Here’s How Walmart and Trader Joe’s Are Killing Off an American Tradition

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.takepart.com/article/2014/06/13/traditional-american-supermarkets-decline-market-share?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2014-06-16

A recent study shows declining market share for the supermarkets we grew up with.



(Photo: Robert Galbraith/Reuters)


June 13, 2014 By Kristina Bravo

Kristina Bravo is a Los Angeles–based writer. She is a fellow at TakePart.
full biofollow me

Every Friday morning for the past three years, Lori Peake and her friends have come to the deli in Dahl’s Foods in Ames, Iowa, to play bridge. The grocery store has welcomed their card playing, but last month, a local television reporter broke the news to the group: The store’s location, along with another Dahl’s in nearby Ankeny, will soon close.

The closure of Dahl’s is part of a larger trend: the decline of the traditional American supermarket. According to a recent study by Credit Suisse, the market share of standard grocery stores slipped from 30.7 percent in 2003 to 26.7 percent in 2013. Over the past 10 years, Americans have been taking their business elsewhere: to mega discounters such as Walmart and Target.

The discount retailers, known for stocking canned goods alongside T-shirts and iPads, commanded 22.7 percent of the country’s retail food business in 2013. A decade ago, they only had 16.9 percent of the market. With a new scanner that lets a customer shop from the comfort of his or her own kitchen, Internet giant Amazon has become the traditional grocer’s latest competitor.

Massive corporations are not the only ones thriving. Quartz reports that high-quality chains such as Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s have been taking small bites out of the food business as well, upping its share from 1.1 percent in 2003 to 2.8 percent last year. How about those who earn less? Low-income shoppers have driven the sales of “dollar stores” from 1.4 percent to 2.5 percent over the same span of time.

FULL story at link.

[Louisiana1976]

1. I hope Kroger isn't going out of business. That's one of my favorite stores.

[Skittles]

19. I love Kroger

and Trader Joes is HIGHLY overrated

[Le Taz Hot]

53. Oh, now you've gone and done it.

You've committed TJ blasphemy! You must now sacrifice 10 mango chutneys to the Trader Joe's alter in penance.

[Skittles]

56. they have some good stuff

but JAYSUS, I have never eaten a shepards pie that sucked as much as that one did

[yeoman6987]

62. I find it interesting that they leave Whole Foods out of the title of the Article

Why Trader Joes and not Whole Foods??????? I wonder if there is an agenda.

[reddread]

105. well since Whole Foods charges an extra dollar on everything

they arent really hurting the lower price resources.
they have a niche where the wealthy are filtered in and
catered to. I tried shopping there with a gift card and I couldnt afford it.

[ananda]

89. I liked Kroger's too.

I wish we had them here in Austin.

All we have is Randall's/Safeway and HEB.

[Skittles]

112. when I was in Austin I shopped at Safeway

haven't been to one of those in some time now

[Fawke Em]

109. And over-priced.

I'm a Kroger's girl, too.

[stopbush]

121. One of our Laguna Niguel Ralphs (ie: Kroger) stores is closing for good on July 2.

Whole Foods opened up across the street from them two years ago and they lost 40% of their business.

The other Ralphs store in my town (Aliso Viejo) doesn't have the floor space to carry a lot of products that the Laguna Niguel store carried.

[yeoman6987]

60. I hate Safeway

which UNFORTUNATELY is the closest grocery store to me....I will go out of my way to Giant most of the time. My absolute favorite grocery store is Farm Fresh but is five hours away in Virginia....

[Tommy_Carcetti]

98. Giant was top of the line about 10-15 years ago when I lived in Maryland.

But from what I've heard, it's gone down a bit since being bought out by a new parent company.

Still from what I hear, it's probably the best choice in Maryland area grocery chains.

[Liberal_in_LA]

69. they call themselves 'ralphs' in LA. my primary store

[get the red out]

79. I don't think so

They raised a Kroger store here in Lexington, KY and are going to rebuild a bigger one on the same spot. This store is right near campus and they even have a shuttle service taking students to another store in the meantime. They are growing here for sure. I like Kroger also.

[reddread]

106. theys tearing it up in Lexington, remodeled the nearest one

I dont think Krogers is going anywhere.
and they did offer a better range of goods and prices than we see out west.
But I wasnt surprised to see prices go up after the remodel. there isnt much to choose from out there.
Trader Joes is the devil, if you value labor.
but sometimes you cant sell out those superficial values fast enough.

[SoCalDem]

2. one hyphenated word

union-busting

[Vattel]

3. Isn't it better to have Trader Joe's in the market even if safeway suffers a bit?

[lame54]

82. I've worked for both...

And Trader Joe's respects its employees much more

[Jenoch]

4. Walmart destroyed much of small town America's mainstreet merchants.

Now they are taking out traditional grocery stores.

[onenote]

14. Traditional grocery stores have been taking out each other for decades.

See post 13.

