Henry's/Sprouts Merger, Any Thoughts? (Mountain Ranch: leasing, organic, live in)

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

Henry's is awesome. Although, since we got a CSA share, we go a lot less.

I had considered a CSA but found the pick up stops less convenient than just walking down the street to Henrys from where I live.

How are you liking it so far Sass? My friend that lives in Mission Hills swears by it, but cant remember which CSA he using (there are quite a few).

[sav858]

What is a "CSA"?

[djxpress]

Originally Posted by sav858

What is a "CSA"?

Thanks for asking. I was going to ask that as well.

Edit: First google search, looks like community supported agriculture. I heard about this on KPBS/NPR. I've also heard of the community gardens, but I heard they were very cost prohibitive, running tens of thousands just for the permits.

[Bakeneko]

I don't think Henry's is overpriced. Their prices are great on produce, ours is a madhouse on Tues and Weds (when you can shop last and the current weeks sale items).

I've been shopping there even more since we loved from Temecula (which had a great farmers market) to Otay Ranch (which has literally no farmers at the "farmers market")

I wish they had more bulk food items (like our Winco in Temecula did) - maybe that will change when they merge?

In fairness (regarding the pricig issue) - I don't shop their for personal care items (soap, shampoo), cleaning supplies, condiments, etc... those things are pricey there.

[Oerdin]

I never really like these mergers of local companies simply because as a consumer it's going to mean fewer choice and less competition keeping prices down for me. For the business owners I see obvious benefits (less competition means higher prices while more stores mean more economies of scale for them) but there should still be plenty of competition so it's not terrible. A much worse merger which shouldn't be allowed (but will since our political system is completely corrupt and politicians do what ever the lobbyists tell them to do) is AT&T's purchase of T-Mobile. That merger will have a long term negative impact for consumers of wireless services just like the US going from eight automakers in the 1950's to only three in the 1980's had on the US auto industry. For all intents and purposes we're down to just three wireless providers now so competitive pressure will be very low for them and a lack of effective competition is never good for consumers. Since all the wireless bandwidth has already been leased by the government there won't be any new independent upstarts either except ones which resale spectrum from the big 3 telcoms who have no need or incentive to sell excess capacity cheaply.

[djxpress]

Hollywood has done a pretty good portrayal of "The Future" when they show basically one company of each type. I forget which movie I saw, but I can imagine a future where Coke, Microsoft (or Apple), News Corp. Walmart, etc. are the only players in their respective industries. I know there are anti-monopoly laws, but there was a pretty big case recently where Google purchased the backend company that gives all the travel companies (Expedia, Travelocity, etc.) their data, with the judge basically telling Google to be careful because the Feds will be watching how they act with this company: Google buying travel software company ITA | Relevant Results - CNET News

[Sassberto]

Originally Posted by shmoov_groovzsd

I had considered a CSA but found the pick up stops less convenient than just walking down the street to Henrys from where I live.

How are you liking it so far Sass? My friend that lives in Mission Hills swears by it, but cant remember which CSA he using (there are quite a few).

CSA is a share in a local farm co-op, you basically subscribe to a weekly box of fruits and vegetables, all organic, very fresh, local, etc.

We love it, because the quality is terrific and we are eating lots of different veggies we wouldn't normally eat.

[djxpress]

Originally Posted by Sassberto

CSA is a share in a local farm co-op, you basically subscribe to a weekly box of fruits and vegetables, all organic, very fresh, local, etc.

We love it, because the quality is terrific and we are eating lots of different veggies we wouldn't normally eat.

How is the cost? Is it comparable to shopping at a grocery store or going to a farmers market?

[oddstray]

Originally Posted by djxpress

How is the cost? Is it comparable to shopping at a grocery store or going to a farmers market?

Ours ( Be Wise Ranch - Certified Organic Produce - Home ) is $20 every other week, for a "small" box. It's waaaay to much food for us two, so we split that box with another couple, which makes it $10 every other week. For the other couple, that leaves them a bit light on fruit/veg, so I suppose it depends on how much of it you eat.

[shmoov_groovzsd]

Originally Posted by Oerdin

I never really like these mergers of local companies simply because as a consumer it's going to mean fewer choice and less competition keeping prices down for me. For the business owners I see obvious benefits (less competition means higher prices while more stores mean more economies of scale for them) but there should still be plenty of competition so it's not terrible. A much worse merger which shouldn't be allowed (but will since our political system is completely corrupt and politicians do what ever the lobbyists tell them to do) is AT&T's purchase of T-Mobile. That merger will have a long term negative impact for consumers of wireless services just like the US going from eight automakers in the 1950's to only three in the 1980's had on the US auto industry. For all intents and purposes we're down to just three wireless providers now so competitive pressure will be very low for them and a lack of effective competition is never good for consumers. Since all the wireless bandwidth has already been leased by the government there won't be any new independent upstarts either except ones which resale spectrum from the big 3 telcoms who have no need or incentive to sell excess capacity cheaply.

Oerdin whats your point? I dont see how your claim about less competition meaning higher prices in the examples you used.
You mentioned auto manufacturers shrinking, but that didnt mean prices went up when there only 2 or 3 left in the 80s. That is why the Japanese dominated the auto industry from that point forward. The US auto industry imploded by itself, from lack of innovation, not lack of internal competition.

I also highly disagree with your assessment of the merger between AT&T and T-Mobile. This merger will certainly benefit end users. The emergence of MVNO's like Cricket, Virgin Mobile, Boost, etc which rent from the larger carriers have blown up with their enticing offers and is the fastest growing segment in the cellular phone industry. This segment was T-Mobile's bread and butter.
The fact that a consumer can get an 'all you can eat plan' for $50-60/mo with a smart phone leaves room for more growth and provide a contract free environment for their customers.
While you may not get the fanciest phone on the market, you can get one that does email, text, voice. Which by the way, voice calls, are still a good majority of the cell phone subscriber market, not iPhone/Android mini computer users.

T-Mobile as business was not very profitable based on their target market. The MVNOs have done far better service, especially without a contract.