30 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM {punchline} Our clientele does a lot of the sourcing for us.” And don’t discount the appeal of the tantalizing spread of prepared foods in the expansive cases at the deli counter, where you can take home everything from chicken cordon bleu to potato pancakes, savory sesame noodles to plank-roasted salmon. Draeger’s German potato salad is based on Richard’s great-grandmother’s recipe, and is one of many convenient “meal solutions” to entice busy shoppers short on time. A trend that surprises Richard is the rise in Instacart shopping. It has tripled at Draeger’s since before the onset of COVID. He predicts that AI will increasingly become a strong planning tool for keeping track of inventory, delivering instant information on what’s popular and what’s not. He sees potential savings in harnessing that data. In the challenging grocery store sector, change is a given. Draeger’s no longer runs a cooking school, and in 2020 after a 23-year run, closed its upscale Viognier restaurant located on the second floor of the downtown San Mateo market. The markets’ bistros, floral departments and extensive houseware sections, however, are still going strong. Richard clearly enjoys upholding the values his parents instilled, partnering with his siblings to carry on a family legacy for generations to come. resources, meat and seafood operations, Tony manages IT and pricing for produce, wine and liquor. Jim serves as president and legal counsel and Peter handles most of the office management and banking as CFO. Sister Mary Claire DraegerDeSoto oversees communications, advertising and design. Richard and his wife Mary Ann raised their three children in Woodside. Now adults, Richard’s kids have moved on to do other things, but three of their first cousins have become the fourth generation of Draegers to carry on the family business. John’s son Frank is training in accounting and being groomed to become CFO, while his daughter Kacie works in payroll. Tony’s daughter, Tori, is the marketing director. Richard feels optimism for the company’s future, in part given its good fortune to be anchored here on the Peninsula. Buying smaller lots with hard-to-find wines, artisanal cheeses and other specialty items has long set the market apart from larger chain stores. Comparing Silicon Valley to Paris, London and New York, Richard says, “The customers here are the highest educated people on the planet, they travel to the best places on the planet and they are making product recommendations to us … Celebrating 100 To mark the 100th anniversary of Draeger’s next year, the family picked April 1, 2025, for celebrations featuring gourmet food and wine tastings at all four of its markets: San Mateo, Menlo Park, Los Altos and Danville. Why April 1? It’s the birthday of Frank Draeger, born in 1919 and the son of founder Gustave, whose San Francisco delicatessen started the long-running family business. draegers.com HISTORIC PHOTOGRAPHY: COURTESY OF RICHARD DRAEGER
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