Sam's Club knew well before summer that strawberry shortcake, not blueberry, was the flavor its shoppers wanted — and it launched a strawberry shortcake-flavored cookie instead of a blueberry one.

That intelligence came directly from customers through the retailer's Member's Mark Community, Myron Frazier, executive vice president and chief merchant of the Walmart-owned chain, said during a Groceryshop keynote session on Sept. 23 in Las Vegas.

The Member's Mark Community counts more than 200,000 shoppers who weigh in on product assortment and help determine which private label goods Sam's Club carries. Any shopper can join through the Sam's Club app to give input on ideas and products and to test items, according to the retailer's website.

While artificial intelligence and retail media networks dominated conversations at Groceryshop this year, Frazier's keynote made the case that building loyalty and delivering value can also come from simpler moves: stocking the products and flavors shoppers actually request.

"We can ask them anything," Frazier said. "Everything from what's inside the package, what's on the package. If it's an item that they prefer to have delivered. What they like to have in-club. What would they compare it to? What would they replace? Any of these things that you would think about in a retail environment or a merchant decision, we can ask it."

The retailer also polls community participants on parts of the business beyond assortment, including the checkout experience and potential changes to its Scan & Go service, Frazier added.

Member feedback reshaped Sam's Club's holiday meal offering this year. For the past three years, the club retailer has sold the fixings for a holiday meal that feeds 15 people for around $10 per person. Based on Member's Mark Community input, Sam's Club modified that offer for the current season.

"[O]ur members told us they wanted an appetizer. They told us that they wanted an extra dessert, and that they wanted an alternative protein because maybe someone in the family wanted ham and not turkey, or vice versa," Frazier said. "They were very specific."

Sam's Club will also offer a smoked turkey rather than a raw one this year, he said, responding to members who want to cut down on cooking time.

For Frazier, the community program doubles as a differentiation engine for the chain's private label. "By working with our members, that helps us have a tremendous amount of trust with them. They guide us, tell us where to go," Frazier said. "We're not simply recreating what's operating in the marketplace. We're differentiating. And the thing that I've learned in the lesson: When you listen to members and you make what they want, turns out they actually buy it."