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Dorothy Lane Market: A Personal Chef for Dayton Consumers

Dorothy Lane Market has always defined itself by its exemplary customer service. Rather than lose sight of that principle as it grew from a roadside produce stand into a three-store, $60-million specialty supermarket, Dorothy Lane has moved with the changing times to fortify the service commitment.

The limitless confines that Dorothy Lane places on its motto, “the store that accommodates, has helped the third-generation, family-run company grow its locations in suburban Dayton. The most recent, a 49,000-square-foot showcase opened in Springboro in 2002, is among the most innovative supermarkets in the country.

Yearning and Trust
“The food is important, but our sales associates are what makes us stand out, says CEO Norman Mayne, who began working at age nine in the original Dorothy Lane, opened by his father Calvin and partner Frank Sakada in 1948. “Our customers yearn for service. They want good products, but they also want to trust their retailer.

Dorothy Lane’s customers are short on time and look to them to offer convenience on all levels, from supplying grab-and-go dinners to carrying bags to the car. Dorothy Lane pleases not only with a go-the-extra-mile attitude but also by providing one-stop emporiums to meet everyday and specialty needs. Like its sister locations in Oakwood and Washington Square, the Springboro store offers a mixed array of mainstream and specialty products. Although many of the 35,000-plus SKUs are mass-market supermarket fare, each department also offers an extensive selection of shelf-stable and perishable high-end lines, artisan products and natural and organic items.

The patisserie is a prime example of the upscale bent, bringing a taste of Paris to southwest Ohio with treats such as Alize Torte, Charlemagne, Apple Galette and Tarte au Citron. Conceived for the Springboro store, the department offers nearly 20 pastries prepared on-site each day by a staff of three. Chocolatier Ghyslain Maurais from Ghyslain Chocolatiers, Inc., Union City, Ind., whose chocolates are offered exclusively by Dorothy Lane, acts as a consultant to guarantee authenticity.

Artisan breads are part of bakery/patisserie and include brioche, French Boule, Paesano, sourdough and best-selling baguettes. While the dough is prepared at Washington Square and delivered daily, Springboro has its own hearth oven for baking, explains Scott Fox, bakery director.

Be Our Kitchen, Not Our Pantry
Customer-clamoring for prepared meals is growing the deli, which accounts for 14 percent of sales, approximately $42,000 per week. “We’ve heard our customers say, ‘be our kitchen, not our pantry,’ notes Mayne.

Along with nearly 30 salads and 50 entrées and sides, which include favorites such as Madama Ricotta Pie ($2.99/slice) and Chicken Fajitas ($3.49 each), Dorothy Lane offers oven-ready selections, pre-packed meals, pizza, sushi, rotisserie chicken, a salad bar and fresh soups.

The most innovative foodservice concept is Jack’s Grill. Shoppers can have their meat or seafood selection grilled fresh, enhanced by a variety of private-label sauces to take out or eat in at a café on the second level. The wine department will even uncork a bottle and provide Reidel glasses to accompany the meal. Sixty percent of grill selections are seafood. Farm-raised Shetland Farms Scottish salmon is especially popular, says Meat and Seafood Director Jack Gridley, for whom the grill is named. Alaskan wild salmon, too, is often selected.

Dorothy Lane’s meat converted to all-natural 15 years ago and includes Coleman beef, Du Breton pork, Bowman & Landes natural turkey and Dorothy Lane private-label air-chilled chicken. “Our customers were ahead of the curve in not wanting antibiotics, additives or hormones, notes Gridley.

Healthy Living in Ohio
Natural foods are available in every department, particularly produce, which continually expands its organic selection. And, like the meat case, the deli adds no preservatives, by-products, fillers, or additives to its items. Throughout the grocery aisles, signage and green shelf tags denote “Healthy Offerings, while “Organic or “All Natural signs are printed directly onto the doors in frozen foods.

With 26 percent of sales, grocery is the highest volume department. Olive oil is a leading seller with a selection of nearly 50 varieties, including many specialty lines. The best-seller is Vera Jane private-label oil from Tuscany, which sold 9,400 bottles in 2003. (Vera Jane is named in honor of Norman Mayne’s 98-year-old mother. Similar private labels are used such as Five Sisters vinegars in honor of Mayne’s half sisters; Texas Joe’s salsa is named after a sales associate.) Springboro features an ongoing olive oil tasting station and display on a shelf in the olive oil section.

Other growing specialty food categories include mustards, specialty drinks such as teas and upscale sodas, snacks, jams and preserves. Specialty cheese is also stressed, notes Calvin Mayne, COO and specialty food buyer along with Tom Winter, grocery director.

Products are sourced at the Fancy Food Shows and through extensive traveling. Dorothy Lane promotes local producers when possible, with signage highlighting Ohio companies like Hartzler Family Dairy and Caprine Estates. Each store also features a coffee bar featuring local roaster Boston Stoker beans. The center aisle showcases wines. Dorothy Lane boasts a chain-wide selection of 6,000 varieties, extending from classic vintages to boutique labels from France, Italy, Portugal, Spain and elsewhere. Many are priced in the $15 to $20 range. A temperature-controlled wine cellar houses premium varieties, with some vintages dating back to the 1800s, according to Decantings, the retailer’s wine newsletter. Wine tastings are held in-store every Friday and Saturday at the department’s elegant wine bar.

Customers Bring More Customers Each Dorothy Lane Market has a Customer Advisory Board, comprised of 12 volunteer members for a three-year term. The board advises on everything from product selection and merchandising to promotions and events. “They come to refer to it as ‘our’ store,’ or ask if ‘we’ carry an item, notes Kathy Neufarth, director of consumer affairs. “Their involvement helps spread the word of what we’re about.

The word-of-mouth theory is also the premise of Dorothy Lane’s Club DLM, a program established in 1995 to reward customer loyalty. While all members benefit from ongoing in-store price reductions and promotions, Club DLM is especially advantageous to top-tier shoppers, offering gifts and coupons determined by spending levels and savings on frequently purchased products. Tailored coupons and rewards based on sales rank are distributed via a mailed monthly newsletter, Market Report. Separate postcards offering bargains are also sent out on a monthly basis.

According to Norman Mayne, the top 30 percent of Dorothy Lane shoppers bring in 82 percent of sales. Club DLM communicates with these people with targeted, personalized rewards, instead of spending money on print and media advertising to reach out to new shoppers. Concludes Mayne, “Our customers are what bring in new customers.

Denise Purcell is managing editor of Specialty Food Magazine.