Do 24 hour grocery stores not exist in New England? (Boston: apartment, landlord)

[GeoffD]

Originally Posted by wolfgang239

Yeah but ain't nobody driving 55 minutes to freaking Raynham or Plymouth for a Wally world run at 3AM. A Wegmans right by the 93/95 split in Burlington? Yeah people would do that. Or the one in Medford.

The one in Depew is like 15 min from the heart of Buffalo, a much smaller city than Boston/Cambridge/Somerville/Brookline etc. Easy 20min drive from all those places to Medford in the wee hours.

To quibble, South Station to the Burger King rest area where 24 crosses 495 is 30 minutes at 3am. The Walmart is at the next exit so about 35 minutes. You make it sound like a road trip to LL Bean in Freeport.

[htfdcolt]

Originally Posted by imperi33

It’s most likely the minimum wage which caused them to not be 24 hours. In India, for example, every store has a thousand workers all over the place willing to cater to your every need. In Massachusetts every large store is practically desolate of workers in comparison even in peak hours.

^^which is why I dread shopping in India! They practically hover over you and don't leave you alone, even when you say you're just browsing...

[mdovell]

this is a very interesting discussion. As someone that worked in retail for awhile let me say a few things. First is that not all types of stores translate to 24/7. Supposedly where I was they tested that but it didn't work.

As mentioned competition causes some of this. In Springfield the pharmacies are 24/7. Having said that expanding hours doesn't always mean higher sales. Just as the sales tax free weekend doesn't mean higher sales. People just considate purchases.

One reason why they wanted a casino in Springfield is because much of the city is non profit and governmental based. Casinos don't close. It is still taking people awhile to understand that. The CVS on Main St is moving to main and union. Why? Because it's closer to mgm and that means more customers for longer periods of time. The 24/7 one on state st is not moving.

The expected Amazon distribution center in Holyoke might be another 24/7 operation. In many cases police, fire and ems are 24/7 as are hospitals.

The margins might also be a factor. A dollar store might not make sense but if the margins are low maybe they need that for operations.

There's also the blue law legacy and shopping online. I recently asked Ikea about expanding but they told me with their website there's no need to

[OutdoorLover]

Yep, they exist.

[G1..]

Having worked in the grocery business for over 35 years let me say "all night groceries stores are a mess" and unprofitable. Most stores are closed for anywhere from 6/8 hours for restocking and cleaning but the crime at an "all night store" is what is most discouraging to companies, it's not worth the trouble. Go to a WAWA or a 7-11 if you need something that bad.

[mdovell]

Originally Posted by G1..

Having worked in the grocery business for over 35 years let me say "all night groceries stores are a mess" and unprofitable. Most stores are closed for anywhere from 6/8 hours for restocking and cleaning but the crime at an "all night store" is what is most discouraging to companies, it's not worth the trouble. Go to a WAWA or a 7-11 if you need something that bad.

One thing in retail I saw was if a night crew was cut it would all go to hell. You have to have time for recovery. Trash, cleaning bathrooms, putting product back, changing signs etc. Weekends we'd get mobbed but weekdays were mostly recovery. Inventory and loss prevention needs time as well. If you can't control what's going in and out you are lost.

[Cloudy Dayz]

Originally Posted by G1..

Having worked in the grocery business for over 35 years let me say "all night groceries stores are a mess" and unprofitable. Most stores are closed for anywhere from 6/8 hours for restocking and cleaning but the crime at an "all night store" is what is most discouraging to companies, it's not worth the trouble. Go to a WAWA or a 7-11 if you need something that bad.

Yes, I'm thinking crime is a big part off it. That would explain why there are more 24 hours stores in the suburbs and rural areas where crime is not as big a problem. If security is not a problem I don't think there is really much cost involved in keeping a store open 24 hours. There is already a crew in the store 24 hours a day anyway. I don't think they would even have to hire any extra workers to stay open.

When I lived in the city, I experimented with shopping at 3AM for a while. But I found it to be more trouble than it was worth. The plus side was zero traffic while driving to the store, and unlimited parking when I arrived. The first problem was when I entered the store. About 50% of the lights were turned off. All of the display lights were turned off. So the store was pretty dark, which made shopping a bit challenging. If I knew where the item was, I was fine. If not, I probably wouldn't be able to find it. The second problem was, with the stocking activity going on, most of the aisles were blocked with boxes. So it was impossible to maneuver a shopping cart around the store. The third problem occurred when I went to check out. Of course there was no check stand open, so I had to find an employee and ask them to have someone come and open up a cash register. Usually that would take 5 - 10 minutes. I just found the whole thing to be too inconvenient.

Even though I was usually the only customer in the store at that hour, I don't think they were losing any money on me. The power was already reduced to about the same level as if the store was closed. They clearly didn't have any extra workers. Just the normal night stocking crew. So I don't see that it was costing them anything extra to keep the store open.

[Bettafish]

I need to replace my fuse tonight.
If I were still in a small city in Kansas, I could have just driven to Wal-Mart and bought one.
In Boston area, however, there is nothing I can do but endure a summer night without power.

[bostongymjunkie]

So has South Bay S/S, Morrissey Blvd Star reduced their hours recently? Maybe some have reduced since COVID. I haven't been shopping after midnight as much as I used to. I know Shaws in Fenway very recently cut their hours but they are closing that location and moving across the street to a new spot. Shws/Star at the Pru was also 24 at one time. They roll up the sidewalks in this town now, it's been relegated to condensed suburb status.

[jayrandom]

Originally Posted by Bettafish

I need to replace my fuse tonight.
If I were still in a small city in Kansas, I could have just driven to Wal-Mart and bought one.
In Boston area, however, there is nothing I can do but endure a summer night without power.

The only 24 hour stores I know of around here are pharmacies. They sometimes have fuses.