[Jenoch]

27. Oh I understand that retailers come and go.

But in the Twin Cities where I live a grocery chain sold a dozen of their stores to competitors and are just shutting down about ten others and are leaving the market. The business analysts say it's mostly because of Walmart, Target, Trader Joe's, and Aldi entering the grocery market.

[KittyWampus]

5. Can anyone remember when the ice, milk and meat carts came around?

Business models change every few generations.

I can remember getting milk delivered (1960's).

My Dad tells me what it was like as a kid getting shaved bits from the ice truck as a treat.

My great grandfather was a butcher who sold meat out of a meat cart.

Walmart wouldn't be so bad if it paid more to its workers and carried more "Made in America" products.

[postulater]

6. I remember the ice man with his horse and wagon. late 50s.

[Jenoch]

8. My mother never bought dairy products at

the grocery store until the late 70s.

My dad was an "iceman" at the age of 14 in 1944. There was a shortage of men of course and he lied about his age to get a driver's license.

[Omaha Steve]

9. My dad was an ice man

We still have his tongs. It was before my time. The rates on ice must have been very good. It was provided by MUD a local public utility. Still provides water and natural gas.

[A HERETIC I AM]

41. The ice industry before the age of refrigerants is a fascinating story

(Not suggesting your dad is that old!)

The business of cutting blocks from frozen
Lakes using hand saws, transporting them via horse drawn sledge to a rail line and their subsequent handling and distribution so that there was still ice to be had in September is a forgotton part of the American industrial landscape.

I saw a photograph once of a turn of the century, multi story ice house that had caught fire. The entire wooden structure was gone , leaving behind 4 stories of stacked blocks of ice.

[Le Taz Hot]

7. Trader Joe's is the antithesis

of the Buy Local movement. Honestly, I can't for the life of me figure out why someone would want to buy produce grown with who-knows-what pesticides, possibly under slave labor conditions, picked WAAAAYYYY too early and tasting like cardboard, as opposed to purchasing produce from a local family farm, vine/tree/bush-ripened, picked at it's peak and has traveled a total of 10 miles to market. There is absolutely NO comparison in taste. And the thing is, the "foodies" LOVE that shit. I don't get it.

[randome]

11. You can't figure this out?

Maybe because 350 million people in this country don't have the option of going to some shady neighborhood vendor with "who-knows-what pesticides", etc.

Jeeze, Trader Joe's is miles ahead of the likes of Walmart.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Where do uncaptured mouse clicks go?[/center][/font][hr]

[Le Taz Hot]

15. Family farms are "shady neighborhood vendors" now?

And your choices are Trader Joe's and Walmart with absolutely no other choices available? Anywhere? Your post is actually pretty funny.

BEWARE THE FAMILY FARM! Ooooooo!!!!!

[REP]

17. Not everyone can get to the "family farm" or afford to buy shares

Imagine someone relying on public transit trying to get to a farm and then transport food back that way. Not everyone has access to transportation - or is able-bodied enough to deal with a farm/farmers market.

[Le Taz Hot]

21. Actually, the family farms come to you

in the form of farmer's markets. And maybe I don't understand why it's easier to go to Trader Joe's and bring stuff back to your home if you don't have transportation as opposed to bringing back fresh produce from a farmer's market back to your home. Not everyone has to buy shares. One of our local farmer's markets does a twofer with EBT, i.e., one dollar of EBT dollars buys two dollars of produce. It's actually a pretty good deal. How is it better to buy something that has traveled 5,000 miles grown under questionable conditions picked with questionable labor practices as opposed to buying local?

Honest to goddess, I've been poor most of my life and buying fresh produce, at peak times, at it's cheapest prices (to be canned or frozen) is pretty economical. Yes, I know, not everyone has a stove, refrigerator, legs, shopping cart, water, sink, etc., but barring that, I'm not sure why there's such hostility to buying local.

[REP]

25. I live a few miles from a Trader Joe's; 22 miles from a very small farmers market w/imported produce

At a TJ's or other grocery store, you can get meat, flour, rice, eggs, produce, coffee, milk, etc in one trip and be done. You can get fresh or frozen, depending upon what suits your needs and budget.

The farmers market has produce, handicrafts, flowers, maybe eggs. Not a week's worth of everyday staples in one place. It's usually out of the way. For some - like you, it's an option. For many, it's an expensive boutique tucked away in a place that's difficult to get to.

[randome]

18. No, my choices are Trader Joe's, Dierbergs and Schnucks.

Shop N Save if I want to go 10 miles.

How would anyone know if someone is part of a 'family farm' or not? Because they say they are? How would you know if they use pesticides or not? Because they say they don't?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Where do uncaptured mouse clicks go?[/center][/font][hr]

[Le Taz Hot]

23. I'm glad you asked.

It's actually pretty easy. Look at the boxes. Are there different names on them? Ask them where exactly their farms are. If they're resellers, they'll Hmmm and Hawww and look away a lot. I they're local, they'll tell you exactly where their farms are and tell you how to get there. Btw, when I say "family farms" I mean locally grown. I know if they're using pesticides because in order to be Certified Organic in California, there are strict guidelines they must follow to be certified.

