Isn’t it nice of your local grocery store to offer free WiFi? That way, you can use your mobile device to email, go online – and have your every move tracked while you shop. Nice! It’s well known that one of the tradeoffs of having a store loyalty card is that your store knows what you’re buying. Plenty of shoppers[Read More…]
Over the past month, a benefit that’s much-loved by military families and little-known among many civilians has made headlines, as the U.S. Defense Department-operated Commissary grocery stores have been thrust into the middle of a budget-cutting debate. We’ve heard from the U.S. Senator who’s proposed eliminating the commissaries’ taxpayer-funded subsidy, and vocal supporters who have decried any effort to change[Read More…]
In an increasingly competitive market, what’s a dollar store to do, to stand out? How about offering more coupons, sales – and cigarettes? Dollar General this week spooked investors and pleased shoppers, by expressing concerns about its sales figures and saying it plans to ramp up promotions in order to boost business during the holidays. “Our performance over the Thanksgiving[Read More…]
If you still have a hankering for a Twinkie, and you don’t want to pay hundreds or thousands (or millions) of dollars to buy one on eBay, hope you’re in the Chicago area, or can get there fast. The local supermarket chain Jewel-Osco today begins selling what it says “is believed to be the final shipment of Twinkies in the[Read More…]
If a recent debate over U.S. military commissaries is any indication, the future of the government-subsidized grocery stores is an emotional issue. Many leaped to the commissaries’ defense this week, and some worried their Commissary was effectively getting ready to hold a going-out-of-business sale. You can fault some of the coverage, that may have overly simplified a complex and nuanced[Read More…]
“Fresh & Easy”? More like Costly & Failing. The British owner of the California-based, no-frills grocery store chain says it may be time to pack it in. At a time when ALDI is taking the U.S. by storm, Fresh & Easy represented another foreign-owned small-format grocer when it arrived on U.S. shores five years ago. It expanded to about 200[Read More…]
(Dec. 6th update: Read the latest developments here: “No, Your Commissary Is Not Closing. Not Yet, Anyway.”) (Dec. 18th update: And read even more here: “Commissary Comments on Coupons, Customers – and Closing”) If U.S. service members want to save on their groceries, shouldn’t they just clip coupons and shop the sales like the rest of us? That’s the gist[Read More…]
Hostess may be no more, but what would you think about “Great Value Twinkies”? “Market Pantry Ding Dongs”? Or Kroger putting “Wonder Bread” labels on its store-brand bread? It could happen. As the snack maker goes through liquidation, and eager fans grab what few Hostess treats remain on supermarket shelves (read: “Twinkies Sell Like Hotcakes”), the company says there’s a[Read More…]
If you’re saving up your pennies to buy the perfect holiday gift – be careful. Your local store may not take them. Portland, Oregon-based Fred Meyer found itself in the middle of a social media firestorm over the past 24 hours, after its Facebook fans reacted angrily to the story that a suburban Seattle woman shared last night: “My daughter[Read More…]
Have you ever gotten two items in a “Buy One, Get One Free” sale, when you really only need one? Or, if you’re a little more extreme, let’s say you got 20 items and don’t have anywhere to put the other 20. Well, one supermarket chain has the answer, by giving the “GO” in “BOGO” a new meaning this holiday[Read More…]
