Thanks, @MixDenny, I was wondering about that, since none of the Kroger or Albertson’s names seem to be common around here. The only one I’d even seen was Lucky’s, which I hadn’t even realized was a chain (and which is getting bought out by Dave’s, which I think is a local chain). We also have several IGAs and Heinen’s, plus Aldi and Sav-a-Lot as grocery chains.
Kroger (by that name) used to have a presence here when I was a kid, but it’s been ages since I’ve seen one. And Finast used to be be big, but I think they got taken over by Giant Eagle.
When I worked at Toys R Us back in the mid-late 90s (so glad they failed), it shocked me how many different brand names we had were actually owned by another one, even items you’d expect were competitors. For example, Matchbox and Hot Wheels? Both owned by Mattel. And I swore half the products of the store were from brands under the Hasbro umbrella. I think it has only gotten worse since then.
That wasn’t originally the case, however. Matchbox was the older brand of the two, and originally made by a British toy company, Lesney. It went through several ownership changes in the '80s and '90s, before winding up under Mattel’s ownership (which, of course, also owned Hot Wheels).
In theory, Mattel positions the two brands differently: Matchbox cars are typically styled more like prototype cars (which had always been that brand’s positioning), whereas many Hot Wheels models are purely fantastic. That said, yes, they’re both diecast toy cars at about the same size (roughly 1/64 scale), and only avid collectors probably really see any difference between the two of them – for the parent buying some toy cars for their kid, there’s probably no real difference.
Apropos of nothing, Chicago’s 2 big grocers for a long, long time were Dominick’s and Jewel. Over time Albertson’s bought Jewel and Safeway bought Dominick’s. So we had both of the semi-national brands and I strongly preferred Dominick’s, yet over time that brand struggled and ultimately went belly up.
What surprised me in central North Carolina was when Kroger bought out Harris Teeter, the existing Krogers were converted to Harris Teeters, when I expected the reverse.
In general, Kroger itself has only a mid-market reputation (even here in its hometown of Cincinnati) whereas Harris Teeter is notably more up-market. Not Whole Foods or Fresh Market level, but getting there. If Kroger purchased and rebranded Food Lion or Lowes Foods then I think that’d be an upgrade, or at least a lateral move. Unfortunately, it seems that Kroger isn’t being the greatest steward of the Harris Teeter brand, and it’s becoming more Kroger-like as time passes.
Interesting. I’ve never heard – to my knowledge – “Wal-Mart’s” here in the Chicago area, where adding a possessive is common. Neither “Target’s.” But it’s “Jewel’s” (or “da Jewels”) for sure; it was “Zayre’s,” and I can’t remember about “Venture.” I feel like that fell 50-50. “Venture’s” sounds a little off to my Midway-area ears, but it’s been a couple decades and some since it closed and I’ve heard it referred to in the wild. (Although now that I look up the lyrics to Serengeti’s “Dennehy”, he says “Favorite stores Ventures, Sears, Zayres” so perhaps “Ventures” was normal. (Though that could be interpreted as a normal plural to agree with “stores.”)
I don’t think it’s that weird. If you’re going to see Bob at his home, you don’t say, “I’m going to Bob.” You say, “I’m going to Bob’s.”
In St. Louis,two locally owned supermarket chains have bowed to the common people. The Schnuck family and the Dierberg family officially added an “S” to their stores’ names, although Schuck remains the corporate name. Meanwhile, the Straub family added the possessive 'S to their stores.
I’ve only occasionally shopped at Fred Meyer for groceries, and have usually visited them for department store goods (e.g., clothing, electronics, etc.). I didn’t know Food 4 Less was under that umbrella… such a different grocery store from Fred Meyer.
When I lived in southern Oregon one of the local grocers there was Ray’s Food Place. I think they’re still in business.
I’ve been doing my grocery shopping at WinCo for over a decade now.
Good selection and prices, but the closest one to where I live is too far to go on a regular basis. That’s one I do when I’m in the neighborhood and need groceries, which isn’t often.
Generally I shop at Fred Meyer or Safeway. Both are pretty close. Fred Meyer is closer and I’ll shop there if I don’t feel like driving quite as far, or if I also want to pick up stuff that they sell at a general department store, like clothes or hardware. But their prices and selection aren’t nearly as good.
I also used to shop at Grocery Outlet frequently. That place is really affordable (as implied by the name, they really are an outlet store) and sometimes you’ll find interesting things that you wouldn’t see at a regular grocery store, like strange brands from foreign countries. But you also aren’t guaranteed to get everything on your shopping list because they don’t always have the same things in stock. (It’s an outlet store after all.) So my routine was to go to Grocery Outlet first, then follow up at Safeway.
Grocery Outlet is also a bit out of my way now, unfortunately. And I no longer have the patience to split my shopping at different places anyway. (I make a lot more money than I used to, so I can bear the bigger cost for the added convenience.)
Longer than that for me. A few years ago I moved to Hillsboro (OR) and found there’s two WinCo’s in this area. One is about a mile due west and the other about 4 miles the other way. I go to the one further away, since it has some things the closer one doesn’t. (We don’t have many rabid environmentalists here, but I’m sure some readers will think I should go to the nearer one to reduce carbon emissions. Don’t worry about that; it doesn’t make any difference, since I don’t own a car and bicycle to the store.)
What I don’t understand is why the Democrats are instantly complaining that this merger will raise prices. Kroger will still have to compete with Walmart.
I’m glad that someone else actually understands why this thread was bumped and isn’t just continuing a year-old conversation.
I think the answer to the question might come down to the fact that most places generally don’t try to compete directly against each other. What they try to do is position themselves slightly differently in the market so as to draw slightly different customers. The places that are more value-oriented will compete on price, while others will compete on selection, having more high-quality goods available, and being more likely to be stocked in whatever’s on sale. From what was mentioned above, it sounds like Kroger is going with a mid-market strategy, and they’ve bought out their main competitor in that market, so they can price their stuff slightly more expensive because there will be fewer options for people. Yes, people concerned about price above all things will still go to Walmart, but I don’t think there are as many Walmarts that sell a full line of groceries as there are combined Krogers and whatever names it is they’re buying. So people will either be forced to travel further to buy groceries, spending time and fuel they may not have much to spare of.
I only started going to Kroger since the pandemic; before I went to my favorite store that was like ten times further, because they had positioned themselves as the Meat People, and had better meat than any other full-service grocery store (though you could get the same stuff at dedicated butcher shops, that would require a separate stop). We changed our meat-eating patterns and now get a pork loin from Costco much more regularly instead of the nice rib chops the Meat People had, while we do buy Kroger ground beef, because you can’t exactly screw that up too much.
I’ve considered the Grocery Outlet + Safeway combo, as both of them are nearer to me than the nearest WinCo. I might try that on my next shopping trip.
Interestingly, when I got the email notification of your reply, it said it was from “Mr. Atama.” I know “Mr.” and ~sama have similar meanings… I’m assuming “atama” is for ‘head’ (頭)?
Fortunately for me, there’s been a nearby WinCo at all the places I lived in Medford, OR, Corvallis, OR, and nowadays Camas, WA. That last one isn’t especially close to my home, but it’s on my way home from work.
In my area there are several choices on where to get groceries.
Grocery stores
Kroger (and it’s aliases)
Safeway
Department stores that sell groceries
Walmart
Target
Mid-tier organic/specialty
Sprouts
Vitamin Cottage (maybe?)
High-end organic/specialty
Whole Foods
Membership clubs
Costco
Sam’s
That seems like a bunch of places, and there definitely is competition between the segments, but removing one of the two competitors from the defining segment is not going to be good for competition.