Now, since the FDA has been populated by industry insiders (true when either party is in the White House,) how do YOU know that the food you eat is safe? Is what it says it is? How do you know that shrimp you just bought from Viet Nam hasn't been contaminated with feces and other contaminates. Did you know that every commercially canned food is allowed a certain amoung of bug parts? I've worked in packing houses and know what practices are used. Do you? I've worked in commercial kitchens and watched cooks drop meat on the floor, then put it back on the grill. How sure are you that the commercially-prepared food you eat is prepared in sanitary conditions? The fact is, you don't.

[randome]

37. I'm never sure but because I value my health, I rarely eat out.

Eat healthy and eat little is the only way to be sure you are getting good nutrition. Oh, and eat as little cooked food as possible.

Other than that, you can be very healthy and eat nutritious no matter where you shop.
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[Le Taz Hot]

49. And those are your standards and that's fine for you.

We try to eat organic as much as possible, grow or buy shares at a local organic farm, buy very few canned/frozen foods, stay away from pesticide-laden, GMO, mass-produced food which is how WE eat healthy and nutritious. Where we shop is a major consideration when trying to "eat healthy and nutritious."

I knew when I posted Buy Local that I would be excoriated for blaspheming against Trader Joe's as it seems to have grown to deity status, but, I believe passionately that we can't denounce corporatocracy while feeding at the corporate teet. Just my opinion.

[REP]

16. No shit

I have more options than many people do (and my Trader Joe's does carry local produce - being in California means a lot of produce is local) and making a special trip, burning extra gas, taking extra time to go somewhere that isn't necessarily accessible for my disabilities just isn't worth it. And I have the luxury of a car, access to produce in non-scary places (and access at all) and a lot of other things that many do not.

[greatauntoftriplets]

20. My Trader Joe's carries local produce when available...

but this is Chicago and a short growing season. Any farms are many miles away from me; farmers' markets are very seasonal and many have just a couple of vendors and resulting high prices.

[REP]

29. It'd be great if all food came from small, humane, sustainable farms

I have the luxury of being able to make the choice to buy as much food as I can that is produced that way. Not everyone does, but everyone has to eat. Everyone deserves safe food.

[greatauntoftriplets]

32. Like much of the country, I don't have that luxury.

The alternative would be to stop eating fruit and vegetables.

[REP]

36. I think scolding people who are doing their best is stupid and mean

In so many places, it's so hard to get any decent food at reasonable prices. I think Trader Joe's selections, while limited, offer decent produce options and reasonable prices and don't seem to be any worse than any other place (many, in fact, seem better).

In my perfect world, we all get good food. I can dream

[greatauntoftriplets]

40. It's pointless, IMO.

For much of the year, Trader Joe's carries the best quality produce that I can get. Well, maybe Whole Foods has better, but I can't afford to shop there.

At least I'm better off than in some Chicago-area neighborhoods where there isn't a halfway decent grocery store anywhere close. A perfect world would be wonderful, but it just doesn't exist.

[REP]

42. It does make the scolder feel important and righteous

While there doesn't seem to be much improvement in the "food deserts," there does seem to be more interest in how our food is produced. I am hopeful; transfats are almost gone from many foods and I see more things without high fructose corn syrup. Little changes, yes; but it's gotta start somewhere ... More food in our food is a good place to start.

As is better pay, treatment and working conditions for those who grow and harvest our food ...

It's a huge problem but I try to be hopeful that enough people are realizing that this is important that it'll get taken seriously.

[greatauntoftriplets]

43. All those are certainly desirable goals.

In terms of food deserts, Whole Foods is building a store in Englewood, one of Chicago's poorest neighborhoods. I question how well they will do there, given affordability. The Dominicks in my old neighborhood (Edgewater) is being converted to a Whole Foods. I understand that the community is not happy about it, even though the area is solidly middle class.

That said, healthier food is a great development. Now, just to get people to buy fresh food vs. prepared stuff is the next step. Better pay and working conditions, well, there's always room for improvement there.

[AngryAmish]

81. Mariano's

Better selection than Trader Joe's, lower prices and union shop.

(I like Trader Joe's also. I'm on the nw side so it is either drive to St. Ben's or Glenview for TJs for me. I make load up trips for the items I like, which include in house IPA, butter, some of the frozen stuff, juice boxes etc.)

[greatauntoftriplets]

85. For Mariano's, I have to go to either Elmhurt or Countryside...both about 10 miles away.

I've heard it's great, though. Wish they'd build one closer to Oak Park. Saw an interview on "My Chicago" recently with the founder of Mariano's and his wife. I loved their enthusiasm about what they're doing.

Someone from my old neighborhood told me that a TJ's will be opening sometime on Broadway near Foster. I don't know if that's better for your or not.

[AngryAmish]

91. The one by me is Elston a few blocks east of Central.

Not the easiest trip for you. But you do get Caputo's on Harlem, that is a good store. Produce is cheap but you have to use it pretty quick. THat lot can be a nightmare on the weekends.

