Trader Joe's in Champaign-Urbana (Chicago, Peoria: sales, home, college)

[JaimeeG]

I would love to see a Trader Joe's in the Champaign-Urbana area and I know that attempts have been made in the past to encourage the company to build a store here. I've heard that these attempts have been unsuccessful because the company believes the community is too small and/or too transient. If this is truly the biggest issue, then I'd like to show TJ's just how many people would be interested in a store here in CU. I've created a petition on change.org and am trying to get as many people to sign it as possible. If you'd like a Trader Joe's here, then please sign and please pass the link along to others who might be interested and post to FaceBook and other list servs. If you have others ideas about where to promote the petition, please let me know! I'd especially like this to circulate on the UI campus somehow.


Petition: Trader Joe's: Bring your store to Champaign-Urbana, Illinois | Change.org



Thank you!

[linicx]

I've talked to TJ's several times over several years. They do not move into any area with an aggregate population of less than one million. They do not build in towns that ban Sunday liquor sales.

It was not so long ago that I could not find a TJ's within 500 miles and I wanted the same thing. Currently, the population of C-U, B-N, Peoria and Springfield together is not one million and it is spread over 90-100 miles. TJ's probably understands and discounts the number of Chicago and E. St. Louis students who attend our flagship college; as well as Amtrak ridership between St. Louis and Chicago. In my view 150 miles from TJ's in St.Louis is a lot closer than the 300 miles I drove three times a year before I moved back home to Illinois.

Props to the person who designed your petition!

[chet everett]

Madison has one http://m.isthmus.com/article.php?article=4555

I wonder where the other 750,000 population is from...

http://www.city-data.com/city/Madison-Wisconsin.html


I do agree that ChamBana is probably more transient that MadCity, the various State employees as well as private industries that call Madison home lend a bit more stability that the student-centric population only...

[Drover]

Originally Posted by linicx

I've talked to TJ's several times over several years. They do not move into any area with an aggregate population of less than one million. They do not build in towns that ban Sunday liquor sales.

Well they must have changed their mind about the first part since there are TJ stores in markets of less than a million (Madison WI, Ann Arbor MI, Spokane WA, Lincoln NE, opening soon in State College PA, etc.), and the second point is moot since there is no Sunday ban on liquor sales in Champaign or Urbana. IMO Chambana is a natural market for a TJs or a Whole Foods (no pun intended), but I don't know that it could support both.

[mdand3boys]

Originally Posted by Drover

Well they must have changed their mind about the first part since there are TJ stores in markets of less than a million (Madison WI, Ann Arbor MI, Spokane WA, Lincoln NE, opening soon in State College PA, etc.), and the second point is moot since there is no Sunday ban on liquor sales in Champaign or Urbana. IMO Chambana is a natural market for a TJs or a Whole Foods (no pun intended), but I don't know that it could support both.

Student populations are not generally counted because students generally have no money to spend...

[Drover]

Originally Posted by mdand3boys

Student populations are not generally counted because students generally have no money to spend...

If they can make a go of it in State College and Ann Arbor, I don't see why not Chambana.

[JaimeeG]

Thanks for the props linicx!

I have heard that they have a strict cut off for population, but I'm not sure what it is. I'd like to find out. I personally think it's silly not to count the students b/c many stay for summer sessions and they're only gone a fraction of the year. The rest of the time they are the prime market for TJ's. But even if they do, they built a store in my hometown of Lynnwood, WA, which only has a population of 35,000... Champaign is twice as big as that alone. Tack on Urbana and it's about 120,000. Tack on surrounding little cities and it's about 135,000. I also know that they do indeed build in areas that ban Sunday liquor (AZ) and liquor in non-designated beer/win stores all together (MD).

So I'm hoping that if we can demonstrate a large number if interested people via this petition that perhaps they'll reconsider. It would be so easy for their trucks to come through!

[Drover]

^^ Comparing a store in Lynwood to one in Chambana isn't quite apt since Lynwood is part of a metropolitan area of several million. They're not just hoping to draw in people from Lynwood but from several surrounding areas; whereas in Chambana there isn't much to draw from outside of Champaign/Urbana itself and its satellite towns.

I still think one or the other could make a go of it. The student population has limited draw because of limited finances; but there's a lot of well-paid professionals in the area who could and probably would shop at one or the other if they could.

[JaimeeG]

Originally Posted by Drover

^^ Comparing a store in Lynwood to one in Chambana isn't quite apt since Lynwood is part of a metropolitan area of several million. They're not just hoping to draw in people from Lynwood but from several surrounding areas; whereas in Chambana there isn't much to draw from outside of Champaign/Urbana itself and its satellite towns.

That may be true since there are several other cities surrounding Lynnwood and Seattle is within 20 minutes drive. However, many of the surrounding areas and of course Seattle, already have several of their own TJ's. When I lived in Tucson (population half a million) there were three TJ's. So that's one store per 167,000 people or so.

At any rate, I think that people would drive in to CU to shop here from quite a distance, expanding the population estimate to several 100,000.

[linicx]

Drover, I'm pretty sure you know something about acquisitions. There is more to the story than just population. There is a process that may be lengthy between considering a location and opening the doors. TIF is one consideration, location and available parking is another.

Logistics is a curious bedfellow when a company is delivering goods to their stores 24/7. Tj's has stores in St. Louis and Chicago. I think the next logical location in Illinois, should it ever occur, might be B-N because it is situated on I-55 midway between the two cities and there is a population of nearly 600,000 in the immediate area - which is not much smaller than the City of St. Louis. It is even possible Springfield residents would shop TJs in B-N because the round trip is 60 miles less. Peoria and U-C may or may not offer more than B-N but the logistics of delivery doesn't seem to support other locations. Plus, if you look at ISU and U-High it is more likely a greater proportion of the student population lives in the immediate area and will remain in the immediate area.

It is unfortunate that the Illinois population is not spread more evenly through the state. I wish Tjs would come to central Illinois. I would not have to drive the extra 100 mile round trip .