The ads have been snail-mailed for many years now. Supermarket newspaper advertising has pretty much been limited to a Sunday ad here or there (the Los Angeles Times discontinued the traditional Wednesday- at one time Thursday- Food Section many years ago). I see Sprouts in the Los Angeles Times most Sunday's but Ralphs only around the holidays. Albertsons/Vons not too often (on Sunday). I expect to see a Ralphs ad the Sunday before Easter.babs wrote:The era of the weekly printed ad may be ending quicker than you think. It's a huge expense for a retailer. Back in the 90s, I worked for a chain in the west where I directly worked on the ad. It cost us $1 million a week to produce, print and insert the circulars. Obviously it's only gone up from there. Today, the circulation of newspapers is about half of what it was 10 years ago. You are simply hitting a lot fewer people. Most younger people don't get the newspaper, so the ads are only reaching an older demographic.
I'm with you that when I walk into a grocery store, I grab the ad to look for the bargains. But I hate to tell you the age of the weekly newspaper circular is coming to an end. Digital is going to replace it, somehow. Every single retailer is trying to figure out what to do.
In my area, I get ads for Pavilions, Sprouts, Bristol Farms, Gelsons and Smart & Final in the snail mail (normally bundled together with other non-grocery ads + Rite Aid on Tuesday). There are no Albertsons in my area anymore (since Haggen) and they no longer send a Vons ad (although I am equal distance to a Vons and Pavilions). And now no more Ralphs ad.
Although I have an excellent smartphone, a Note 5, when it gets down to the tiny details in these ads, it can get difficult to read. I really prefer having an ad in hand while in the store. But I am old school.
I am going to complain on Ralphs social media on Monday.