Can you tell that I think way too much about food?

[greatauntoftriplets]

93. Caputo's is great.

I also like Tony's Finer Foods in North Riverside.

Elston/Central would be a bit far for groceries. I used to work in Skokie and still have nightmares about that commute. However, a friend lives quite close to that Mariano's, so maybe the next time I go there....

I think that most people think about food a lot.

[cyberswede]

97. Is it near the library?

[greatauntoftriplets]

99. I imagine there's a library in the town where it is located.

Perhaps someone with a bad case of the giggles patronizes it?

[William769]

107. Ins't there also a insane asylum?

[greatauntoftriplets]

108. A bit further to the north...

[Le Taz Hot]

45. Oh, for heaven's sake.

I'm not "scolding" anyone. I just said I don't understand why people would choose to buy food that has come from thousands of miles away, etc., as opposed to buying local. "I don't understand" is not "scolding." If you don't mind me saying so (and I'm sure you will), you're taking this far too personally.

[Le Taz Hot]

28. Why do you think you have to drive to the farm?

All farmers markets I know about are in the heart of the city. If you want to buy shit that's been picked too early, tastes like cardboard and has tons of pesticides on it, that is certainly your prerogative. But don't put up strawmen up by claiming a person has to drive out TO the farm to get what they're selling because you don't.

[REP]

30. The way you had phrased it. And not everyone has a farmers market in their city

Or lives close to a farmers market. The closest one to me is 22 miles away and it's very small, and not locally sourced.

[JVS]

73. Sounds like how McDonald's wins travelers on the interstates.

Who wants to risk eating at some crummy diner and getting food poisoning when the standardized burgers mcnuggets and fries can be purchased anywhere.

[MadrasT]

48. I have loads of family farms and no Trader Joe's at all where I live.

There are Walmarts, but yuck, not for food. OK, one TJs 20 some miles away in a direction I rarely travel

I know the chickens who lay my eggs and the farmers who grow my produce.

Yay for family farms. And there are more farmers markets - both on and off the farm, than you can shake a stick at. Right near the border of Chester and Lancaster county PA.

I go to Giant or Acme for other food

I love here.

[Le Taz Hot]

54. Yes. Thank you.

I know the farmers who grow my produce, who raises the (free range) chickens I buy and how and where the eggs are produced. We decry the loss of family farms yet too many times we choose to go to corporate grocery stores selling corporate products produced in factories that are anything but sanitary.

[stopbush]

59. Trader Joe's SUCKS.

I really don't get the fascination.

Our local Vons (ie: Safeway) is so far superior, especially in carrying local produce. All of their produce is far superior to what Joe's carries, at least in our town. Today, I picked up apples, bananas, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, peaches and fresh-cut pineapple spears. Great prices and they taste incredible.

I never go to Joe's because the food there sucks.

[kwassa]

65. Trader Joes is great at non-produce items.

TJ's works on a fast self-through model, so they also buy produce close to expiration at a reduced price. Too close.

But, they have many fabulous products. Part of our weekly shop.

[stopbush]

71. Overpriced and pretentious.

Went in there once around Thanksgiving looking for mince pie filling. 84 "different" types of white flour but no pie filling.

Ridiculous.

Plus, they rip-off the ideas of the people who sell them product and turn it into a house brand.

[JVS]

74. Their raspberry sorbet is some good shit.

But they don't seem to be a proper grocery. More like a delicatessen (or better yet Feinkost) version of their low budget Aldi sister stores.

[lame54]

84. They are cheaper than Safeway...

I've worked years at both

TJ's is less expensive than most big chain grocery stores

[stopbush]

122. Really? I often shop at Vons, aka Safeway.

Yesterday, I picked up some beautiful strawberries at Vons for $2.50 a lb. Bananas for 69¢ a pound. Bought the Xtra-large size of A&H laundry detergent for $5. Simply Lemon lemonade for $2.50, when it's $2.99 everywhere else. Fresh boneless chicken breast for $5 a lb.

Is that expensive? For SoCal? Can TJ beat those prices, which are day-in, day-out prices at Vons? Vons gets most of its produce from the Watsonville/Salinas area up in Santa Cruz County, which is 5-6 hours by truck from where I live in SoCal. That's local enough for me, as most of CA is farmland anyway.

Most stores still have loss leaders. After a while you know where to shop for what.

But I'm lucky. Within a 5-mile radius from my house there are 3 Vons, 6 Ralphs, 3 TJs, 3 Albertsons, Whole Foods, WalMart, 4 Targets, 1 Stater Bros, all of which sell foods and other household goods. I tend to shop at Ralphs and Vons, because they have the best prices and seem to have no problems keeping things in stock. I never shop at WalMart, Whole Foods or TJs. Went to Stater once - it was filthy inside. I'm sure all of those stores and chains mean competition on price to lure in customers.

Prices are higher here than they were in Fresno, but at least I'm out of Fresno.

