The Comprehensive Learning Center: “Central Food Retail Learning Academy” 

is open! Boosting staff potential, developing skills and virtually-real learning for retail challenges

Central Food Retail is dedicated to improving the potential of its people and priming them to be fully prepared to keep up with the rapidly-changing retail scene. For this it is opening a new total learning center, the Central Food Retail Learning Academy. It will provide both theoretical and practical learning experience in a virtually real environment, following a Learning Road Map and instructed by the Professional Retail Development team. It is in line with Central Retail’s strategy to create capability and competence for its people, giving them the potential to provide complete service on any retail platform.

Stephane Coum, Chief Executive Officer of Central Food Retail under Central Retail, spoke about the genesis of Central Food Retail Learning Academy at Tops Market Kaset store. “In business operations at present, every company must adapt its working strategies to keep up with change, such as investment in innovation and modern technology to make work convenient and provide a complete service. Another important pillar is investment to develop the potential of our human resources to ensure they are ready, to enhance their capabilities in a constantly changing retail business, and to successfully achieve their goals in supporting the best customer service at Tops Market, Tops Superstore, Central Food Hall, Tops Daily, Family Mart and Matsumoto Kiyoshi. This is why we have built a total learning center for staff to develop their skills to grow with the company. Central Food Retail Learning Academy can support the training of over 20,000 staff per year. Courses have been developed which focus on learning combined with the practicality of a realistic workspace and aided by sophisticated equipment. Instruction is conducted by our Professional Retail Development team who have knowledge and experience in every area of retail.

            “Central Food Retail Learning Academy is fully equipped to develop and add value to staff continually. The learning space is divided into training rooms for theory to learn about retail systems, managing products on the sales floor and in the back room, stock keeping, servicing customers and rooms for practical learning. These include the Bakery Learning Room for teaching the full process of bakery, product display and sales floor sales. The Kitchen Learning Room is for staff to learn and practice in the entire Meat/Seafood department, such as slicing meat, dressing and packaging product for the Delica counter, cooking both Thai and European dishes, cooking oven-roasted meals and making Food to go. The Innovation Room is for practical learning about computer systems, payment systems, POS devices and scanning products. The Coffee Learning Room teaches both theory and practice of brewing the many drinks on the menu of Coffee Arigato. The Central Food Retail Learning Academy also has a Co-Working Space for activities. It is open for students and start-ups to use the Innovation Room to pitch new ideas through the Innovation sharing board. We are open to every new idea, and there may be an opportunity to develop that idea into reality.

            Stephane concluded by saying, “We are creating the Central Food Retail Learning Academy because the company believes that the human potential for growth is limitless. If we look after our people like members of the family, they will look after our customers likewise. This is consistent with Central Retail’s strategy to build a strong Central Retail & Service Platform and realize the full potential of service on the Customer-Centric Omnichannel platform. Every member of staff will be attending the training courses of the Central Food Retail Learning Academy before going out to work on the sales floor in every branch.”