Michael Teel returns to Raleys

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storewanderer
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Michael Teel returns to Raleys

Post by storewanderer »

What do we think of this? He left abruptly in 2002 after the failed Las Vegas expansion and all was quiet about him until last year when it came known that he and some investors were trying to displace Corti Brothers in Sacramento. Now he has back to Raleys.

I think the grocery environment has gotten pretty ugly since 2002. In fact, I think Raleys home markets like Reno and Sacramento have become a lot like Las Vegas since that time in terms of grocery competition and similar.
Alpha8472
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Re: Michael Teel returns to Raleys

Post by Alpha8472 »

I see this as a person who just wants to return to the family business out of a sense of loyalty. The failed upscale market idea wasn't working out, so he went back to a company that at least has potential.

Raley's is a hit and miss store. They offer more upscale items than other supermarkets, but often many prices are too high. The cost conscious people avoid Raley's for the most part. A few sale items might draw people in, but a lot of people are alienated by the high prices on many items.

I have always thought that Raley's had a miserable problem with store decor. Some of their Nob Hill Foods stores are eyesores. Their newer stores also have a dark and depressing color scheme. It tries to be upscale, but it just looks brown and dreary. Let's face it, Raley's is not Whole Foods. Whole Foods is gourmet high quality and people like the selection. Raley's tries to be gourmet, but it is not as good as Whole Foods and the prices are on the high side.
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Re: Michael Teel returns to Raleys

Post by storewanderer »

Their new stores don't look very good; too much brown and too dark. Sizing of certain departments in their new stores is also a bit awkward. I think they may look a little better than Safeway Lifestyle though, which I don't care for at all in terms of decor and color scheme. There are some stores Raleys has remodeled into that new decor. The remodels receive a rather off white colored ceramic tile floor (not the shining dark brown cement floor the new ones get) and actually look very nice. Floor is an important interior decor element and most chains seem to be moving toward using cement floors in new stores that look terrible. I cannot think of many grocery store cement floors that I thought looked good; in fact only one comes to mind.

But Raleys has a lot of very loyal customers willing to pay their prices. Their in-store execution is better than any other chain in NorCal but you pay for it. The typical Raleys is no better than a well-executed Safeway but the problem is Safeway has few stores that are well-executed. Raleys loves to pride itself on having great produce yet also likes to keep all produce under very cold refrigeration in all of their stores. This makes the produce look better and extends its shelf life on the sales floor but sometimes impacts the quality especially on certain citrus and soft fruits. Safeway typically does not keep these items under refrigeration. I have never felt Raleys produce is worth what they charge for it.

I predict Kroger will buy Raleys and the "loyal" customers will suddenly notice Raleys isn't all that great after a change of ownership takes place, but in reality I doubt Kroger would make many changes there. Most of the types of changes Kroger would make would probably be positives for Raleys.
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