[kwassa]

96. Trader Joe's is not overpriced, it is cheaper than most supermarkets.

One of the main reasons we shop there. Great quality, low prices, and many gourmet items that general grocery stores don't even carry. Unlike Whole Foods, which does much the same thing but charges really high prices.

I think you don't know the store. They don't offer 84 different types of anything; their model is to offer only one really good product in each category. Many are excellent, some, not so much.

and they don't rip off anyone. They do work directly with manufacturers.

[lame54]

114. "84 "different" types of white flour but no pie filling."

ummm no, one type of white flour. Not sure where you were but Joe only carrys one white flour, wheat, coconunt and glutten free.

[PasadenaTrudy]

118. Are you sure

you didn't walk into Whole Foods? That does not sound like Trader Joe's for a second. Nice try.

[stopbush]

120. I live in Aliso Viejo and we have a Trader Joe's.

That's the store where I saw the wall of flour. Next time I'm there, I'll take a picture.

We also have Whole Foods - which I've never set foot in as their owner is a RW asshole of the highest order.

[Reter]

61. Because their prices are amazing and their products are healthier than the supermarket's

I love TJ's and shop there all the time. I can't afford small stores.

[Le Taz Hot]

67. How can they be "healthier?"

They're shipped from thousands of miles away, grown under questionable conditions most likely with pesticides that many times have been banned in the U.S., picked under slave labor conditions. Meat, poultry, fish, canned goods and frozen goods are all processed under mass-produced conditions that are anything but sanitary. Tell me, how exactly is that "healthier?" I mean, shop where you want and I'm aware that Trader Joe's has become the new Mecca for "foodies" but I don't understand the "healthier" claim.

[nadinbrzezinski]

72. It was not like that when they started

they started in California. Most of their business was in good quality wine from small producers early on, with some side things.

For a few years it was ok... and some of their imported chocolates were extremely good for a good price. Those good chocolates, the last time I went, are mostly gone.

My opinion purely, they grew too fast. That said, at least in California they are a decent employer. And I used to love their soups, the tomato soup was to die for, but I have a gluten allergy from hell, and if it is not gluten free I just don't touch it. It is a safety thing. I will rather make my own, or Ralphs has a couple good ones in stock.

Oh and I do my food shopping at the farmer's market.

[Reter]

80. How about the following:

I like their Himalayan pink seas salt, organic peanut butter, baked banana chips, spiced packaged mangos. I also got a package of frozen brussel sprouts for about $1.29 or so, and a bag of frozen edamame for about the same price. I always assumed these were good, your post scares me.

[Le Taz Hot]

90. And you never answered the question.

How is it healthier under the conditions I mentioned? If you say you believe it's cheaper (it's actually not) then that's one argument. But you've offered no evidence that commercially-produced, pesticide-laden produce is healthier.

As I said, buy what you want, it's your business, but I don't think I'd be making claims I couldn't in any way back up with facts.

[Reter]

116. I think you misunderstood me

I was basically saying I was shocked, and thanked you (without actually saying it, sorry lol). I don't stand by anything I said in post #61 in this tread, except prices being lowered when compared to mom and pop stores.

I don't dispute what you said about the produce and pesticides. What I asked you was about several product I bought last week (Himalayan pink seas salt, organic peanut butter, baked banana chips, and spiced packaged mangos). Any idea if these are bad too?

[Le Taz Hot]

117. I've no idea about those items.

I was speaking specifically about produce and some meats, chicken and seafood.

[IronLionZion]

86. TJ's easily has the worst produce and fresh food of anybody

I try to get as much as I can from farmers markets for fresh produce and meat. All else I would get from a local independent store in my neighborhood called Snider's. Once in a while I make the trek out to an organic co-op for hippie soap and toothpaste.

TJ's has interesting packaged and frozen food but I have been trying to cut back on processed food of all types.

[Le Taz Hot]

88. I process my own.

I control the ingredients and I control the process. Buy organic in bulk when the produce is in peak season and then can it or freeze it for when it's out of season. I know not everyone has the time or inclination to do this but I do and I actually enjoy it.

There really is a difference in taste and quality when you buy fresh and local. My CSA costs $116.00 a month for 10 shares a week. That's more than enough produce to eat fresh and can the rest. I don't understand how people think that's so over the top expensive.

Anytime I talk about buying local I get the above reaction. I know it's coming but it's a movement I believe in and I believe in promoting things that are healthy for us as individuals, healthy for our economy and healthy for Mother Earth.

[hvn_nbr_2]

10. There are other factors that I never hear anyone talk about

1. For more than 20 years, I've been writing down prices on my grocery list as I put items in the cart and checking them against the store receipt later. At major chains, about 98% of scanner errors are in the store's favor. That's no accident. At Trader Joe's there are errors, but half are in their favor and half are in my favor--those are errors, not deliberate stealing from me.

Every time that they get so obnoxious about it that the state legislature holds hearings on it, the stores clean up their act for a couple months till attention fades.

