Kroger employees who are trained by Murray’s cheese educators.
“Kroger has been willing to invest in its team of people,” says Tranchina. “This enable us to work with them and train their people at a very high level. This year, 47 Kroger employees sat for the rigorous American Cheese Society’s Certified Cheese Professional (ACS CCP) exam. Last year, 40 Kroger employees took the test.
Murray’s and Kroger employees take Murray’s six-month training program before taking the ACS CCP exam.
Next Steps
Murray’s is on track to open more locations inside Kroger division stores. “We are not slowing down. We have another 60 stores on calendar that will open this year,” says Tranchina.
There's room for growth; the Cincinnati-based Kroger Co. operates more than 2,778 retail food stores in 35 states.
The location that set the milestone is up for debate. The venerable New York cheese retailer opened three on the same day – Chesapeake, Va.; Auburn, Ala., and Collierville, Tenn., explains Nick Tranchina, executive vice president of Murray’s Cheese.
“We are opening new stores every week.” Currently, Murray has 314 locations across all of Kroger’s banners.
The past 26 months have been marked by rapid-fire growth. When Murray’s Cheese was profiled in theJune 2014 issue of The Gourmet Retailer, there were 114 stores inside Kroger.
“We have been very, very busy,” states Tranchina. Murray’s and Kroger has been able to roll out these new stores very quickly, thanks to its training program and Murray’s team of cheese educators.
A Team Effort
“When we started doing this in 2008, there was two of us, then for a couple of years there was three of us,” says Tranchina about Murray’s 16-person team of cheese educators. “As we get bigger and better at what we do, we can move faster,” says Tranchina.
These Murray’s employees live in or near the Kroger division hubs such as Denver, Atlanta, Cincinnati and Los Angeles, to name a few.
Having a knowledgeable team in-store is critical for the success of the Murray’s in-store locations. They are manned by Kroger employees who are trained by Murray’s cheese educators.
“Kroger has been willing to invest in its team of people,” says Tranchina. “This enable us to work with them and train their people at a very high level. This year, 47 Kroger employees sat for the rigorous American Cheese Society’s Certified Cheese Professional (ACS CCP) exam. Last year, 40 Kroger employees took the test.
Murray’s and Kroger employees take Murray’s six-month training program before taking the ACS CCP exam.
Next Steps
Murray’s is on track to open more locations inside Kroger division stores. “We are not slowing down. We have another 60 stores on calendar that will open this year,” says Tranchina.
There's room for growth; the Cincinnati-based Kroger Co. operates more than 2,778 retail food stores in 35 states.
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