On Tue, 07 Nov 2006 10:40:54 -0500, Kate Connally
wrote:

snip

I still have more things to try. I can only afford a few
things each month, but I plan to go as often as possible
and search out the best stuff.

Thanks for the different point of view. I enjoyed it.

I just wish they hadn't gone so healthy and organic.
I don't like the first and I can't afford the second. ;-)

They're pretty new to the Chicago market so I never saw the older
style. It seems they cater to the more upscale yuppie market that
they can't get with the Aldi branch.

Lou

On Tue, 07 Nov 2006 14:45:37 -0600, notbob wrote:


Other TJ weirdness has to do with availability. Too often I've become
accustomed to a particular brand/price only to see it disappear
forever. Their awesome 4 yr aged cheddar which has no equal I can
currently find was a good example. They used to carry Boodles gin at a
fantastic price. I haven't seen it in a couple years, now. A real
bummer.

I did some reading when TJ's came to Chicago a few years ago. I'm not
sure how much has changed since then, but along with their Aldi branch
they focused on 700 items per store. No matter how wonderful an item
is, if it's not making it's quota per square inch of shelf space it
gets eliminated. Larger stores carrying 1000's of items will sell an
item that's not profitable because they've learned (through tracking)
that someone who buys "xyz" will also buy 10 other profitable items on
the same trip. Tj's just doesn't use that theory. Whatever they do
works for them as many people love them. Personally I could live
without them. But their cookies are very good. LOL

Lou

On Wed, 08 Nov 2006 11:41:07 -0500, Kate Connally
wrote:

Well, so far I've found the employees to be extremely polite,
friendly and helpful.

Kate

I'll agree with that, but they're not always too bright. The ones
I've talked to at least tried. But they do get paid well so I'm sure
they are motivated. I think they get paid about 12 bucks an hour
which is pretty good for retail.

Lou

notbob wrote:
Other TJ weirdness has to do with availability. Too often I've become
accustomed to a particular brand/price only to see it disappear
forever. Their awesome 4 yr aged cheddar which has no equal I can
currently find was a good example. They used to carry Boodles gin at a
fantastic price. I haven't seen it in a couple years, now. A real
bummer.

On purpose, TJs constantly lets 10% of their products go on a
continuous basis. Their philosophy is that it keeps customers coming
back out of curiosity of what will be new for sale.

Karen

Lou Decruss wrote:
I'll agree with that, but they're not always too bright. The ones
I've talked to at least tried. But they do get paid well so I'm sure
they are motivated. I think they get paid about 12 bucks an hour
which is pretty good for retail.

TJs gives their employees reviews and raises 4x per year. The cap for a
stocker/clerk at the TJs here is $18/hr.

Karen

wrote:
They just opened a new Trader Joe's in Washington DC. I am so excited
-- I used to have to go to Maryland or Virginia to shop there. If there
is a Trader Joe's by me, I pretty much dont shop anywhere else. I love
that place. And the best part is...the one in DC sells beer and wine.
Ah...good old Charles Shaw wine at 2.99 a bottle.

Two buck Chuck is literally not what it used to be.

Karen

On 8 Nov 2006 09:29:09 -0800, "Karen" wrote:


Lou Decruss wrote:
I'll agree with that, but they're not always too bright. The ones
I've talked to at least tried. But they do get paid well so I'm sure
they are motivated. I think they get paid about 12 bucks an hour
which is pretty good for retail.

TJs gives their employees reviews and raises 4x per year. The cap for a
stocker/clerk at the TJs here is $18/hr.

Karen

Wow! Thanks for the info. And somehow they're still making money.
And Walmart can't pay a living wage. I might start liking TJ's more.
Or not. lol

Lou Decruss wrote:

Wow! Thanks for the info. And somehow they're still making money.
And Walmart can't pay a living wage. I might start liking TJ's more.
Or not. lol

Well Walmart certainly could pay higher wages, but then they couldn't
keep their prices so ridiculously low... and there in lies the
contradiction of the average American - they want to earn union wages,
but they want to drive Volkswagens, Volvos and Honda. They say they
care about losing manufacturing jobs, but IKEA makes & sells all the
chic and trendy stuff they gotta have. $18 an hour for a cashier makes
us feel all warm and fuzzy until that .39 can of beans cost $1 and then
the idea that waving a hand over a scanner constitutes a career makes
less sense.

