Around The Store With Stew

June 2025

How Will Tariffs Affect You?
Everyone from our customers to CNN and Fox News is asking me the same question: What impact are tariffs having on grocery prices? I’ve broken the pricing down into 4 buckets:
 
TARIFFED PRODUCTS (prices hold or increase):

• New Zealand lamb: comes from a great family-owned ranch, lamb only eats its mother’s milk and grass. Split 10% tariff.

• European wine/spirits: no impact yet on prices since many importers brought supply in early. Threat of 50% tariff by July 9th. Our importers are nervous.

• Plush toys: my daughter, Chase, was ready to order a new plush toy (Milk Carton) from China. Tariff was 145% in April but if we didn’t order soon, we’d miss the Christmas season. She ordered in May when the tariff dropped to 30%. Price will be $14.99 rather than $9.99. Sorry!

• Coffee: we import the raw beans and then roast them in Norwalk and Danbury, CT. Double whammy with the drought in Brazil, which is impacting production and creating a shortage, on top of being tariffed.

• Marinara Sauce: Stew’s Simply Marinara is made in Italy. We’re splitting 10%.

• Cheeses, like Reggiano Parmesan & Brie: will customers switch to domestic from Wisconsin? Many cases, it’s the same family from Europe.

• Tropical fruit: Like bananas, pineapple, and mangoes. These items come from Honduras and Costa Rica. No US production, and even though we're getting tariffed, we’re holding prices. Raise the price of bananas? Sales drop!

• Grapes: moved to California from Chile.

• Cherries: moved from Chile to Washington State. They are delicious!

• Melons: was Costa Rica, now California.

• USA Beef: herd sizes are at 60-year lows. This drives up the price. Midwest drought is impacting.

• Mexican Avocados and Canadian Salmon: Protected under USMCA Agreement. No tariffs on fresh.

• Lobster tails: we lowered prices since China exports have dropped due to tariffs. 4oz tail was $6.99, now $5.99. (We found a great wine to pair with your lobster…we named it “Lobster Tail,” and it retails for $13.99. It’s a Sauvignon Blanc from Chile. Ordered one container pre-tariff, it should last for the summer.)
 
SUPPLY & DEMAND ISSUES
• USA Beef: high demand and low supply. Will our ranchers begin increasing herd sizes? It takes a few years to grow cattle.

• Olive Oil: after some dismal olive crops last year, supply is now abundant. A 2-litre tin was $29.99 last year. It’s $24.99 this year.

• Eggs: supply is up again post-Avian Flu. Prices are back to normal.

• Wine: will customers switch from European wines to USA? What’s better than a Napa Valley Cabernet? Will customer demand stay high even with elevated prices?

• Christmas Trees: will they be tariffed coming out of Canada?

• Tequila: we bought enough pre-tariff.

• Weather Patterns: we’ve seen a damp spring. NJ Farmers are getting a late start. Will supply effect pricing?
 
Overall, this is uncharted territory. A lot is going on in the food industry. A few things can happen:
 
1. An abundance of supply can decrease prices. Local produce - including blueberries, squash, and corn - is coming online. California and Florida crops are available. Grapes, cherries, melons.
 
2. Tariffs will start kicking in. When? Will more trade deals be made?
 
3. Will retailers lower prices to keep sales up? Our farmers and suppliers don’t want to raise prices. Include Stew’s in that mix, too!
 
4. Our customers still seem to be buying. Catering orders were up for Father’s Day. You don’t want just a fresh burger, you want a Filet Mignon burger.
 
5. How much can our suppliers and importers absorb tariff increases? We’re splitting many tariff increases with our small suppliers, many of whom are family-owned.
 
Happy Birthday, Mom!
She just turned 93 and is as sharp as a tack. Even though I’m 70, she still treats me like a teenager. “Do you want something to eat?”
 
