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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Monday, July 28, 2003

MILITARY UPDATE
Changes improve shopping

By Tom Philpott

The director of the Defense Commissary Agency (DeCA) welcomed recent votes in the House and Senate to give drilling reservists and National Guard personnel unlimited shopping privileges in military grocery stores.

"They are delivering war-fighting capability just as well and as often as active duty counterparts and should be compensated as first-team members, including from a commissary perspective," Maj. Gen. Michael P. Wiedemer said.

An aerospace engineer who spent most of his first 31 military years managing technology programs, Wiedemer took charge of DeCA in August 2002. He is responsible for managing more than 275 stores, $5 billion in annual sales and a workforce of more than 17,000.

Wiedemer recently discussed a range of commissary issues including survey results showing gains in customer savings and satisfaction.ÊHe talked of winning back patrons who have shopped elsewhere since the 9-11 attacks when tighter base security made it more difficult for patrons to reach stores on base.

Drilling reservists have been able to shop in commissaries 24 times a year and while on active duty. A near-final vote by Congress to give them unlimited shopping won't affect checkout lines, staffing, store hours or overall costs, Wiedemer said.

"We classify our most frequent shoppers as those who shop more than two times a month," he said. "Our average reservist is in that category already."

The White House's Office of Management and Budget had opposed extending unlimited commissary shopping to reservists. In a May 22 Statement of Administration Policy letter it argued that this and other initiatives undermine service prerogatives on managing personnel and divert resources from higher priority programs.

Commissary prices are set at cost plus a 5 percent surcharge. DeCA's latest price comparison survey shows average savings, including the surcharge, is 31.7 percent, up 1.2 percentage points from 2001.

Commissaries don't compete anymore solely on price, Wiedemer said. DeCA since 1994 has conducted commissary customer service surveys. Results allow individual stores to target problem areas for improvement, from cleanliness of stores and courtesy of staff to timely stocking of shelves and more convenient store hours.

The latest satisfaction survey, in April, showed commissaries making gains in all areas of service and operations. But patrons still want what they always seek: cleaner stores, better product selection, quicker service and lower prices.

Efforts to keeps shelves stocked took a hit last year when one of DeCA's largest distributors declared bankruptcy. Keeping stock always has been a challenge at commissaries because patrons tend to spend much more, an average of $55 per transaction versus $26 for retail grocers.

In fiscal 2002, the months following 9-11, DeCA officials saw commissary patrons fall noticeably and sales decline by $70 million. That's not a trend any grocer can tolerate. Sales this year are up $60 million.

"Significant improvements in the last couple of years have been designed to attract and retain customers, and get shoppers who have left the commissaries, perhaps because of long lines after 9-11, back in the store," Wiedemer said.

Write to Military Update, P.O. Box 231111, Centreville, Va. 20120-1111, or e-mail milupdate@aol.com.