Supevalu, the US' largest hard discount grocery retailer, is rolling out a strategy to combat sales decline in non-perishable items in stores bearing its Save-A-Lot fascia. The Center Store strategy is aimed at increasing sales in items such as nappies, dog food and detergents. Supervalu chairman and ceo Jeff Noddle said these sales were migrating to other retailers such as drugstores, mass merchandisers, c-stores and gas stations. "We had people in store leaving to buy these products elsewhere," he said, adding that the grocery channel overall had lost $2.1bn in nine key categories to other retailers in three years. Center Store treats each category as a strategic business unit and is based around creating an efficient, high impact assortment, the faster introduction of new items, and the strategic placement of more profitable items. Higher impact instore communication and more display-ready units are also key. A pilot programme of 20 categories in 15 stores saw total store sales up 8.5%, average sales per transaction rise $1.56, sales in the 20 categories increase 38.7% and gross profit dollars in those categories up 77%. Noddle said he anticipates 540 stores will have the strategy within the next year, representing 70% of the stores targeted. Minneapolis-based Supervalu, the country's 10th largest supermarket retailer with sales over $20 billion, operates more than 1,000 limited assortment Save-A-Lot stores in 36 states. Of these 20 per cent are corporately-owned and 80 per cent licensed. Speaking at the CIES Food Summit two weeks ago, Noddle said the company had ambitious expansion plans for the fascia. "I believe we can grow from coast to coast, with up to 3,000 Save-A-Lot stores," he said. {{NEWS }}