If Walmart started paying wages on par with specialty stores like TJs
and Whole Foods the complaint would be that the lack of a low cost
retailer, like Walmart, is hurting the poor.

Economic literacy is not the average Americans' strong suit.

In article . com,
"Karen" wrote:

wrote:
They just opened a new Trader Joe's in Washington DC. I am so excited
-- I used to have to go to Maryland or Virginia to shop there. If there
is a Trader Joe's by me, I pretty much dont shop anywhere else. I love
that place. And the best part is...the one in DC sells beer and wine.
Ah...good old Charles Shaw wine at 2.99 a bottle.

Two buck Chuck is literally not what it used to be.


It is. Except it costs money to ship out of state. I went to TJ's in
the last hour, and two buck chuck is still US$1.99 a bottle. If you buy
on the east coast, it is more expensive, but here in California it is
still 2BC.

--
Dan Abel

Petaluma, California, USA

Dan Abel wrote:
It is. Except it costs money to ship out of state. I went to TJ's in
the last hour, and two buck chuck is still US$1.99 a bottle. If you buy
on the east coast, it is more expensive, but here in California it is
still 2BC.

what I meant was, it does not taste the same. The wine is different.
It's more like Two Buck Puke.

Karen

Another Day Another OS wrote:
Well Walmart certainly could pay higher wages, but then they couldn't
keep their prices so ridiculously low... and there in lies the
contradiction of the average American - they want to earn union wages,
but they want to drive Volkswagens, Volvos and Honda. They say they
care about losing manufacturing jobs, but IKEA makes & sells all the
chic and trendy stuff they gotta have. $18 an hour for a cashier makes
us feel all warm and fuzzy until that .39 can of beans cost $1 and then
the idea that waving a hand over a scanner constitutes a career makes
less sense.

If Walmart started paying wages on par with specialty stores like TJs
and Whole Foods the complaint would be that the lack of a low cost
retailer, like Walmart, is hurting the poor.

Economic literacy is not the average Americans' strong suit.

Trader Joes is a discount market.

Karen

On 2006-11-08, Karen wrote:

Two buck Chuck is literally not what it used to be.

Heh.... True. Now, it's tastes like what you pay for it.

nb

On 2006-11-08, Karen wrote:

what I meant was, it does not taste the same. The wine is different.
It's more like Two Buck Puke.

I wouldn't say it's that bad, but it's not what it used to be.

nb

Karen wrote:

Trader Joes is a discount market.

mmm, yes and no. They discount what are typically considered upscale
and luxury items. For staples, milk, bread, canned goods etc, they're
prices are considerably higher than Walmarts. Because they use the
store brand thing so effectively it hard to make a straight up
comparison on a lot of items, but the items we bought when we were there
the other day were mostly basics that we buy all the time and when
checked against a Walmart receipt from two weeks ago were about 25%
higher cost.

In article ,
Another Day Another OS wrote:

Karen wrote:

Trader Joes is a discount market.

mmm, yes and no. They discount what are typically considered upscale
and luxury items. For staples, milk, bread, canned goods etc, they're
prices are considerably higher than Walmarts. Because they use the
store brand thing so effectively it hard to make a straight up
comparison on a lot of items, but the items we bought when we were there
the other day were mostly basics that we buy all the time and when
checked against a Walmart receipt from two weeks ago were about 25%
higher cost.

I don't have a WalMart nearby....but I do find TJ's eggs more expensive
than any grocery store around. At under $2 for cage free/hormone free
eggs they are sometimes even cheaper than conventional eggs at Safeway
or other chain grocery stores. Milk is less expensive as well. Butter
is always less expensive and sometimes cheaper than Costco.

marcella