[CT2Raleigh]

Over the last few years, I have noticed that Stop and Shop has stopped carrying many popular items. Hunt's ketchup and Finlandia swiss cheese, for example. They also seem to have limited many of the larger value sizes of some items (I can't get a humungous jar of wheat germ, for example).

Between the lack of selection and the prices, I am starting to spend less time (and money) there.

Has anyone else noticed this?

[Stylo]

I stopped shopping (no pun intended) there regularly when Big Y opened near me, and then after I moved I started shopping from a variety of stores: Whole Foods, Costco, farmer's markets, Robert Treat Farm, Trader Joe's, Aldi, ShopRite, etc. There's also an indie grocery store near me when I need something basic and quick (Beachside Supermarket).

IMO S&S is overpriced and their produce/meat is usually not very good.

[Mike 75]

I've noticed the same thing. We shop less and less at Stop and Shop. We now do most of our shopping at Caraluzzis (a local chain) and Big Y when we're up by the Federal Road area in Danbury.

[S2000]

I really wished Orange allowed Stew Leonard's because that would of been a great choice. I might even email them and tell them to occupy the old showcase cinemas in Milford.

I was never a fan of S&S due to their prices. I notice ShopRite following the same path. I have been doing Aldi's more and more.

[Stylo]

Originally Posted by S2000

I really wished Orange allowed Stew Leonard's because that would of been a great choice.

That was a real silly decision.

Also:

Recently, there had been talk in Milford that Leonard was eyeing the former Showcase Cinemas site on Cherry Street, but Leonard said those rumors are untrue.

I always thought that site would be ripe for a Big Y.

[Mixum]

big y is over priced

[ctwhitechin]

my wife flipped out because we couldn't find Sacramento tomato juice, or a certain tartar sauce they used to carry, or a certain brand of canned tomatoes.

Also the produce most of the time is horrid, I spend more to go to whole foods in the winter and spring for produce, and in the summer and fall we hit the local farm stands for what we need.

Quality there in meats and produce is sub par, at best.

[JayCT]

We have noticed it too. They stopped carrying the large bag of rawhide dog bones we use to buy. I refuse to pay $5.00 for one bone that my dog will devour in an hour. Also they stopped carry a certain tomato sauce we used as well as a brand of canned tomatos. I asked once about this and they gave me the line that they eliminate products that do not sell well to make room for new products. This is BS since I know these couple of products would sell quickly when they were restocked. They should just get rid of some of the non-food related junk (TV's really sell well in a supermarket). As for prices, I find Stop & Shop is not the lowest price but they are not the highest (for us Big Y is pricer). Their meats and produce aren't the best either but they are decent. JMHO, Jay

[CT2Raleigh]

Originally Posted by JayCT

We have noticed it too. They stopped carrying the large bag of rawhide dog bones we use to buy. I refuse to pay $5.00 for one bone that my dog will devour in an hour. Also they stopped carry a certain tomato sauce we used as well as a brand of canned tomatos. I asked once about this and they gave me the line that they eliminate products that do not sell well to make room for new products. This is BS since I know these couple of products would sell quickly when they were restocked. They should just get rid of some of the non-food related junk (TV's really sell well in a supermarket). As for prices, I find Stop & Shop is not the lowest price but they are not the highest (for us Big Y is pricer). Their meats and produce aren't the best either but they are decent. JMHO, Jay

It seems to me that their decisions are profit driven in the sense that certain brands are more profitable than others, not that they sell better or worse.

I have been spending most of my $$ at ShopRite lateley. They have lower prices than stop and shop generally, a wider selection of meats, and better produce.

By the way their Shop at home service is pretty sweet.

[nep321]

I shop at Big Y, since it happens to be the most convenient for me. They are only slightly pricier than Stop & Shop, but the quality of meats, produce and deli seems better. I also love Whole Foods, but there isn't one near me. One of my favorite chains in CT is Geissler's (north central CT). The store is not too big and not too small. Unfortunately, they don't sell enough organic foods, however. But I just do my shopping at whichever place is most convenient on the way home from work. Pricing doesn't matter to me, unless it's significant (e.g., Whole Foods). Price Rite and ShopRite are terrible IMO. There is barely anything healthy in there. Stew Leonards has good food, but I don't like the environment; it's too chaotic, noisy and bogus. And the layout is ridiculously illogical. It's always packed, too, and hard to find parking. I also hate Price Chopper.