Beverly grocery has fresh take on business

By Archi Sarkar
Medill Reports - Chicago

Bill Baffes graduated from college with a dream of owning his own grocery store. And in 1964, when an opportunity presented itself at 10800 S. Western Ave., he found an investor and built County Fair Foods. Baffes and his family now run one of the most successful independent grocery stores in Chicago.

“We have been here for 44 years, and our sales have increased with every single year,” Baffes said. He estimated annual sales for the store's fiscal year 2007-2008 to be between $17 million and $20 million.

County Fair Foods has grown steadily, serving Mount Greenwood, Beverly, Morgan Park and Evergreen Park. Today, the store occupies 22,000 square feet and has 75 employees helping customers pick out their basic necessities, every day of the week.

So, what makes County Fair Foods competitive with the big chain grocery stores?

“I’d have to say it’s the freshness. I love their fresh meat and produce and I won’t buy anywhere else,” averred Colleen Miller of Evergreen Park, a regular customer for more than 15 years.

As an independent business, County Fair Foods is not tied to any particular supplier. So the store can bring in a fresh supply of meat, fruits and vegetables every day of the week.

“We can choose from the best suppliers in the market," said Michael Winkler, store manager. "We can pull strawberries from one company and broccoli from another. That way, we never have a week’s worth of oranges in our back row.

And produce is the most profitable department. “About 20% to 25% of the sales comes out of produce,” stated Winkler, who has been with County Fair Foods for 17 years.

The family-owned grocery store is also known in the neighborhood for its weekly sales and holiday specials. “We merchandize and decorate the store for each holiday season. Since, all of the family is involved here, we do it with a lot of care and attention to detail,” said Tom Baffes, Bill's son, who is president of County Fair Foods.

Starting in the spring, the south entrance of the store is decked with flowers right up to the Fourth of July. In the fall, corn stalks and pumpkins form the décor. However, it's the two weeks around the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade in which the store sees a massive boost in sales.

“People ask their families to come visit and serve cabbage and corned beef on the weekend of the parade, which is always a week before St. Patrick’s Day," Tom Baffes said. "My dad wanted to capitalize on this Irish phenomenon here in Beverly.”

The corned beef is brought to the store by butchers in 100-pound kegs and customers can order it fresh out of the tubs. “We have people order 200-300 pounds at a time for parties,” Winkler noted.

Though the store is closed on the day of the parade, it sold 20 tons of corned beef in the two-week period around St. Patrick’s Day last year.

“I can get huge pieces of good fresh beef that has never been frozen or packaged,” declared Jeanie Reilly, a resident of Beverly.

The store is also renowned for selling unusual items like a special homemade chicken salad prepared with 100% white boneless chicken and no preservatives and cooked turkey breast. County Fair Foods also sells strictly USDA choice meat, all through the year.

“We firmly believe that you cannot put a price tag on freshness and quality and that seems to work for us,” Bill Baffes asserted.

Efficient customer service is another reason people come to County Fair Foods.

Carolyn Becton, a resident of Morgan Park, has been shopping at the store for more than 15 years. “The store has a good variety and I find the folks here very helpful,” Becton said.

“The people in the store including the owners seem to know the regular customers by name,” observed Maye Foster-Thompson, a customer from out of town.

And it's not just the customers who are satisfied, but the employees, who are delighted to be a part of this business.

Michael Benson, the meat department manager who's been at County Fair Foods for 16 years, finds the work environment very friendly. “All the employees are treated with respect and taken care of by the owners. That is the reason most of us have been here for a long time,” Benson said.

Despite the success of County Fair, Bill Baffes recalls an earlier venture that wasn't: “I bought a large store in the 1970s. I was undercapitalized at the time and the interest rates went up to 20%. I was not able to service the debt properly and eventually I had to sell it. So, probably that’s the number one decision I’d have to regret.”

As County Fair Foods has flourished through the years, it's been generous with its contributions to the neighborhood. Last year, it won the Good Neighbor Award from the Real Estate Association of Metropolitan Chicago for commercial renovation and expansion of the store.

Even in the grocery business, new technology is coming. “Customers will be able to view weekly sales via e-mail or on the Web site that we are soon going to launch, though they will not be able to order online,” said Loraine Bicek, office manager.

“When the right opportunity comes," Bill Baffes stated, "the next thing we may do is develop another store. But, right now, we are not in a hurry. We are investing our money in different areas like real estate ventures in the meantime.”