HATTIESBURG, MS - From Tajin®’s skyrocket trajectory alongside fresh produce to a sweet Vidalia® twist, Josh Smith and I recently reflected on the opportunities, overall barometer, and fun tied to events like Cinco de Mayo.

“We go all out for these kinds of holidays,” Josh, Produce Supervisor at Corner Market, shared with me. “We usually do big merchandising plans to get geared up. Signage, POS materials, as well as teaming up with vendors to ensure the best deals we can.”

For example, while Corner Market does promote traditional white onions for the Latin-flavored holiday, Josh said shoppers gravitate toward Vidalia onions since they begin just before.

And honestly, as someone who grew up enjoying sweet onions fresh off the grill, I don’t know how I didn’t think of this south-to-southwest crossover before!

“Our team of produce managers is where we really stand out. With a commitment to innovative merchandising and customer engagement, all our produce managers are great at what they do. I can’t say enough about them!” Josh said, quickly expanding this to vendors as well. “Vendor partnerships are also key in building those digital and in-store ad opportunities. We focus especially on local farmers, such as a strawberry grower who will be helping us prep for Cinco demand even if that may not be a signature Cinco item.”

In fact, Josh pointed out, thanks to the growth of Tajin, just about any fresh item can be a Cinco de Mayo item. With an internal team that even focuses on fresh-cut fruit and veg in-house, something shoppers are particularly enthusiastic about, the potential spans even more across categories.

“One of our big ways of preparing for any holiday is to communicate the merchandising plans to everyone—we’ve already cast all the way past Mother’s Day and ensured all are on the same page. Of course, everything could change on a dime in a few weeks. That is where partnership is crucial and our size is an advantage. Not being too large, we can be flexible and turn the ship quickly, and I’m able to do this even better thanks to our strong vendor partnerships,” Josh observed, bringing it full circle.

The third-generation-owned company certainly seems to have such an approach well in hand as the warm-weather celebrations begin. Here is to some big fresh selling and eating opportunities ahead!