S neville venture_lab_what'sfordinner

What’s for Dinner?

Submitted by Susan Neville

I went to 6 stores in search of some inspiration for dinner. I was open to finding something new and tasty and figured I’d buy fish if nothing else tempted me.

I had the questions in mind from the exercise and took photographs to document what I saw and made notes on the smells, sounds, tastes and pace of the experience.

Here are my findings sorted by store. I picked a range of stores:

Big chain stores: Costco and SafewayHigher End independent store: Piazza’s and Miki’sMid range chain store: Trader Joe’sPrice conscious European market: Milk Pail

COSTCO

Observations:

• The signs in this store are higher than eye level and easy to miss. I stood in the wrong line for returns until I got redirected.• The chain link wire that separates the entrance from the exit feels cold and industrial• This is a “wholesale” store that sells items in bulk – large sizes only. The price for tilapia was only $2.95 a pound but I would have had to buy about 5 lbs minimum.• It is easy to see that a store that uses large flat wagons to pack your goods is going to cater to people who want to buy in bulk• The employees were wearing jackets. It was cold inside and the doors are always open at this location.• There are employees checking receipts at the exit to deter shop lifting. High security presence.• It has a warehouse feel – cement floors, high ceilings, products stacked well above head height, massive space. • They sell much more than food – furniture to medical supplies. There is so much inventory that it can be hard to find things. I looked on 3 aisles to find Airborne with no

luck. I asked at the check out and someone went to get it for me. There were few employees walking around but at the checkout they were very friendly.• The prices are hard to match. If you want low price this is the place to go. • There is a fast food court available near the exit

Insights:

• It is easy to use the photo center here. You can pay at a separate station without having to stand in a long line to use the main check out area. The quality of their photo printing is high and you can place an order online.• They sell high quality wine, bread, produce and meat. Many people are attracted to Costco for these items. • Many people seem unsure of how to buy FasTrak (automated toll trackers) but they are sold here. • There are two significant points of contact between consumers and employees. When you enter and when you leave. They could turn this from a negative to a positive.

Hidden Opportunities:

• Put the frequent grocery purchases such as bread and wine near the entrance so that consumers who want to get in and out don’t have to walk all the way to the back of the store. • Ask the greeters to smile and offer “search” assistance to customers• Give the receipt checkers something to give to departing customers – coupon, piece of candy, for example• Put a display about FasTrak at the checkout counter• Consider a separate point of purchase for specialty items like wine. • Lower the sign level so that customers can more easily find their way

SAFEWAY

Observations:

• The entrance is unappealing. Crowded with vending machines and propane tanks. The Halloween display of pumpkins got lost in a big cardboard box. • The focus in this store was primarily on wine. It was 30% off – there were huge signs and the wine occupied the central aisle in the store. • The store smelled like chicken soup. Progresso I think. It seemed to be a familiar Safeway smell. It was not appealing. • I don’t remember any music.• The store had some sensory overload. Signs, balloons, smells, displays, rows and rows of checkout counters – most of which were not open. The impact on me was that I started feeling tired very quickly and was eager to get out. • The wine sale was tempting.• They use in store discounts and a Safeway card program to reward regular shoppers. • They attract a wide variety of customers – all ages.

Insights:

• There is some variety in the quality of this chain store’s facilities. This one seemed run down but I have been in others that are more up to date. The quality of the facility matters. • Cashiers are trained to use the customer’s name and to say thank you. It feels friendly.

Hidden Opportunities:

• With just a little effort the outside entrance could look much more attractive.• The placement of items in this store is hard to understand. The bakery and produce sections are on opposite sides with the dairy at the back. The most common items require a hike to get to them. I can imagine moving a small number of these items to the front so that customers can pick up a quart of milk, loaf of bread, or head of lettuce without having to walk a mile.

PIAZZA’S

Observations:

• I felt happy going into this store. There was a beautiful display of pumpkins and other produce outside. There were flowers immediately to my left when I walked in and a coffee station to my right. There were tempting breads and desserts on a table. The checkout stands were not visible. • It was quiet. No music, just a little white noise from the fans• It smelled good. Tomato soup I think. There was a soup table just a few steps inside the door.• The store displays were abundant and of very high quality. Pumpkin risotto was displayed in the deli case inside small pumpkins. There was a nice salad bar and olive display. Cheeses were out and there were helpful people at the seafood display.• The price for seafood seemed less than I had paid at other high end grocery stores. $8.99 a lb for tilapia. The produce prices seemed quite high though.• Checkout stands were bunched together at one side of the store so that they didn’t seem as obvious as at other stores.

• The floor was clean linoleum and the lighting was bright. It felt clean and well kept• Customers were chatting with each other. It was lunch time and there was a line at the deli to buy sandwiches. There was a space outside to eat.• Of all the stores I visited this one had the most tempting displays of prepared food for dinner. Ribs, chicken, lasagna, salmon, soups.

Insights:

• This store has been here for a long while. It appears to have a devoted clientele. I will go out of my way to come here for seafood, lasagna, prepared food and flowers.

Hidden observations:

• I hadn’t noticed the outdoor seating before or paid attention to their sandwich menu.• There is an opportunity for them to have a display of “dinner tonight”. At this display they could feature one of their prepared items and add to it some other items that would make a tasty menu. I can imagine lasagna, with olives, a bag of salad, croutons, parmesan cheese, fresh beans, bread, a pie and wine. If they varied this display every day or at least once a week it might attract people to the store like me – looking for “what’s for dinner?”

