STYLETHREAD -- LET'S TALK SHOP!

mikacat · Coach

Where do you grocery shop and why?

Cricket · Gucci

I get our meat at Costco, because I think it's great quality and it's convenient. I get our lettuce, grapes, mushrooms and other produce we use a lot of there.

I go to the local chain grocer for other produce or a last minute gallon of milk, etc.

For everything else, I go to the commissary on the Air Force Base here. It's a regular grocery store (just like Vons, Albertsons, etc.), but it is sooo much cheaper. It's a great benefit that we have. I get so much more for my money. I don't buy too much meat or produce there, but everything else I *try* to get there. It's all name brands, so I don't have to guess with store brand quality. The only downside is that it can be very busy, especially in the winter here in Phoenix, when all the retirees have moved here for the season. It gets insane.

Hermes

I shop at Meijer the most (a mid-western super store), Costco, Trader Joes, and on occasion Whole Foods.

What do you love about where you shop?

At Meijer, the produce selection is extensive (they often times have things I have never tried, for example, I bought "grapples" apples that taste like grapes there the other day), fresh, and low-priced. Since it is a super-store, every grocery item I can imagine, as well as cosmetics/toiletries, stuff for the house, clothing (I buy the occasional item that catches my eye as I'm grocery shopping), etc. is all right there.

At Costco, the free samples, and low priced salmon and pignolias.

At Trader Joes, the samples, and unusual foods without a lot of additives.

At Whole Foods, hard to find gormet or organic items/deli/cheese.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

they are all near-by.

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

give us everything for free.

Well, women seek convenience, ease/timeliness of shopping, and savings...

Ok - I was in grocery retail marketing for several years. Some of the things I put together (for A&P/Safeway/Food Lion) were loyalty programs. We determined what was important to most of the customers, and as their primary customer base was out east, that was the environment and children. We created custom, free publications that communicated that A&P (and subsidiaries - they were versioned by chain) cared about what they cared about through articles, endangered species trading cards for kids, coupons, and environmentally focused field trips that could be won by a classroom. It's loyalty building by identifying with the consumer. I also designed a loyalty program for Safeway to recapture lost pet category sales due to stores like Petco, etc. This program leveraged the high pet ownership out west and pets lost through natural disasters (common out west) with a pet microchip program. The mirochipping was performed in tents in an established date by voluteer vets at a cost of $20 (low) or free. Leading up to the microchip event, there was a featured pet item called out with a shelf talker each week. When that item was purchased, a catalina coupon would generate with $5 off the mircrochipping. If someone came everyweek (creating a habit of return visits) they could get the microchipping for free. This program received a lot of good press, created that "feel-good" between the store and the consumer, and sales in the pet category went up a sustainable 12% within the first month of the program. The program was then implemented in other states with very positive results.

What I am getting at is some of the most effective marketing programs I've worked on were based on identifying with what is important to the consumer. Farmer Jack had a baby club loyalty card, where after $200 in purchases were made with the card, the cashier would hand the shopper a $20 bill at the register - there's a female specific market. So, you can identify with the consumer (mother) and put a measurable/trackable slant on it as well (loyalty card).

Food Lion, I put a value-added program together for them, as well as Farmer Jack - with agreements through local services/retailers loyalty card holders could receive a discount at those retailers by presenting their card. You could design a value-added program for women specifically with services/retailers geared specifically toward them.

So what is important to women, and how does a grocery retailer connect with that? I'm going to think on this some more... I love this kind of stuff

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

both.

What could be better about your store?

restocking so I don't have to ask someone to go into the back to get what I'm looking for.

tara t · Marc Jacobs

i shop everywhere.. bi-lo, kroger, and wal-mart... i hate shopping at walmart, but it's alot cheaper.

costco for meats and wine.

detroit, i love grapples!! they are the greatest thing ever. but if you leave them out of thier box, the grape taste goes away... i can't figure that mystery out.

