The Garden Market, Pembroke, was recently named the third phase winner of the Certified Angus Beef (CAB) Programme's Bermuda Retail Merchandising Contest.

The contest began in May, 1997, when an unidentified consumer -- a secret shopper -- evaluated retail stores promoting Certified Angus Beef products on the Island. The secret shopper also looked at point of sale materials, salesmanship and CAB product variety.

White and Sons grocery store in Warwick was named first and second phase winner, as reported in The Royal Gazette last December.

The CAB programme's secret shopper ranked The Garden Market on top during the months of November through January because of their outstanding efforts to promote the product.

"The Garden Market consistently has a strong point-of-sale display and superior customer service,'' the secret shopper said.

She added: "The meat department staff goes out of their wy to promote CAB product to the customer, and they don't even know that I am the secret shopper. I believe they make this kind of effort for their customers on a daily basis, not to win a contest,'' she added.

Manuel Mendonca, owner of The Garden Market, attributes his store's success to his customer-first philosophy.

"We are a small store but we are competitive because of our dedication to the customer,'' he said. "Our customers demand the very best and with the CAB product they get the very best.'' To recognise The Garden Market's accomplishments, the store was awarded a $250 gift certificate to purchase Certified Angus Beef promotional materials.

With the announcement of the third place winner comes the conclusions of the 1997-98 CAB Bermuda Retail merchandising Contest.

The grand prize winner, exhibiting the best overall performance during the nine-month contest period will be announced and they will receive an all-expense paid trip to the US. The trip will include a cattle ranch tour, retail store visits and recreational activities.