MIKI’S

Observations:

• Miki’s is a brand new store. They pride themselves on offering a wide variety of produce at reasonable prices – lower than Whole Foods. • The outside display is very attractive and suggests that they will have unusual produce. The pumpkins are all of varieties.• Directly inside there is a huge display of mushrooms of many many varieties. It is interesting but since I don’t know what to do with them or how to cook them I pass this up.• The store is very cold. Both the temperature and the feel. I wanted to get in and out quickly. The employees were wearing sweaters. • The main color in this store is black. The cases are black and the ceiling is black. The floors are warmer with a finished wood look. I found the black to be foreboding and I

felt subdued in this atmosphere. On one side there are some windows – over near the bakery and I was much more attracted to that side of the store.• There was a small checkout area that looked attractive and the checkout person was very friendly. • I found some of the shelving displays to be very attractive and to make sense. They put honey next to the tea. Seemed very functional to do that. • The price of tilapia was almost a third higher here than Piazza’s. $11.29 a lb compared to $8.99 a lb. The higher prices plus the chilly atmosphere will probably keep me away.

Insights:

• The view from the street seems so important. There are no windows or entrances on the street side. You have to drive in to the parking lot and enter the store from that side. I think this will take some getting used to. The signage was poor but I noticed today that they put up some large murals of produce on the street side that will at least alert people that there is a market here.

• It is risky to use “black” on an interior. It sets this store apart and perhaps it will attract a high end crowd. I think it may have limited appeal.

Hidden opportunities:

• They have a good variety of vegan and ethnic foods at this grocery store. I hope they will offer those at sample tables so that consumers get to know these foods.• They could put recipes next to the more exotic produce items to entice people to try new varieties of mushrooms, root vegetables, etc.

Trader Joe’s

Observations:

• This store has a friendly and informal feel to it. They offer free coffee and samples of products right next to the coffee.• They have attractive outside display. In this case – pumpkins and flowers. • Right inside there are orchids and a huge display of seasonal apple cider.• The store smells of apple cider.• There is rock music playing – not too loud.• The store is reasonably warm and very well lit. • The aisles are spacious and the floor is clean• There are attractive murals that you can actually see.• The employees wear tropical print shirts or T-shirts with the TJ logo.• The cashiers are mostly young and talk about how much they like working there.• The managers seem a little older.• The price displays are fun, easy to read, and informative – see the banana sign and the 2 buck chuck sign above.• They sell impulse “chocolate” at the checkout stands. Convenient and tempting.

Insights:

• This is the only store where I was asked to stop taking photographs. They are very protective of their displays and branding. I was asked in a nice way and was happy to comply. • I usually find something I want to buy in this store. And sometimes it is a product that is new to me. Today it was a rosemary and raisin crackers.

Hidden Opportunities:

• I think the quality of items at TJ’s is uneven. There are fantastic products and ones that seem low quality. I can’t tell when I’m looking at the packaging what I’m going to get. For instance with the frozen pizza’s. •Sometimes I can’t find what I want at TJ’s. I might have had one of their foods at someone’s house but can’t find it at the store. • There is an opportunity at TJ’s for store tours. I’d gladly follow someone around and have them tell me what some of the very popular and high quality foods are.• This is another store that could do more with aggregating items for a full dinner. I’d like to walk in and be tempted with a display that would offer a full meal. With the items for it all grouped together.

MILK PAIL

Observations:

• I love this display behind the check out stand with the big fork and spoon:@Whole Foods: small scoops at high prices@MilkPail: big scoops at low prices

• This is a place that caters to European tastes. They have high quality cheeses and gourmet foods at very reasonable prices• This is also a place that caters to price conscious cooks. The produce is fresh and cost much less than farmer’s markets. It is comparable or just a little more than Costco pricing but you don’t have to buy in bulk• It is fun to shop here because it is kind of crazy. People bump into each other willy-nilly. There is hardly any room to maneuver. There are tons of employees unpacking produce all over the place. The ratio of employees to shoppers is very high.• This market is half outdoors so it can be cold. The staff dress for the weather and don’t wear uniforms. See the hat and sweater in the photos. There is no security that I’ve seen.

• In the back room they play world music – softly. Out in front it is mostly fan noise or carts bumping into each other.• I can always find new and interesting food here. Today they were selling Suarva juice and some kind of Russian grain or bean. • They don’t sell everything here. The supply of meat and fish is very limited and it will be packaged. Boxed and canned goods are very limited. This is mostly a produce market with an excellent supply of cheese and grains sold in bulk. There is also a good variety of condiments, desserts and some frozen specialty items such as frozen chocolate croissants – sold with the recipe of how to cook them.• The floor is concrete, the lighting is OK but not great. People are willing to put up with that because the quality of the produce is so high for such low prices.

Insights:

• This is my favorite market. More and more I eat a vegetarian diet and it is part due to the availability of the good food available at this market. Plus I feel good when I pay the bill. Partly because of the price and partly because the employees are friendly and I like supporting this place.

Hidden Opportunities:

• They remodeled a year ago and I think they missed a chance to improve the traffic flow. There are two entrances to this place and it is hard for first time visitors to know which is the preferred traffic pattern. • If they could clear the aisles and do their stocking before the market opens they could accommodate more customers.• It is hard to know where to line up to checkout if there is a crowd. Maybe some kind of system that would help funnel customers to the shortest line would help. The haphazard atmosphere of this place is part of its charm but at times it is too crowded for me to want to go there. I’d put up more signs about the best times to come. • Recipes would help entice me to try some of the unusual produce and European items that I’m unfamiliar with.