Safeway Supports New Store Brand With Facebook Contest

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September 6, 2011

Pleasanton, Calif.-based Safeway is hosting a contest in support of its Open Nature all natural private label line by asking shoppers to vote for America’s Most Natural City on Facebook. The winning town will get 25 picnic tables, a cash donation and one lucky participant will win a year’s supply of Open Nature branded foods.

Safeway launched the Open Nature line in January, beginning with the meat category and since then expanding it to bakery, dairy, deli, frozen and grocery. All products are 100 percent natural -- defined as raised without antibiotics, have no added hormones, are fed an all-vegetarian diet and contain no artificial preservatives or artificial ingredients. Safeway has supported the private label launch with a variety of community and social network-based promotions.

In June, Safeway built a picnic table longer than a football field setting the Guinness Book of World Records as the largest picnic table at 305 feet. That table will now be divided into 25 separate tables and given to the city that gets the most votes on Facebook to win the “most natural” city title. Safeway will also donate $20,000 to the winning city's local parks and recreation organization, which have come under pressure from countrywide budget cuts.

“When we developed Open Nature, we listened to our customers to help us define what natural should mean when it comes to their food,” said Nancy Cota, vice president of innovation, consumer brands at Safeway. "We heard what they were looking for in natural foods, it's now time to hear what they think makes their city the most natural city in the U.S. Whether it's their parks, outdoor activities or their promise to be environmentally friendly, we want to reward that city's commitment to being natural. Local parks and recreation departments across the country told us they need support due to budget cuts and we want to step up and make a difference."

Consumers can vote through Friday, Sept. 16 at www.Facebook.com/Safeway for one of 15 pre-selected cities where Safeway and its family of stores have a significant presence in the community. The contenders include: Austin, Baltimore, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Tucson and Washington, D.C. Fans can vote up to 100 times, not just for their favorite city to win, but to increase their own odds of winning a year's supply of Open Nature foods.

SBD Views: We continue to believe that innovation in consumer marketing will be an important driver of future store brands growth. I suspect we’ll be seeing more from Safeway on this front with Open Nature. -- John Failla for Store Brands Decisions

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