Hermes

tara t- I brought a grapple to work - I hope it hasn't lost its "gr"!

one more thought - I could see a program leveraging home meal replacement... that would add a lot of convenience to a woman's life, and if there was a loyalty card angle to that, maybe a free meal valued up to whatever after 10 purchases, that might work... it would have to be marketing specifically to taking the hassle out of your life so you can focus on more important things like spending more time with your family during dinner with a home-cooked meal (that has be prepared...)

miss t · Dooney & Bourke

I shop at super target, because it is clean, neat and the prices are good and it's near my job, surprisingly a good variety of basic brands and gourmet brands, plus there store brand stuff is great.

harris teeter, excellent wine selections and good carry out foods, when i'm lazy to cook.

food lion, only because if i need something quick, since it's close to my house.

Only thing i would improve is that there was a supertarget closer to my house, so I can go there instead of food lion. And supertarget carried more items in their store brand, i would buy it all!

to better help women, food lion should restock better and have people there to help you find and reach stuff like supertarget and harris teeter.

I shop for a mixture of both, i love a grocery store with a great store brand, like super target and harris teeter.

tara t · Marc Jacobs

detroit wrote:

tara t- I brought a grapple to work - I hope it hasn't lost its "gr"!

i think it may take a day or 2 to lose the "gr"

nunzi182 · Kate Spade

detroit wrote:

tara t- I brought a grapple to work - I hope it hasn't lost its "gr"!
one more thought - I could see a program leveraging home meal replacement... that would add a lot of convenience to a woman's life, and if there was a loyalty card angle to that, maybe a free meal valued up to whatever after 10 purchases, that might work... it would have to be marketing specifically to taking the hassle out of your life so you can focus on more important things like spending more time with your family during dinner with a home-cooked meal (that has be prepared...)

I LOVE Grapples. I left mine out of their container all the time. When I get them home from the store I put them in our fruit bowl in the fridge and they're still very Grapple-y!

tara t · Marc Jacobs

heh.. maybe i get crapple grapples. that's my attempt to make a funny.

Lilykind · Hermes

My BF flipped out when he found a grapple in his fridge. He sniffed it and was like "it smells like a grape...this is disturbing". His brother bought it to try out. Maybe I should fill the fridge with grapples...they sound yummy.

OK, here's my answers.

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

A mix of Trader Joe's, Costco, Ranch 99 (Asian grocery store chain) and very occasional stops to Mitsuwa (Japanese grocery chain), Whole Foods, Ralphs, and Albertsons. The latter four stores comprise about 10% of our total grocery shopping.

Trader Joes and Costco have the highest quality food relative to price, plus the samples are always great. Costco tends to be for foundational items like meat, produce, and toiletries. Trader Joe's is for the speciality stuff and also the healthier options like Kashi and lentil soup. I love Whole Foods, especially all the prepared stuff, and it's nearby...but it gets expensive real fast. I go to Albertsons only for their French Bread (freshest and cheapest) and Ralphs is for late night runs only since it's open 24/7. Mitsuwa and Ranch 99 are for all the Asian goodies and cheap veggies.

What could be better about your store?

Costco could have fewer people in it on Sunday afternoons.

Trader Joe's needs carts with better wheels. The wheels never seem to align properly or something.

What do you love about where you shop?

Trader Joe's is so homey...and the people are so nice.

Costco has all those great samples, and they have the freshest stuff since they have high turnover.

Ranch 99...well...it's closer to drive there than it is to drive to Chinatown (45 min. on freeway...too far because my BF is not a great driver and I don't drive at all).

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

Whole Foods and Ralphs are for convenience since they're in the neighborhood. Everything else is location within a half-hour drive...it's not terribly far.

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

Put the groceries a bit lower to the ground so I can actually see the labels. I max out at 5' 7" (in 4 in. heels...which I am NOT wearing to the supermarket) and I'm sick of having to jump to get items off the shelf.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

Try to get the best of both worlds...really. But it all boils down to price in the end.

Cortney1982 · Chanel

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

Safeway. I never shopped there until they remodeled it less than a year ago. I think they tried to make it more like Haggen. Now they have neat wood floors in the produce section, fancier, cleaner, more organized produce area. Also added is a Starbucks stand, olive bar, cheese bar, and they also have hot cooked foods ready to go.

What could be better about your store?

They don't have a covered loading zone like Haggen. Their customer service and video section needs to be fancier looking. I know they are forced to say "Have a good (morning, afternoon, evening) Miss (your misspronounced name here) and one girl even said it in a question! Sounds so forced and like they don't mean it! Oohhh, and if you go later in the day, the shelves are slightly empty since they only restock during the night! Annoying because this evening they didn't have my favorite Oceanspray cranapple drink since it was buy one get one free.

