Mercadona, the supermarket chain, is moving towards a new business model that involves kitchen stoves and ecological containers. Juan Roig's group has tested this new concept in Burjassot (Valencia). On Friday Mercadona inaugurated its first freshly made hot food counter; an experiment that, if successful, would be replicated throughout the peninsula under the name of 'Ready to eat', according to a statement from the company.
Learning from tryouts
"We are testing and learning", stated sources from the supermarket who added that the project had begun a year ago with a team of nine people from the company's staff that had cooking training. "This doesn't mean that Mercadona is going to become a restaurant," stated the group, which has invested a million euros in this project so far. They have set up a culinary laboratory to design the recipes, determine the methods of preparation, choose the adequate machinery, and design the space in the establishments.
"We were asked for freshly cooked food made out of fresh homemade products to satisfy the customers that, at a certain moment, don't want to cook," states a project report, which claims customers required this type of service because there were days that they didn't have time to cook.
Ecological packaging
The food will be cooked in the supermarket, although some processes will be performed outside, such as the pizzas dough and the sauces for the pasta. In addition, some of the recipes will be displayed at the counter and will be served by rations - similar to the Nostrum model - where the customers can choose what ingredients and products they want, which can be ribs, meatballs, or paella, among others. The dishes will be served in ecological plates and containers made out of paper, cardboard, and sugar cane.
Awaiting acceptance
The chain is looking to gain knowledge about what recipes consumers prefer, where are the peak sales hours, and the kind of spaces they would choose. The group will take into account the results and the acceptance of this experiment in Burjassot to study equipping its surfaces with this new service in 2019.
This idea shows that Mercadona is committed to diversification and modernization. The group has already pioneered purchases through its website and is preparing its arrival in Madrid and Barcelona with two logistics centers to distribute its products to the customers in the areas that make online purchases.
Source: El Periódico