There was one drug store that I used to go to that, any time I bought three or more items, there was guaranteed to be an overcharge, but there was never an overcharge on one or two items. It's like they figured you might notice on one or two items but probably not if there were more.


2. "Loyalty" cards, AKA "we sell your personal information to anyone who will give us money for it" cards.

If you don't use the store card, you pay vastly inflated prices for many items. If you do use the store card, you agree (in the fine print when you sign up for the card) to let them sell to anyone the information that you buy Preparation H or maxi-pads or senior vitamins or condoms or lube or ethnic products or disposable diapers or everything else that somebody wants to know about you and is willing to pay the store (but not you) for.


I'd rather buy from stores that want my business and treat me fairly than stores that want to sell my personal information and cheat me in the process. As a result, I go to a chain supermarket about three times a year for things that I can only get from them.

[villager]

12. Are giant corporations like Kroger and Safeway an "American Tradition" now?

Last edited Tue Jun 17, 2014, 08:04 PM - Edit history (1)

Kroger, to use that example, owns many formerly distinct regional supermarket chains, as does Safeway.

Are these food distribution monoliths any less "monolithic" than their competitors? Not sure who the "good guys" are here, other than the local produce / farm products folks...

[Happyhippychick]

38. Exactly! To me a small, friendly reasonable store like Trader Joes is the real tradition.

[onenote]

13. FFS, grocery chains have been expanding and contracting, disapperaring and reappearing for decades

Just here in the Washington DC area, I can name three grocery store chains that were virtually ubiquitous in the 1950s and 1960s and that disappeared in the 1970s and 1980s (long before Trader Joes or Walmart was in the DC area): Food Fair (aka Pantry Pride), Grand Union, and, of course, A&P. A&P actually lives on, having gone in and out of bankruptcy a couple of times and having acquired the remnants of other chains that were failing such as Pathmark and Stop and Shop.

[ret5hd]

24. So who is your latest Food Fair, Grand Union, Pathmark, Stop and Shop, etc...

The point is these "mom'n'pops" are being destroyed to the advantage of WalMart, Trader Joe's etc.

But you already knew that. I know, your function here isn't populist, it's 1%'ist.

[onenote]

52. Good grief. If you think A&P was a "mom and pop" you are woefully misinformed

Last edited Wed Jun 18, 2014, 05:46 PM - Edit history (1)

Same thing with Food Fair and Grand Union.

In the 1950s Food Fair had over 500 stores. It was bankrupt by the 1970s. Is that your idea of a mom and pop?

And my "function" here is to comment, just like others. If I have a particular perspective it is that pointing out ignorance when it is displayed in a post such as yours is beneficial for DU.

[Nye Bevan]

22. Bricks and mortar stores need to adapt to the modern era, or die.

See also: Borders, Circuit City, and (probably soon) Radio Shack.

[ret5hd]

26. So you are willing to accept your fresh vegggies in 3 days? (nt)

[Nye Bevan]

66. Nope, that's exactly the sort of thing I have in mind.

Do stuff that Amazon can't do.

[BainsBane]

31. I'm supposed to feel bad for Safeway?

because I prefer Trader Joe's? Screw that.
The supermarkets in my area are doing just fine.

[Jenoch]

55. What about Rainbow?

[BainsBane]

57. Is being bought out by Supervalue

So that all the supermarkets, Lunds, Byerlys, Cub, and Rainbow will be owned by the same company. At least Trader Joe's isn't a monopoly.

[pintobean]

63. It seems to me that

good Democrats/liberals/progressives would support the companies that support union jobs.

[Romulox]

100. Um, ask the average Democrat/liberal/progressive what car they drive.

The average DUer "support(s) union jobs" my eye!

[Jenoch]

64. Rainbow could not make it in this market,

that's why they sold some of them, but not all of the stores. There are several other independent grocery chains in the Twin Cities.

Lunds/Byerly's bought a few of the Rainbow stores as well.

[Happyhippychick]

33. Trader joes is my favorite store

Ours has local produce, organic produce, low prices, friendly and helpful staff starting at very generous salaries, and great food. I didn't read the article but I don't see a single downside to TJs. I've never been in a walmart.

[Siwsan]

35. The closest Trader Joes, for me, is 45 miles away and worth every mile

When we go, I usually fill up 2 shopping carts with non-perishables (Ok, one of those carts is mostly for wine) and top them off with the things I MUST eat soon. Ok, WANT to eat soon. By far my favorite place to shop.

[Siwsan]

34. I'd much rather shop at a store the size of Trader Joe's or Aldis

They have almost everything I need, and I don't have to wear hiking boots to get to the back of the store or hire a guide to find the rice.

[dilby]

39. Trader Joe's is the Hipsters Walmart.

They both demand the lowest prices from their vendors and although the Trader Joe's employee makes slightly more than Walmart it's still not a living wage.

[yeoman6987]

68. I hardly think that Safeway, Giant and other supermarkets

pay all that great either. In fact, Safeway (from what I hear from the workers) treat their workers very poorly.

