Thriller On The Griller at Food Lion
2011 Thriller On The Griller raised over $100,000 for CMN!
Joe Stock, Director of Operations, for Food Lion is the "spark plug" for
this event. It is on Joe's heart to raise more money each year for the kids. He
is tireless in his efforts making sure the goal is reached each year.
How was “Thriller on the Griller” started? 
Joe Stock Director of Operations Food Lion
By accident! I was promoting John Boy and Billy’s Grilling
Sauce using several Big Show Grills to cook food in front of grocery stores as
a way to sample the Grilling Sauce. I spent 50% of my time doing these events
myself because they were effective in getting new people to the brand and it
gave John Boy something to talk about on the Big Show. By doing these events I
also stayed in very close contact with my customer base. This helped me plan
marketing for the brand based on consumer feedback. I also just like to cook on
the grill and make people happy. It was the best job I ever had!
Anyway, I took a grill to Wilmington for an unplanned visit. I was
looking for a fun place to go. I pulled into a Food Lion and introduced myself
to the store manager. I asked permission to cook some “free” wings in the
parking lot and sample the JB&B Grilling Sauces. Not a hard sell!
During the course of my parking lot show I noticed a man
watching me. Now it was not out of the ordinary for the grill to attract
spectators but this guy was not there by accident. Soon he walked over to me
and said” when you are finished come back to my office I want to talk to you”.
I asked the store manager who he was and was told that was Joe Stock, Regional
Operations Manager for Food Lion. OK, I figured I was in for an ass chewing for
something I had done in the parking lot. Most upper management of grocery
chains are not very creative and somehow can find fault with a fat guy cooking
free wings (believe it or not).
I took a deep breath and knocked on the office door. A voice
from inside said “come in”. That was the beginning of a lasting friendship with
a man I have a lot of respect for.
Joe Stock is a unique person. He is a leader with an
unbelievable level of energy and genuine love for the grocery business. What he
said was music to my ears. “I really
liked what you were doing out front. How can we do more of it at my
stores?” For a guy like me that likes
“parking lot marketing” I had met the right person!
I told Joe we could do anything that our brains could dream
up. He wanted a way to inject consumer excitement at his Food Lion stores,
motivate his employees, and raise money for Children’s Miracle Network. I told
him we could do a “Big Show Grill tour” supported by John Boy and Billy on the
radio and go to any of his stores he needed us to. Joe then came up with the
tour name “Thriller on the Griller”.
Year one we started with The Big Show Grill and maybe two
other companies. Each year it has grown. I took on the responsibility to make
each year different by adding something new. As the years went by we had race
cars and drivers, Big Tom from the Survivor show, the silent auction, and more
vendor partners. We also got our local John Boy and Billy affiliate stations
involved for live radio remotes at each store.
Thriller On The Griller has proven to be a marketing success
because of Joe Stock. The event out lived my distribution with Food Lion. If you have a food product in distribution at
Food Lion I would suggest you contact Joe Stock and be a part of this program.