instore - March 2018 - 36

INSIGHT INSIDER

Whatever they're making, the commissary's
chefs try to keep innovation top of mind,
McGuigan says. "I'm collaborating with everyone constantly," he says. "We're always
trying to be the company that's setting the
trends, not following them."
Almost everything at the commissary is prepared by hand. Bi-Rite looked at automating some tasks but found it wasn't feasible
based on the company's size, McGuigan
says. "We're like a big small guy, but we're
not at the point where we can be a small big
guy." For many operations, he says, it's actually more efficient to do it by hand, based
on the volumes being produced. "If a machine takes an hour to set up and an hour to
take down, that might be 2 ½ hours to make
something vs. an hour if you do it by hand."
On a typical day, the commissary will ship
1,000 to 1,200 units to the two Bi-Rite markets, McGuigan says. On a busy day, that total might rise to 2,000. Staff are constantly
tinkering with ways to improve product

36 * MARCH 2018 * commissary INSIDER

quality. For instance, when a problem developed with oil coagulating in containers, they
experimented until they found an organic
grape seed oil (mixed with a bit of olive
oil for flavoring) that didn't coagulate, McGuigan says.

"We're always trying to be the
company that's setting the
trends, not following them."
TOM MCGUIGAN, BI-RITE

cludes tilt skillets, 60-gallon kettles for soups
and sauces, a six-burner stove, grills, convection and combi ovens, Baxter ovens for
baking and for roasting vegetables, Formatic
cookie makers, Hobart mixers and MVS nut
packers. Foods are kept fresh through BiRite's use of cook-chill technology, in which
foods are cooked, bagged and chilled.
The two Bi-Rite markets place their orders
via Catapult software. Product is then prepacked on a two-day cycle, McGuigan says.
"When it's slow, we ramp up our freezer inventory, so the labor stays constant."

Many of the multi-level food carts used at
the commissary were designed by McGuigan
himself. (Bi-Rite has sold some of them to
other commissaries.) McGuigan also designed a cooler at the commissary that circulates ice water and thereby cools product
twice as fast, he says.

The commissary's role as a warehouse has
become more important, McGuigan says,
as business has boomed at the Bi-Rite retail
stores. The markets are located in the heart
of city blocks, so there's not exactly room to
expand.

On a typical work day, about 30 people are
preparing food in the kitchen at any given
time, McGuigan says. Equipment used in-

"The stock rooms in the markets get full
quickly," McGuigan says. "And (market employees) can spend less time breaking down


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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of instore - March 2018

instore - March 2018
Need to Know - Dabates and definitions
Spotlight - By the numbers
Merchandising - Branded baked goods
Specialty Insights - Organic deli products
Cover Story - Bi-Rite Market's Sam Mogannam
Commissary Insider
Insight Insider - Bi-Rite commissary
Equipment - Pizza Production
Food Safety - Allergen detection
Packaging - Grab 'n Go grabs market share
R&D - Investing in the Silicon Valley of food
Equipment & Packaging - Latest innovation: Frying technology
instore - March 2018 - instore - March 2018
instore - March 2018 - instore - March 2018
instore - March 2018 - 2
instore - March 2018 - 3
instore - March 2018 - 4
instore - March 2018 - 5
instore - March 2018 - 6
instore - March 2018 - 7
instore - March 2018 - Need to Know - Dabates and definitions
instore - March 2018 - 9
instore - March 2018 - Spotlight - By the numbers
instore - March 2018 - 11
instore - March 2018 - Merchandising - Branded baked goods
instore - March 2018 - 13
instore - March 2018 - 14
instore - March 2018 - 15
instore - March 2018 - Specialty Insights - Organic deli products
instore - March 2018 - 17
instore - March 2018 - 18
instore - March 2018 - 19
instore - March 2018 - Cover Story - Bi-Rite Market's Sam Mogannam
instore - March 2018 - 21
instore - March 2018 - 22
instore - March 2018 - 23
instore - March 2018 - 24
instore - March 2018 - 25
instore - March 2018 - 26
instore - March 2018 - 27
instore - March 2018 - 28
instore - March 2018 - 29
instore - March 2018 - 30
instore - March 2018 - 31
instore - March 2018 - 32
instore - March 2018 - Insight Insider - Bi-Rite commissary
instore - March 2018 - 34
instore - March 2018 - 35
instore - March 2018 - 36
instore - March 2018 - 37
instore - March 2018 - Equipment - Pizza Production
instore - March 2018 - 39
instore - March 2018 - 40
instore - March 2018 - 41
instore - March 2018 - Food Safety - Allergen detection
instore - March 2018 - 43
instore - March 2018 - 44
instore - March 2018 - 45
instore - March 2018 - Packaging - Grab 'n Go grabs market share
instore - March 2018 - 47
instore - March 2018 - 48
instore - March 2018 - 49
instore - March 2018 - R&D - Investing in the Silicon Valley of food
instore - March 2018 - 51
instore - March 2018 - Equipment & Packaging - Latest innovation: Frying technology
instore - March 2018 - 53
instore - March 2018 - 54
instore - March 2018 - 55
instore - March 2018 - 56
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