[lame54]

87. wow - you are so wrong...

Trader Joe's pays very well- I've worked there a decade and have seen many employees use it as a college job

They graduate - look for work in their chosen field for 6 months - and then ask to be part of the management team because its the best paying job out there

Full benefits, vacation and a retirement account

as far as part time (which can be upt to 38 hours) - they start out ato a fair price with a chance at a raise every 6 months

again - benefits, vacation and retirement fund

[dilby]

111. But that is for management.

Or do all employees get full benefits, vacation and retirement?

[lame54]

113. yes...

But a smaller percentage

[Trajan]

44. I live 2 blocks from Trader Joe's ...

While I haven't bought anything from Wal-Mart in over a decade, I use Trader Joe's every week ... it's just to convenient to eliminate as a food source ...

Btw ... Trader Joe's is NOT upscale ... they often have prices that are lower than 'standard' Safeway or Albertsons ....

[randome]

46. For many items, their prices are even lower than Walmart's!

Price isn't everything but other things being equal...
[hr][font color="blue"][center]Stop looking for heroes. BE one.[/center][/font][hr]

[geek_sabre]

50. When I lived in Manhattan, I shopped exclusively at Trader Joes

It was less than a block from my apartment. Since the prices are constant across the country, it was MUCH cheaper than any of the nearby markets. Their fresh produce was pretty good, and their convenience and frozen meals are THE BEST. THE BEST.

[raven mad]

47. Only 3 "grocery store" options here -

Carrs/Safeway (Safeway bought out a local), Fred Meyer (Kroger owned) and Wally World, where I have yet to step foot. I grow some foods, but with an extremely short growing season and very little room to do so, it won't feed us. We haven't "caught" a moose tag in 4 years and may not be in the health to hunt, anyway. We fish, and freeze it. I go to the Farmer's Market but it's become mostly crafts, and is very expensive for the produce it sells.

So it's usually Fred Meyer for us. We try very hard to buy local, or at least Alaska Grown - but sometimes it just isn't possible. Right now, we're down to food assistance for a bit.

Soon it's going to be "buy what we sell or don't eat", everywhere.

[ripcord]

51. Safeway and other chains killed the Mom and Pop grocery stores.

[surrealAmerican]

58. ... or killed the regional chains that killed the "mom and pop"s.

I can just about remember privately owned grocery stores. The ones I remember all closed down in the 1970s, because they couldn't compete with the buying power and lower prices that chain stores offered.

[Humanist_Activist]

77. I always wondered about this, what do private, family owned chain stores get called?

Are they still "mom n' pop" stores if they are kept in the same family for decades, and just happened to have expanded over the years?

[tech3149]

70. I consider myself exceptionally lucky

I live in a fairly rural area with a mix of residents. Most are older and as I, and have lived here for generations. The other half of the population are young families that moved here for the low cost of living and inexpensive homes. The local grocer is only two miles from home. It's a small family owned chain of a few stores. The have their on butcher operation. All the meat is locally sourced. Like most, produce comes from wherever they can get it. You can't ask for perfection.

Prices are fair and sometimes downright cheap. They aren't fancy, hell they make Costco look swank. I would expect they won't be going anywhere any time soon. Their market is fairly strong and gets stronger as the economy gets tighter.
The only thing better are the farmers markets in th summer.

[Humanist_Activist]

76. Yeah, we have the same, but in a mostly urban area.

We actually live in between two such stores, same chain, that are equal distance from us, left or right on the nearest north-south road doesn't matter, a little over a mile from each, if that. We also have a lot of new and older local, non-chain stores that seem to pop up and stick around for a while, some fail, others succeed, but it provides us with a large variety of food choices.

We also have several large farmer's markets during the summer as well.

Competition here is fierce and it doesn't involve any of the national chains people are talking about here, not Krogers, they left our area in 1986, nor Safeway or Albertson's, or any of those. Even Walmart and Target are barely a blip so far, and Trader Joe's has opened one location. Perhaps some of the newer models of the grocery business will make a dent, then our local chains will adapt and thrive.

[frazzled]

83. I do not particularly mourn the loss of the traditional American supermarket

Most of them are pretty awful. I live two blocks from a large supermarket (Jewel) and we use it quite sparingly: when we run out of laundry detergent or because they carry a brand of British tea that we drink every day. But I would never buy meat there, and I don't really buy much in the way of packaged goods anyway.

America's shopping habits are changing ... and in the two directions the article suggests. For us, we stock up on dishwasher detergent and coffee at Costco, buy our fish from a local fish market down the street, use farmers' markets all summer during the growing season, and during the long non-growing months pick up meats and vegetables at Whole Foods usually. There is a newer supermarket chain that has come in where I live that is somewhat better than the others: Mariano's. The produce is extensive though not always reliable, and it carries a million kinds of Italian products.

[Humanist_Activist]

75. I guess we are lucky, we have in our area a couple of the largest family owned grocery chains in...

the country. They are largely regional, Schnucks and Dierbergs, along with a third grocery chain, Shop n' Save, which is still considered local, I guess.

