Ernest Barbella's Schools

• Cornell University Bachelors

Ernest Barbella's Publications

• Ernest Barbella on Agricultural Economics at Cornell University, Ernest Barbella April, 2011 by Ernest Barbella In 1962, I graduated from the Bernard M. Baruch School of Business and Public Administration of the City College of New York. Because of my stellar performance as an undergraduate, the Gerber Products Company funded my graduate studies at Cornell University with a full scholarship. During my time in the Department of Applied Economics and Management, today the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, I studied agricultural economics and food marketing before earning my Master of Science in 1964. An internationally recognized leader in the field, the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, known as the Dyson School, has contributed to education, research, and outreach for more than 100 years. Agricultural economics at Cornell University dates back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when faculty members in agricultural studies began applying the principles of economics to their work. Among these instructors were pioneers such as Isaac P. Roberts and Liberty Hyde Bailey, who established relationships with local farmers to determine with their students the most successful practices in rural economy, accounting, and management. In 1903, George N. Lauman was officially designated an Instructor in Rural Economy; six years later, and just seven years after the U.S. Department of Agriculture had opened an Office of Farm Management, the College of Agriculture at Cornell established what would eventually become the Dyson School. Today, agricultural economics remains one of the four primary subject areas at the Dyson School and includes concentrations in agricultural finance, farm management and production economics, and marketing and food distribution. At the Dyson School, I studied under Professor Wendell Earl and completed a graduate thesis with Professor Earl Brown as my advisor. After receiving my MS, I joined the food industry and eventually held executive positions in companies such as the Wakefern Food Corporation, Hills Supermarkets, and The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Inc. (A&P). As a graduate of the agricultural economics program at Cornell, I have been proud to uphold the school’s tradition of excellence for nearly 50 years.

• A Recipe for Success: From Daitch Shopwell to Food Emporium, Ernest Barbella June, 2011 Ernest Barbella I have been involved in the retail food industry for nearly five decades, operating New York-area supermarkets, a tea company, and most recently a spice manufacturing enterprise and a producer of packaged pastas and skillet dinners. I got my start as assistant store manager in 1964 with Daitch Shopwell Supermarkets, which operated over 100 locations throughout New York. Over the next several years, I earned a promotion to District Manager, taking command of a seven-store group in the Bronx. Although I left the firm decades ago, it has been interesting following the ups-and-downs of this well-recognized New York institution, now known as the Food Emporium. I worked for Daitch Shopwell at the height of its expansion following the 1955 merger of Daitch’s 34 stores in New York City, Connecticut, and Long Island with Shopwell Foods’ 18 Westchester County supermarkets. As the 1960s ended, the company expanded into Shop-Quik convenience stores, a move that caused a loss of corporate focus and vision. Turning to the Shopwell name exclusively in 1973, the firm similarly tried to expand into Vermont and Massachusetts with seven new stores. Unfortunately, the venture did not work out, and the company registered an $800,000 loss in 1976 when these units were sold. Restructuring resulted in closing of unprofitable Shopwell locations, and the chain ultimately scaled back to 65 total locations. Conducting extensive market research, Shopwell found that its brand name lacked a quality association, with customers primarily frequenting the chain because it was convenient. This was a wake-up call to the Rosengarten family who owned Shopwell, and in 1979, they launched the innovative Food Emporium format. The rebranding of Food Emporium came after a realization during the consolidation process that the remaining supermarkets were located in the upper-end markets of Westchester County and Manhattan. At the time, no major supermarkets catered to this demographic, leaving the higher-end segment to small grocery stores. Instead of the industry standard 72-percent shelf space for basic food items, new Food Emporium locations allocated just 60-percent shelf space for this use, scouring the country for fresh and premium items to fill remaining shelves. This strategy proved successful and by 1983, some 17 of 55 total Shopwell stores had been rebranded to Food Emporium. The Food Emporium brand is thriving in Manhattan to this day, offering customers premium products that they cannot find at other supermarkets. I still feel some attachment to the Food Emporium, as it is a subsidiary of The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, which I served for several years as Vice President and General Manager.

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