What do you love about where you shop?

The employees are nice (well, most of them) and find things for you.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

It is actually easier to get in and out of Albertson's across the street, but since Safeway remodeled I haven't been back to Albertson's, that place is a dump! Plus their hot foods section isn't as fabulous.

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

Geez, don't know what can be changed here.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

I rarely care how much it is. If I want to eat it, I'm going to get it. So quality and selection is my top priority.

Alikat · Kate Spade

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

Trader Joes, Safeway and Nugget (a gourmet grocery store in Nor Cal), very occasionally Whole Foods - they are all relatively close and have good things I like.

I used to shop at Aldi in England! It was great for cheap basics.

What could be better about your store?

Well for Trader Joe's - their parking lot is heinous. After that they could have a better fruit selection. Something about buying apples in plastic containers puts me off. I normally just buy my produce elsewhere, though I do like their salad mixes.

Safeway could have more novelties like TJs. Nugget is pretty expensive but has lovely presentation and a great selection of foods. Whole Foods is expensive.

What do you love about where you shop?

TJs has awesome snacks, frozen foods, dips... eggs, milk - basically everything except the produce. I love their food.

Safeway is convenient and carries my lazy items like Lean Cuisine.

Nugget has my British foods items like Heins baked beans and they have an awesome butcher and fish counter, plus all the nice cheese, gourmet items. Whole Foods is very similar but not as good as Nugget, though they have better take out.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

Safeway is the closest to me, so very convienent. TJs is pretty close but I get irriated with the crappy parking lot. Nugget is on the way home from work. Whole Foods is by my parents house, so I go there very rarely.

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

I think that TJs does a great job... they have lots of easy to make stuff that I love.

I think that most places are ok marketing towards women.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

Quality and selection for the most part. If I'm buying something like frozen lunches, however - I'll go for the cheapest prices.

honey · Gucci

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

shoprite b/c it's close to my house. target b/c it's cheaper (but farther). i'm about to place my first order from freshdirect this week b/c there's a coupon.

What could be better about your store?

the selection. it's great, but they sell out of stuff (like the coconut zone bars) and they sometimes take forever to replace it. my neighbor and were joking that we probably buy them out of stuff. i have the same probelm with target, if i go too late in the day the shelves are literally empty. also i hate that it gets really crowded. but i think that's due to the large volume of customers they have.

What do you love about where you shop?

the selection and the price. in this area it's hard to find stores that have their own brand. sorry i just don't feel the need to pay $3 more for quaker oats oatmeal. plus they recently expanded their natural foods selection. i've always wanted to check out whole foods, but it's the city so i can't buy a lot and have to go on weekends when it's packed.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

it's very convenient i walk to both places

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

while this isn't specifically for women i really like the autogenerated coupons that are based on what you buy. they also have this great program where if you purchase a certain amount of groceries you're entitled to free things. they do this during the holiday season and if you spend $300 b/t 10/2 and 12/31 you're entitled to a free turkey/ham/veggie lasagna. they have a similar program for baby stuff. i wish they would do this year round, and allow you to get money back to use towards other products.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

both. they have great prices and a really good selection, so i'm really happy.

poptart · Coach

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

I shop at a mix of Safeway, Super Target, Whole Foods, King Soopers (like Krogers, right?). Safeway b/c it is closest to my house (5 min. - the others are all like 20-25.) Super Target if I need to go to Target for household items and I want to get it all done in one trip, but I'll usually only combine the trip if everything I'm buying is very basic. They don't carry a lot of the items I like to buy, and I don't like the layout of the food section. Whole Foods is actually close to my house now that I think about it, but I only go there for like 1-2 items that I can't buy elsewhere. My friends and I jokingly call it Whole Paycheck, b/c compared to other stores in our neighborhood it is suuuuuper expensive. Both my Safeway and my King Soopers have really large organic/natural sections, so I can find most of what I need there. (I buy about 80% organic.) King Soopers I like the best, but it's also the farthest. But, they carry the most of the items I regularly buy, and I like the layout of the store. I would say I usually shop there.

What could be better about your store?