A legendary day in Yonkers
We welcomed NY Knicks royalty—Earl “The Pearl” Monroe and Walt “Clyde” Frazier—for a fan rally ahead of game 2 of the Eastern Conference Finals in May. Our bakery made special cupcakes to celebrate! They were just about the nicest guys you’d ever want to meet and spent a lot of time with each of our customers. Too bad the Knicks didn’t win!
 
RFK Jr & Dyes – VOTE
We are doing a test. We sell a lot of character cupcakes that use artificial dyes in the frosting. To eliminate these dyes but still get colorful frosting, we are using fruits, vegetables, and other natural ingredients:
Purple: grapes
Red & Pink: beets
Blue: spirulina
Yellow: turmeric
Green: spirulina & turmeric
 
The only issue is that it costs more. We have cupcakes (with artificially dyed icing) for $8.99 and cupcakes without the artificial dyes for $9.99. Which would you prefer? Go here to vote. Next item will be our rainbow bagels. Kids love them too.
 
Wegmans Opening in Norwalk, CT
The Wegman family has been friends of ours for 30 years. I just had lunch with Danny Wegman, and he toured me through his new store in NYC. I’m sure they will make a big splash when they open next month. I’m sure, just like a new restaurant, you’ll want to check it out. The key is…….making sure you come back to shop at Stew’s!
 
Check Out our Events Calendar
My daughters are always looking for things to do on the weekends with their kids. Stew’s has a great list of activities to choose from – in the next week or two, there’s a flag-making class in Norwalk, free face painting in Clifton, and a strawberry-themed cooking class for toddlers in Newington. Check out more events and classes on our online events calendar.
 
Alert! We’re Entering the Drowning Season
What can you do? Waterproof your kids with 4-6 lessons. If they fall into the water, they don’t freak out and can learn to roll over on their back and FLOAT. That’s our mission. Even Olympian Rowdy Gaines agrees. You can come in for a free lesson at the Stewie the Duck Swim School in Norwalk. Since the school is a 501c(3), we donate all profits to organizations to give free lessons to kids in need. We gave over 50,000 in 2024 and hope to give even more this year!
 
ITEMS TO CHECK OUT
• Dubai Chocolate Bars. I’ve never seen an item sell like this in my 50 years of retailing! We are now doing a Dubai milk and a Dubai Chocolate muffin. It’s chocolate filled with a pistachio crème and, YUM!

• Chewy chocolate cookies with pumpkin seeds. Made with gluten-free ingredients.

• Dill chicken salad. We added pickles to our chicken “crack” salad!
For the 4th of July: burgers, hot dogs, watermelon, corn, and blueberries
 
LOYALTY POINTS
This has been a question from you: “What do I do with all my loyalty points?” We used to limit it to free ice cream cones or coffee. Now, we’ve added a list of items so that you can “burn” your points. We have over 50,000 customers with more than 5,000 points. Here’s what you can do with them:
• 800 points: free quart of hand-packed ice cream or frozen yogurt
• 500 points: $1 off our Simply Italian Marinara
• 400 points: $2 off Chocolate Chip Cookies, $1 off our Naked Cage Free Large White Eggs, or $1 off Organic Milk
 
THANK YOU, SENATOR BLUMENTHAL
My wife, Kim, and I met up with Senator Blumenthal at Glenbrooke Outdoor Sports Center in East Hartford. Glenbrooke just received a grant from Stew Leonard III Water Safety Foundation, and they’ll give free swim lessons to 50 kids this summer. The senator has been a big advocate for water safety and a supporter of our Foundation for 20 years! Senator, I know you read this update, so: “Thank you!”
 
FOURTH OF JULY – TOP 10 SELLERS
Here’s what will end up in your shopping cart ahead of the 4th of July celebrations!
1. Hamburgers (especially the filet mignon burger)
2. Hot dogs
3. Propane
4. Corn
5. Picnic salads
6. Cherries
7. Watermelon
8. Lobster rolls
9. Apple Pie
10. American cheese

 
I’M A GRANDPA AGAIN
My daughter Ryann just had a healthy little baby girl. I just visited the new Valley Hospital in Ridgewood, NJ. Wow!