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NCBP Expands It's Base Of Independent Grocers!
Welcome to Our New Customers
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Arc Value Village-Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN
Brine's Market -
Stillwater, MN
Hahn's Market -
Eau Claire, WI
Harvest Moon Co-op -
Long Lake, MN
River Market Co-op - Stillwater, MN
Spring Valley Supervalu - Spring Valley, WI
Ben's Super Center-
Brown City, MI
Hutch's Food Center-
Spring Arbor, MI
Skabroud's Store-
Sheldon, WI
Thank you for your business.
See What Our Customers Are Saying About Us!
We're HERE whenever you need support or consultation.
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Increase Sales | 
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Looking to increase sales through existing customers? Contact us today about adding a loyalty program to your Grocery POS solution.
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Contact Us For More Information
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STORES Favorite 50
STORES' annual list of the online retailers consumers like most.
New research shows that self-service is the No. 1 preference for customer service - and the key to building shopper loyalty.
A majority of merchants surveyed recently said they plan to either keep holiday hiring levels in line with last year or increase the number of seasonal workers, according to a new survey.
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WHAT INTERESTS YOU?
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X-Press Lines is looking for your ideas and suggestions for future issues.
If you have an idea and want to share it, contact us at:
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Unified Threat Management
A complete network
security solution
Virus, spyware prevention
Content filtering
ViewPoint reporting software
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CUSTOM GIFT CARDS
Order Your Custom Gift Cards Today!
Contact:
Melissa Dreyer
888-505-0544
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Loss Prevention
Solutions
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Reduce Employee Theft;
- Reduce Liability for
Accidents, Slip-and-falls
- Reduce Vendor Fraud
- Increase Efficiency in
Video Investigations
- Increase Productivity of
Employees
- Increase Accountability
of Customer Service
- Make Business Decisions Based on Fact, Not Assumptions
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Greetings!
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Welcome to X-Press Lines
North Country Business Products is committed to being a value added business partner to our current and future customers. We are able to serve your technology needs today and well into the future. Throughout the years, we have become an industry leader in providing independent grocers with innovative business solutions that help them succeed in improving customer service, business operations, and ultimately the bottom line. And, it's because of our customers' success that we have earned their respect and have built long term relationships that make NCBP a trusted source of information and knowledge.
We are pleased to share some of our knowledge and experiences with you in our new quarterly newsletter, X-Press Lines. X-Press Lines is designed to inform and educate you on the latest technology trends from value added technology partners like NCR. We also want to keep you updated on the latest industry related business trends because you never know, you might get a great idea that can help your business. You will also notice that our customers speak in their own words. We work hard every day to make their daily lives easier and a little better.
On behalf of all of us at NCBP, we hope that you enjoy reading X-Press Lines. Let us know your thoughts, comments or share an experience with technology that has helped improve your business.
Sincerely,
Dean
Dean Crotty, President
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PCI Compliance-Are you At Risk?
 There are inherent risks in running a business. One that is contistently plaguing merchants is the risk of
customers' credit card data falling into the wrong hands. What should you do? Be Proactive!
You need to take the appropriate steps to insure that your business is PCI and PA-DSS compliant. PCI (Payment Card Industry) and PA-DSS (Payment Application Data Security Standard) are designed to provide you with the information and technical standards needed to mitigate the risks associated with storing, processing and transmitting your customers' credit and debit card data. The thing to remember is, you are "contractually" responsible to make sure the data is secure while in your possession. Are you at Risk? Are you ready? The deadline for PCI compliance was July 1, 2010. Take our PCI Compliance quiz [click here] to see if you're ready. NCBP is here to help and can provide assistance with achieving and maintaining compliance.
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Take Our PCI Compliance Quiz |
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 It's In the BasketGrocery Industry News and Trends
Economical Product Choices Bring Gains
New economical product choices bring gains to grocers. Grocery sales are trending up over the last five years according to the latest data published in Progressive Grocer's 62nd Annual Consumer Expenditures Study (CES). According to the study, total supermarket sales were $430.3B up $13.2 billion from the $417.2 billion recorded in 2007.
Click here to learn more about the report.
Business is Looking (a Bit) Better
In its 77th annual report on the grocery industry, Progressive Grocer's data came out better than expected. Although the market conditions were tough for retailers, PG stated that
" America's grocers are ready to kiss the doom and gloom goodbye, and focus instead on the silver linings that have begun to emerge." PG's report provides exclusive research which includes in-depth information on 2009 supermarket sales, average supermarket performance measures, shopper traffic, the importance of merchandising/marketing strategies, and competitive threats, among many other issues of importance to supermarket operators.
Click here to learn more about the report.
Your Customers Are Mobile
Are you ready for mobile customers? The National Retail Federation (NRF) recently launched the Mobile Retail Initiative. The purpose of the initiative is to offer best practices and learning opportunities for retailers diving into mobile commerce and marketing. NRF president Tracy Mullin recently stated that, "Mobile has great promise for bringing major, positive changes to the shopping experience, payments, marketing and other aspects of retail".
Read more about mobile |
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Upcoming Industry Events
NCBP participates in industry events throughout the year. Please join us at one of the following upcoming events.
September 21 - 22nd Wisconsin Grocers Show
Milwaukee Hilton & Frontier Airlines Center
Milwaukee, WI
Stop by and see us at the show | Booth 5
* Appointments welcomed. Please Contact: Mike Schaden [920-213-5763] September 28th Illinois Foods Retailers Show
Hilton Complex, Champaign, IL
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Where's The Beef?
GS1 Bar Coding
Today's fast paced business environment requires quick thinking and rapid access to information about perishable food products that can potentially have an adverse affect on your customers and your business. In the grocery business, unless you personally raised the cow or chicken that's on your shelves, you need to have critical data points that define their "traceability" for items that are highly perishable and subject to bacteria that can cause severe harm to humans. There is new bar code technology available to the grocery industry called GS1 DataBar codes that addresses this issue. The new DataBar codes essentially provides more information about the products that are on your shelves because they encode additional identifiers such as sell-by-date, weight and lot number. Want to find out more? Give NCBP a call. Together NCBP and NCR offer innovative products and services that can help you implement the new bar code standard in your business. Contact (888) 505-0540 for more information and a free site consultation.
Click here to hear more about GS1 Bar Coding. | |
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 Okay, who's BOB? Or better yet, what is BOB? BOB is bottom of basket loss. Too often is the case that we miss a "case" or two of beer, pop, or water on the bottom of the basket. After all, out of sight, out of mind! "One of the main reasons for BOB events, says industry veteran Alex Hudnut is, quite often cashiers are focused on moving customers through their lines, and on reducing backlog. With the lack of focus or a trained eye, losses are more likely to occur because what's on the bottom of the basket often goes unnoticed. In addition to cashier errors, it's a shoplifter's opportunity to commit the perfect crime", says Hudnut. He also points out that due to the tough economic times, BOB is on the rise. In fact, the typical grocer is losing at least ten basis point or more to BOB loss. Do the math: if the "typical" grocer were to tighten up his/her shrink control, the annual savings to the bottom line is $35K-$50K! So, the next time you walk past your cash lanes, ask yourself the following question, "how many BOB events occurred in my store today?" What can you do, call NCBP. We can help you assess your current cash lanes and develop an implementation plan to put you on the right track with technologies from Evolution Robotics called LaneHawk. For more information contact us today at (888) 505-0540. | |
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