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Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: May 22nd, 2018, 9:29 pm
by storewanderer
Super S wrote: May 22nd, 2018, 9:23 pm I was in the Longview Fred Meyer today and noticed a lot of closeouts occurring in the home area. Most of the paint is marked down 50% including all Miller and Dutch Boy custom mixing, as well as many items in the tool area, and some automotive. I also noticed that they stopped carrying Interstate batteries (They kept them locked up here and all cases were empty, as if they are doing away with batteries altogether). There were similar closeout signs in other areas as well. It looks like some scaling back of general merchandise is going to take place soon, possibly for a rumored remodel. I really hope they aren't going to water hardlines down like Target has though. At the very least this is indeed a new strategy for Fred Meyer....
Sounds like the South Medford format is coming to that location.

Dumb spot for it... what are they thinking?

Then again so was South Medford.

Not much but negative Yelp reviews ever since their "enhancements" to South Medford. I cannot state in words my level of disgust with the merchandise mix in that store. Not even close to my expectation for Fred Meyer. May as well just cut the space in half and throw up a Food 4 Less sign (fits with the ugly cement floors and ugly walls).
https://www.yelp.com/biz/fred-meyer-med ... =date_desc

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: May 23rd, 2018, 8:14 am
by babs
storewanderer wrote: May 22nd, 2018, 9:29 pm
Super S wrote: May 22nd, 2018, 9:23 pm I was in the Longview Fred Meyer today and noticed a lot of closeouts occurring in the home area. Most of the paint is marked down 50% including all Miller and Dutch Boy custom mixing, as well as many items in the tool area, and some automotive. I also noticed that they stopped carrying Interstate batteries (They kept them locked up here and all cases were empty, as if they are doing away with batteries altogether). There were similar closeout signs in other areas as well. It looks like some scaling back of general merchandise is going to take place soon, possibly for a rumored remodel. I really hope they aren't going to water hardlines down like Target has though. At the very least this is indeed a new strategy for Fred Meyer....
Sounds like the South Medford format is coming to that location.

Dumb spot for it... what are they thinking?

Then again so was South Medford.

Not much but negative Yelp reviews ever since their "enhancements" to South Medford. I cannot state in words my level of disgust with the merchandise mix in that store. Not even close to my expectation for Fred Meyer. May as well just cut the space in half and throw up a Food 4 Less sign (fits with the ugly cement floors and ugly walls).
https://www.yelp.com/biz/fred-meyer-med ... =date_desc
This isn't a "South Medford" format. Almost all of the Portland stores have converted. Spokane has all converted. Many Seattle stores have converted. By the end of the year just about every store will have been converted to the new sets. Food is being expanded chain-wide while home and electronics is being scaled back. People can complain on Yelp but the stuff just doesn't sell to justify the space it's taking up and are voting with their pocketbook. People just aren't going to Fred Meyer for paint, automotive, hardware, etc... Might as well try selling more of what turns.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: May 23rd, 2018, 6:03 pm
by klkla
The wine bar in that South Medford store seems strange. There's no buffer around it. It's just in an aisle:

https://www.google.com/maps/uv?hl=en&pb ... 115KUV_QyV

The one in Ralphs Downtown LA at least has a railing to separate it and keep minors away:
https://www.google.com/maps/uv?hl=en&pb ... Pw0bgSEUJY

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: May 23rd, 2018, 8:20 pm
by Kyleinlongview
[/quote]

People just aren't going to Fred Meyer for paint, automotive, hardware, etc... Might as well try selling more of what turns.
[/quote]

When I was talking to my friend at the Longview Fred Meyer, this sounds in line with what he was mentioning. Didn't get into a lot of specifics, but mentioned the clothing, hardware, electronics, and automotive sections were going to be getting smaller, that the natural foods section was going to be integrated into the normal food isles, and that a dedicated and larger wine section was being planned in it's place.

I'm sad, I have visited a number of Fred Meyer locations and felt the Longview one had it's own character. I don't want it to look like every other Portland area store decor wise.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: May 24th, 2018, 9:05 am
by Super S
Kyleinlongview wrote: May 23rd, 2018, 8:20 pm
People just aren't going to Fred Meyer for paint, automotive, hardware, etc... Might as well try selling more of what turns.
[/quote]

When I was talking to my friend at the Longview Fred Meyer, this sounds in line with what he was mentioning. Didn't get into a lot of specifics, but mentioned the clothing, hardware, electronics, and automotive sections were going to be getting smaller, that the natural foods section was going to be integrated into the normal food isles, and that a dedicated and larger wine section was being planned in it's place.

