Business Notes SUPERMARKETS

Grocery shopping and tots usually don't mix. Putting the little ones in the & shopping cart means less room for groceries, and letting them roam free in the aisles has its own hazards. But at least two food chains have come up with a savvy solution: pint-size shopping carts for children to push -- and fill -- right along with Mom or Dad. A&P has supplied eight of its stores in the Northeast with the little carts, while Florida-based Publix is using them in the Southeast. A&P imports the carts from West Germany at a cost of $70 each, about the same price as for the regular-size U.S.-made version.

So far, store managers think the carts are a valuable added attraction. Says Charles Roder, manager of an A&P store in Wall Township, N.J., which has ten of the carts: "Several customers have announced that they can't go to a competitor now. The kids want to go to the A&P because of the carriages." Now that's hooking them in.