More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

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submariner
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More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

Post by submariner »

I recently made a trip to my local Ralphs store, and it looks like they're changing a few things up. While it's not uncommon for center-store departments to move over time, they recently did a sizeable change. This includes removing the half-height soda section for a full-height aisle, as well as more widespread use to higher top shelves (common in smaller stores, not common in this larger store I frequent).

But the more interesting changes start with signage, where some sign categories are now marked with a green leaf. At first I thought this had to do with areas featuring a focus on "Living Naturally" sections spotlighting organic and natural/healthy foods, but the signage includes some decidedly non-healthy categories like candy and cookies. It's confusing as to what these leaves are trying to represent in the store, if anything.

Next, there seems to be a shift away from canned vegetables in favor of plastic cups. This also brings along the notorious Grocery Shrink Ray reducing the product from 8.5 to 7 ounces, keeping the same price.

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Re: More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

Post by architect »

submariner wrote: April 22nd, 2018, 4:59 pm I recently made a trip to my local Ralphs store, and it looks like they're changing a few things up. While it's not uncommon for center-store departments to move over time, they recently did a sizeable change. This includes removing the half-height soda section for a full-height aisle, as well as more widespread use to higher top shelves (common in smaller stores, not common in this larger store I frequent).

But the more interesting changes start with signage, where some sign categories are now marked with a green leaf. At first I thought this had to do with areas featuring a focus on "Living Naturally" sections spotlighting organic and natural/healthy foods, but the signage includes some decidedly non-healthy categories like candy and cookies. It's confusing as to what these leaves are trying to represent in the store, if anything.

Next, there seems to be a shift away from canned vegetables in favor of plastic cups. This also brings along the notorious Grocery Shrink Ray reducing the product from 8.5 to 7 ounces, keeping the same price.

Image
IMG_1159 by Aaron Slater, on Flickr
Image
IMG_1158 by Aaron Slater, on Flickr
Image
IMG_1160 by Aaron Slater, on Flickr
Image
IMG_1156 by Aaron Slater, on Flickr
At several DFW Kroger locations which have been renovated recently, the seperate natural/organic department has been eliminated and these products have been introduced back alongside their mainstream counterparts. At these locations, the "leaf" signage (along with green aisle signage in the section of the aisle in question) call out where these products are located, as they are often in their own shelving section adjacent to the mainstream items. Obviously, the signage doesn't necessarily denote "healthy," but strictly natural/organic.

As far as the vegetables in the plastic cups go, these are designed for on the go use, which is the most common reason the smaller cans are purchased. The 7.5 oz size actually makes more sense from a serving standpoint, as it works out to be exactly half of a typical can of vegetables (14.2-15 oz is typical). However, at the Kroger stores where I have seen the cups offered, they are simply offered in addition to the 8 oz cans, not as a direct replacement for them. If the cans are being discontinued at Ralph's, maybe it is a divisional decision?
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Re: More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

Post by babs »

The Burlingame Fred Meyer is in the middle of eliminating it's Natural Choices department and co-mingling natural products into the regular selection. I think there are so many natural items these days that having a separate department is getting to the point where it's unrealistic.
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Re: More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

Post by pseudo3d »

At last check, one of the Kroger stores I go to nowadays, the Kroger store on Studemont, has separate natural sections but I haven't seen the integrated ones yet (in many of the Houston stores, even in vastly predominant English-speaking areas, signage is bilingual). Integrating them makes some sense (though having separate signage at this point is stupid) but the canned food change is far more troubling. With plastic cups, you destroy the main advantages of canned food to begin with (durability and stacking). Plastics will degrade quickly (Twinkies, for instance, have the plastic go bad before the product) and those things look like they'll explode if they get dropped (given the number of dented cans I often see this happens fairly often in transit).
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Re: More changes in the Krogersphere: The death of the can and Living "Naturally"?

Post by Super S »

pseudo3d wrote: April 22nd, 2018, 7:11 pm At last check, one of the Kroger stores I go to nowadays, the Kroger store on Studemont, has separate natural sections but I haven't seen the integrated ones yet (in many of the Houston stores, even in vastly predominant English-speaking areas, signage is bilingual). Integrating them makes some sense (though having separate signage at this point is stupid) but the canned food change is far more troubling. With plastic cups, you destroy the main advantages of canned food to begin with (durability and stacking). Plastics will degrade quickly (Twinkies, for instance, have the plastic go bad before the product) and those things look like they'll explode if they get dropped (given the number of dented cans I often see this happens fairly often in transit).
Those clear containers also bug me simply because light can enter the container. Even though they are sealed, light does affect the quality of fruits and vegetables. That alone will lead to a shorter shelf life. Those almost look like something that should be stored in a refrigerated case.

I will also add that those floors look awful with that ceiling/lighting combination.
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