Schnucks, I know, has been expanding lately, having expanded to over 100 stores in 5 states now, penetrating markets such as Chicago, its the largest of the 3 in our area, Dierbergs isn't in any danger, from what I can tell, and Shop n' Save does what it always does, offers cheap food. Schnucks even has a couple of "Super Schnucks" which are grocery stores with department stores inside, kinda a mirror of a Walmart supercenter.

As far as Walmart and Target, well, we have a few in the area that offer grocery items, not quite to the extent of any grocery store, they also are more expensive, 5 dollar milk and 8 dollars for bacon at our local Walmart, we don't buy food there when its cheaper at our local chains.

The only major national chains we have in our area is Aldis, which small and cheap and Trader Joe's, with one location, soon to expand to two. Never seen a Kroger's in my area, they abandoned the area in 1986, nearest one I know of is about 2 hours out from St. Louis, straight highway, with no traffic. We are supposedly getting a Trader Joe's in one of our urban developments. I expect one of two things to happen to it, one, if the urban development takes off, it will do well, and then be bought out by Schnucks, they bought out a lot of Krogers and other stores during trades in the past few years. Or it will fail, and we will get another of the dozen or so new startup grocery stores we have that sprout like weeds lately to take over the location.

People here are weird, we really have an inferiority complex, have no problem shopping at places like Walmart, but mess with our local businesses and we do what we can to support them.

Basically, in our area, the more the merrier, but good luck in trying to break our local store's marketshare, its an uphill battle. Got to realize that a lot of store simply aren't a competition, even Walmart isn't much competition when you think of the price differences. We have local companies that are just large enough to leverage that for good deals for customers, while being good union stores as well. I know, my brother-in-law works for Schnucks. They are just celebrating their 75 anniversary this year.

[Karma13612]

78. those who live in urban areas have

More options than rural areas.

I live in a rural area with the following choices, and i am not a wealthy person

Walmart
Price chopper (insanely expensive food prices)
Aldi's (very goog food, etc andthe prices are how i can eat and still have enuf money to pay my other bills)
IGA - also too expensive
Independent food coop:narrow selection, terrible prices unless you are rich/or plan on fasting 3 days out of 7

I loved trader joes when i lived in connecticut. They won't ever offer one in our area since it's not the right demographics. Their words, not mine.

Don't always blame consumers for poor choies and "walmart".

Companies pick the area based on their needs and whether they can make a go of it.

All i can say is, thank heavens for walmart and aldi's.

We don't have decent clothing stores either. That requires traveling at least 2 hours one way.

A lot of america is rural, and my situation is not unique.

Local stores have to figure out how to get much closer to walmart prices. Otherwise, they do not survive. The rural consumer is not always independantly wealthy.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

95. Neither Walmart nor Trader Joe's impress me at all.

There's re-opening the Walmart about 5 minutes from my house and including a food section in the store, but I have zero interest in shopping there. Besides Walmart's abysmal labor record, I simply do not trust the quality of the products there enough to shop there. That and Walmart is just dark and depressing in general. I set one foot in the place and my serotonin levels plummet. I avoid Walmart even for ordinary retail goods, choosing to go to Target instead. The only time I ever go to Walmart is if it is the last resort and no where else has what I'm looking for.

As for Trader Joe's, I know they have their uberloyal and enthusiastic cult following. But I just don't get it. From what I've heard, their stores are small and their selection is limited. They are opening one up about 20 minutes from my house and it's got people all excited, but frankly I couldn't care less. There's a Publix literally a minute from my house. It's bright, cheery, has a large selection, has friendly employees, I'll see family and neighbors there, etc. In other words, it's perfect. Why on earth would I go 20 minutes out of my way to some trendy fad supermarket with a limited selection and needlessly waste gas and time? That's textbook insanity. Seriously, I'd pass 5 Publix stores on my way there. Are you telling me that Trader Joe's is so much better than the traditional supermarket?

[PasadenaTrudy]

119. Try it and see for yourself..

Step outside of your comfort zone...sheesh.

[Romulox]

101. Um, boohoo?

What's next--whining about Walmart's declining sales?

[Mr Dixon]

102. Sad

I have been shopping at Audi for years

[unapatriciated]

115. Safeway is not Union friendly nor is it a small mom and pop store.

They may be union but their rencently retired golden parachute CEO Steve Burd did everything in his power to break the union. During his time as CEO, Safeway gobbled up smaller regional grocery stores all across the country in the 90's. Von's and Dominicks were two of those regional chains that they gobbled up and immediatly started downgrading everthing from employee benifits to customer relations. I worked for Vons before Safeway took control and it was downhill all the way after Steve Burd took over. I also spent over four months on a picket line because of that asshat.

http://supermarketnews.com/steve-burd-safeway-1

http://www.businessweek.com/stories/2004-02-11/time-for-safeways-burd-to-fly-away

and did I mention that Steve Burd was a bush ranger...
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x1074316