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I would like that too. Like you would have small neighborhood stores. I grew up that way. lived in a mostly European Latin neighborhood in Florida, and we had a meat market, milk market, produce market and bakeries all within a couple blocks. I really, really miss that. Everything is pre-fab now. I want REAL bakery items, and there are a few places where I live, but are too far to be convenient.
Small stores with artisan food... a thing of the past. Very sad that lots of people don't even know what that is, or how this kind of food taste.
I love a variety of grocery stores! In a small radius of my home there are Krogers, Aldis, fish markets/piers with "off the boat" seafood, meat markets, HEBs, Walmart, Randall's, Farmers Markets, local farms selling produce, milk, eggs, etc.
If I drive up into Houston (the country's most ethnically diverse city, btw) there is an unbelievable variety of ethnic groceries, Whole Foods, Central Market, and specialty/artisanal grocery stores.
My food shopping is not dictated by convenience or fast in and out shopping. I enjoy preparing, eating, and shopping for a wide variety of foods.
I shop at Meijer and they pretty much have everything I need except good meat. I go to a local butcher for that. Not sure if Meijer is national though.
But I feel like a lot of American consumers actually are tired of having to walk aisle after aisle of 20 different milks and cereals and drinks. They would be just fine with three brands. They don't need 10 or 20 brands. That's why Aldi and Trader Joe's are so popular. Smaller stores and mostly just one brand.
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No, that's not why Aldi and TJ's are so popular. They're popular because they're discount stores.
What do you think? Some people say we have too many grocery stores, other people say our stores are too big. Then other people say the stores we do have don't have the right selection.
All I know is, there is no perfect store. And I usually have to shop 3-4 different stores every week. Sometimes I want organic French olive oil, sometimes I want Oreos. Sometimes I want fresh halibut, sometimes I want boiled peanuts. Why can't one store have everything?
Why has no one been able to come up with the perfect store? Not too big, not too small, not too expensive. This should not be that hard.
Maybe the solution is no store and buying everything online. That way, no wasted time and trips to the store where you can't find the right selection or price or quality. That's what the "experts" say anyway.
We are a capitalistic country and business is what we are based on. That and a democracy. if they can make a profit, good for them. No one is forcing any of us to shop at any particular grocery store or more than one. Let the public decide what works. Will the day come when most will shop on line? Probably just like what is happening with much of our buying habits, but til then I see nothing wrong with a good selection if that is what people want.
Here in Texas, there are 3 basic stores: HEB, Walmart, and Target. Some places may also have an Appletree, Albertson, or other store, but most of those have disappeared from this region.
In reverse order, Target strikes me as a company store like that of an oil company or a remote military station. Rows of food that is not really meant for home preparation beyond that of sticking it into a microwave. It may not entirely be like that but that is the feel of it.
Decades ago, I read a Nat'l Geographic story about two men who were kayaking, East to West, across the NW Passage. They landed in Alaska on oil company land. The security jeep took them to the supermarket to buy provisions and it was row after row of baseball caps and potato chips. "Where's the food," they asked? "No one around here cooks. If people want to eat, they go to one of the restaurants or orders delivery." the cashier told them. Target feels like that to me. (the kayakers were set up with a cook in a cafeteria who provided them with flour, butter, sugar, things like that)
Walmart can be good....and it can be bad. On the lesser side, I would not buy beef from there and there can be better selection for fruits and veggies. On the up side, however, it can be the better selection for bulk foods. It is where I buy my powdered milk, where the cheese prices are better, and where I stock up for a camp out. Camp outs or at home, I make out like a bandit for day old bread. The tortilla prices are too high, however, and I would not buy canned meats there.
HEB is where I usually shop. Beef, can goods, produce, dairy other than noted above, tortillas, and so forth, they win out......but as noted above, there can be advantages at times over at Walmart.
No store is perfect and it does help to have some selection even if one has to drive across town.
What do you think? Some people say we have too many grocery stores, other people say our stores are too big. Then other people say the stores we do have don't have the right selection.
All I know is, there is no perfect store. And I usually have to shop 3-4 different stores every week. Sometimes I want organic French olive oil, sometimes I want Oreos. Sometimes I want fresh halibut, sometimes I want boiled peanuts. Why can't one store have everything?
Why has no one been able to come up with the perfect store? Not too big, not too small, not too expensive. This should not be that hard.
Maybe the solution is no store and buying everything online. That way, no wasted time and trips to the store where you can't find the right selection or price or quality. That's what the "experts" say anyway.
What you describe as perfect is a planned economy. Now, if everyone wants a different planned economy and there are plenty of companies that try to cater to these demands, you get a competitive economy, which is perfect for no one and everyone.
But I feel like a lot of American consumers actually are tired of having to walk aisle after aisle of 20 different milks and cereals and drinks. They would be just fine with three brands. They don't need 10 or 20 brands. That's why Aldi and Trader Joe's are so popular. Smaller stores and mostly just one brand.
We are at a tipping point where the American consumer values TIME (just give me fewer brands in a smaller store I can get in and out of quickly) over VARIETY (Wegmans for example).
I feel like the era of the big box grocery store is over. This includes Walmart, Kroger, Safeway, etc.
Which is part of the reason that Aldi and Lidl have HUGE expansion plans for the US.
No, that's not why Aldi and TJ's are so popular. They're popular because they're discount stores.
That is not the only reason they are popular. They are also popular b/c they are 20-30,000 sq feet, half the size of a traditional grocery store. They are a quicker shop. Most of the new grocers are following this smaller store model: Fresh Thyme, Sprouts, Earth Fare. Walmart is now building smaller stores, so is Meijer.
The trend is smaller, unless you are Wegmans. Wegmans seems to be the only one bucking the small store trend.
Here in Texas, there are 3 basic stores: HEB, Walmart, and Target. Some places may also have an Appletree, Albertson, or other store, but most of those have disappeared from this region.
In reverse order, Target strikes me as a company store like that of an oil company or a remote military station. Rows of food that is not really meant for home preparation beyond that of sticking it into a microwave. It may not entirely be like that but that is the feel of it.
Decades ago, I read a Nat'l Geographic story about two men who were kayaking, East to West, across the NW Passage. They landed in Alaska on oil company land. The security jeep took them to the supermarket to buy provisions and it was row after row of baseball caps and potato chips. "Where's the food," they asked? "No one around here cooks. If people want to eat, they go to one of the restaurants or orders delivery." the cashier told them. Target feels like that to me. (the kayakers were set up with a cook in a cafeteria who provided them with flour, butter, sugar, things like that)
Walmart can be good....and it can be bad. On the lesser side, I would not buy beef from there and there can be better selection for fruits and veggies. On the up side, however, it can be the better selection for bulk foods. It is where I buy my powdered milk, where the cheese prices are better, and where I stock up for a camp out. Camp outs or at home, I make out like a bandit for day old bread. The tortilla prices are too high, however, and I would not buy canned meats there.
HEB is where I usually shop. Beef, can goods, produce, dairy other than noted above, tortillas, and so forth, they win out......but as noted above, there can be advantages at times over at Walmart.
No store is perfect and it does help to have some selection even if one has to drive across town.
H-E-B and especially Central Market are AWESOME!
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