I'm sad, I have visited a number of Fred Meyer locations and felt the Longview one had it's own character. I don't want it to look like every other Portland area store decor wise.
[/quote]

I have purchased Miller paint at this Fred Meyer several times, and although much of my business shifted when Miller finally opened a Longview location, I sometimes used Fred Meyer when I needed a little more paint on the weekend. That ended though when, not too long ago, I needed to touch up an area which was damaged, and even though I had the paint code etc. from the top of the can, Fred Meyer could not find it in their charts. The Miller store found it right away. I have also noticed some difficulty even getting help in the paint area, and although Lowe's opened just down the road, Lowe's in Longview can be really spotty as far as their service goes. It does seem like the general merchandise side is not as well staffed, and this side often has only one checkout open with a long line which doesn't help.

I have to wonder how much home/auto/sports business fell when they consolidated back into the main building. The layout of the store seems to be divided by having apparel in the middle, and it sometimes seems as if this isolates the rest of the store.

They still are doing a pretty good garden center business in Longview though...every spring they cordon off part of the parking area and have a lot of plants outside.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: June 6th, 2018, 8:48 pm
by pseudo3d
I'm not sure if this universal within the Krogerverse, but for the last month or so, they've had "Say Hello to Lower Prices" outside on the doors (black on yellow, where I have seen that before...?) but today I noticed they had (in the main checkouts) new yellow plastic bags (instead of the regular brown ones), and they're INCREDIBLY flimsy, like they would burst through a bag of just 12 ounces of ground coffee and half a dozen Slim Jims.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: June 6th, 2018, 9:41 pm
by storewanderer
Smiths had those yellow plastic bags in April and May and has since switched back to the old bags. They were flimsier than normal.

I do not like the Hello to Lower Prices campaign or pricing program at all. More and more of my shopping has been going elsewhere this year. Frankly, I am getting better prices and better quality elsewhere (at multiple elsewheres).

I was glad to see the yellow bags go. I felt like I had just gone shopping at Dollar General. And that was not a very good feeling. Better than Raleys who is using super flimsy plastic bags with no store name on them in this market the past week at all of their stores. I hope that changes. I have been getting paper bags there instead.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: June 6th, 2018, 10:25 pm
by rwsandiego
pseudo3d wrote: June 6th, 2018, 8:48 pm I'm not sure if this universal within the Krogerverse, but for the last month or so, they've had "Say Hello to Lower Prices" outside on the doors (black on yellow, where I have seen that before...?) but today I noticed they had (in the main checkouts) new yellow plastic bags (instead of the regular brown ones), and they're INCREDIBLY flimsy, like they would burst through a bag of just 12 ounces of ground coffee and half a dozen Slim Jims.
Fry's had them too. Haven't been there in a couple of weeks, so I can't say what they have now. Like @storewanderer, I am not a fan of the "low prices" campaign. For starters, I wouldn't consider Fry's or Ralphs prices to be "low." In fact, I would avoid the self-checkout at Ralphs because at their prices they were going to scan it, process the payment, and put it in a bag for me.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: June 7th, 2018, 7:47 am
by SamSpade
No signs of this in the Portland market.
Fred Meyer TV ads are emphasizing summer holidays and mentioned ad specials are 100% food.

Normal bags (in Portland city paper is required), no indication of price reduction when I was in a store on Monday.

QFC seems to be "normal" as well.

Must be interesting to live in a competitive grocery market... The NW has lots of choices but mostly on the higher end.

Re: Kroger Changes Strategy

Posted: June 7th, 2018, 7:51 am
by arizonaguy
rwsandiego wrote: June 6th, 2018, 10:25 pm
pseudo3d wrote: June 6th, 2018, 8:48 pm I'm not sure if this universal within the Krogerverse, but for the last month or so, they've had "Say Hello to Lower Prices" outside on the doors (black on yellow, where I have seen that before...?) but today I noticed they had (in the main checkouts) new yellow plastic bags (instead of the regular brown ones), and they're INCREDIBLY flimsy, like they would burst through a bag of just 12 ounces of ground coffee and half a dozen Slim Jims.
Fry's had them too. Haven't been there in a couple of weeks, so I can't say what they have now. Like @storewanderer, I am not a fan of the "low prices" campaign. For starters, I wouldn't consider Fry's or Ralphs prices to be "low." In fact, I would avoid the self-checkout at Ralphs because at their prices they were going to scan it, process the payment, and put it in a bag for me.
In Arizona Fry's pricing tends to be lower than Albertsons/Safeway and Bashas' so that's how they can market their "low prices" campaign. However, Walmart and Winco still beat them on pricing.

I also don't like the yellow bags (and, as of Monday, they were still in use).

For the last few years I did a good bit of my grocery shopping at Fry's (basically anything more than a quick trip which I would do at SuperTarget or Safeway). However, I've started going to Walmart and Winco more often than the past (and my wife and I were pretty impressed with the prepared foods section that Winco has now).