It would be great if one store carried every single item I like to buy AND was close to my house. King Soopers comes the closest in terms of selection, but the one that is in my neighborhood is totally ghetto and doesn't have the selection, so I drive to one that is more in the suburbs. Kings should also follow Safeway's lead and make their store coupon card tied to your phone number so you don't have to carry around the card. At Safeway, I always seem to have problems with bread being stale - everything on the shelf will be dated for like 2-3 days later, then I take a chance and buy it and it's already stale. Yuck.

What do you love about where you shop?

At the Kings, the people are very friendly. The store is clean and laid out well. And I rarely have problems with restocking or stale items, like Safeway.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

Mostly, I go out of my way.

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

I think single women are a largely uncaptured market. We eat less, we like to buy things in smaller packages, and we probably tend to eat more convenience items and more gourmet/specialty items. (I'm totally guessing) But I feel that when I go to the store, most of the sales are geared toward people who want to buy in bulk or buy multiples of one item. Well, that's not me. I don't want to buy 10 rolls of paper towels or a giant box of cereal. I'd be eating it for 6 months! It'd be great if stores developed another type of sales program that enabled you to "save on this if you buy that" - like, if you buy a gallon of milk, you'll get 50 cents off this kind of cheese - or something like that, rather than having BOGO milk. That does me no good.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

Almost entirely quality/selection. I allocate only about 1/2 of my food budget to items from the grocery store, and I buy the same items every week pretty much, so I know how much it will cost and small fluctuations are no big deal. But I do notice when I go to whole foods and the price for what I normally buy is literally double what I would pay elsewhere for identical items.

Detroit: I remember the pet microchipping!! That was a great program. It's so cool that you thought of that.

Hermes

Lisa wrote:

Detroit: I remember the pet microchipping!! That was a great program. It's so cool that you thought of that.

oh yay - glad you liked it! it's one of the more out-of-the-box marketing concepts I've come up with...

bex · Chanel

Where do you shop for groceries and why?

Kroger for its closeness and i like the way the newer models look. they are more modern, better lighting and feel more "open". I also shop at Whole Foods for fresher cuts of meat and hard to find items. Trader Joes for the different items and great wine selection (that isn't pricey)

What could be better about your store?

Someone to do the shopping for me? I would love to be able to go online- choose my groceries, pay for them and have them delivered and/or a time to pick them up. there is nothing more on earth i hate as much as i hate grocery shopping.

What do you love about where you shop?

as i mentioned before, i like the open and moderness of our new Krogers. and with Whole Foods and Trader Joes I like being able to find exotic and hard to find items.

Is it convenience or do you drive out of your way to get there?

Kroger is convenient, Trader Joe's and Whole Foods are out of the way

What could groceries stores do better to market to women?

I am obsessed with online shopping for grocery stores. I would be so happy to go through and pick out what i want and have it deliverd (i would even be happy to pay a delivery charge) just so i wouldn't have to hassle with crowds or searching up and down aisles looking for a particular product.

Do you shop for price or quality/selection of items?

I shop for quality. Price is not a concern for food if I am getting quality, organic products.

mikacat · Coach

Wow=Detroit--these are great ideas that you did---!!

Thanks for sharing

What I am getting at is some of the most effective marketing programs I've worked on were based on identifying with what is important to the consumer. Farmer Jack had a baby club loyalty card, where after $200 in purchases were made with the card, the cashier would hand the shopper a $20 bill at the register - there's a female specific market. So, you can identify with the consumer (mother) and put a measurable/trackable slant on it as well (loyalty card).

Food Lion, I put a value-added program together for them, as well as Farmer Jack - with agreements through local services/retailers loyalty card holders could receive a discount at those retailers by presenting their card. You could design a value-added program for women specifically with services/retailers geared specifically toward them.

mikacat · Coach

Detroit--If you don't mind me asking, where did you work in grocery retail marketing?

I have 10 years in grocery experience and an MBA in marketing. Do you have any connections anymore or ideas for me to search? I could send you my resume if you want to look at it first.

I am interviewing with Food Lion for a brand manager--not excited about the company but the oppt is great.

FMI--my current boss is on the board here and gave me a good rec.

and Sears Kmart in Chicago for a Category Manager for Frozen and produce.