The Catalyst Behind the Chaos: Family Traditions and Data Analytics

I started it, though some disagree. I can provide the dates, the reasons, the place, and the people, but factual information doesn’t matter. They won’t be swayed, and their feelings and perceptions will rule out my views. Such as it is in large families, and in my position, being right in the middle, you tend to be ignored, second-guessed, or not believed.

Ultimately, I don’t care that the family – including my parents – don’t realize I am the catalyst behind a long-running Thanksgiving tradition. I never planned for it to be one. Such is how every great tradition starts. Even the Thanksgiving holiday itself is wrapped in folklore. While attributed to the Pilgrims at Plymouth and the Wampanoag people in 1621, many of the details can be fantasized, such as the food they ate, whether it was a pre-planned gathering between the Pilgrims and Wampanoag people or did the Wampanoag people show up due the confusion of the celebratory gunfire of the Pilgrims. Regardless, it doesn’t entirely matter; the celebration does.

Despite being one of the largest family gatherings in the US, for my family, it wasn’t. We were adults, living independently, spread out across the US. We didn’t get together and did our own thing. Until one year, I decided to visit my sister and brother-in-law because I had a few days off and didn’t want to sit around. I didn’t care that it was Thanksgiving; I had time.

I called my sister and told her (not asked) that I was coming for a couple of days to see her and her husband at the farmhouse. We spent time together, had a regular meal, went skeet shooting, and drank some—well, more than just some. And from there, it grew. Next year, we invited a few more siblings. Other years, we went to someone else’s house, and over time, it morphed into our annual family tradition.

Over the past twenty-plus years, we’ve gotten married, had a few divorces, and brought our kids. Now, the cousins continue to come, even as young adults. And the food and drink, while nothing remarkable at first, have grown into complete meals requiring immense preparation.

For our Thanksgiving, you don’t just show up and leave. Depending on the year, twenty to thirty people are expected to live, eat, and sleep in the host’s house for two to four days. There are no hotels because that’s an insult. Overall, it’s pure chaos, and we love it.

You can imagine the food we’ve gone through over the years. The family makes this seven-layered salad with cheese, bacon, lettuce, peas, onions, and mayonnaise. It sounds disgusting. But I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t like it. My mother has a specific way she wants her stuffing, so sometimes, we make more than one batch to cover different recipes. We need the condiment tray setup with celery, pickles, carrots, and olives. And for my brother’s vegetarian girlfriend, we had the complete secondary meal, including a tofurkey. I wasn’t a fan. Of the food, not the girlfriend. She was alright, but I wasn’t heartbroken when they broke up. He deserved better.

Despite the Black Friday shopping, food at the grocery store is a large part of our expenditure. There are too many of us for us to go to restaurants. Ever arrive at a restaurant with thirty people and expect to be served? It’s an experience and fun. (Again, you must love chaos.)

So, our grocery shopping always involves looking for both traditional items and something new. Whether it’s new food for my brother’s latest girlfriend, conventional items that my mother needs, or our changing diets as we age. Note: gluten has not been a friend.

I’m not alone in this regard—as it turns out, Grocery Stores are the second-highest shopping destination for holiday shopping, just behind Online. Food is important. Food defines the holidays. Food is central to those gatherings. And, if you are looking for a gift for an established adult, food.

(Source: https://nrf.com/media-center/press-releases/nrf-survey-reveals-top-toys-and-gifts-winter-holidays)

If you are a grocer, the Thanksgiving and holiday period is the best time of year to make an impression on shoppers. These larger gatherings take more work, and a stressed shopper is more sensitive to positive and negative impressions. Try to find a tofurkey if you’ve never shopped for one. Try to find gluten-free snacks or a decent wine or bourbon selection when you are a tequila and vodka drinker. It’s tough to please people, and unlike the summer holidays, you can’t just throw more meat on the grill, have a cooler full of drinks, or grab a few more bags of chips.

A grocer can assist shoppers like me by focusing on price, promotion, and selection. But they can’t be everything for everybody. So what should you do? The starting point is to use data analytics to strike the perfect balance between revenue, profitability, perception, and competitiveness. You can’t just throw stuff on the shelf or add a sign anymore. As shoppers, we can feel it when we walk through the stores. If that is all the effort, we see it, feel it, and go elsewhere.

The largest grocers and discounters have used this technology for years to continually grab more than their fair share. Despite being massive, they stay ahead as the market shifts. Their embrace of advanced machine learning and data analytics is a significant driver.

People have become more familiar with and accept the use of data analytics to drive better decisions, build baskets, and create long-term customer loyalty. They want the tools.

Shoppers will reward grocers for this, especially for actions during the holidays, when we are most in need of everything from the fancy to the simple. Everyday or week-to-week grocery shopping is vital for running the business. Still, it is routine for shoppers, and it’s harder for a grocer to sway someone out of their habits. They have to be consistently excellent and deliver. While data analytics for pricing and promotions is necessary for those periods, the need is greatly heightened during holidays like Thanksgiving because its impact goes beyond the week’s sales and profits. It’s the grocer’s moment.