Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

This store continues to have few customers. They do seem to have made some radical improvements to freshness but they don't put much product out in the fresh departments. It looks like the amount of product they put out in their lowest volume stores. I have also noticed the employees seem to be improving on customer service and efficiency. I suspect this store had such terrible numbers for the holidays compared to previous years, that there is a lot of pressure on the store now to execute.

They are advertising for Raleys ONE all over the place- social media, online ads, billboards. They recently have a billboard up with a picture of a dog on it and noting they have "friendly employees." There is very little marketing that they have added many conventional branded products back to the store, almost like they want it to be a secret. But at the same time they are not marketing the nutrition angle like before.

This is a confused concept that needs to be scrapped entirely at this location. I don't know how much longer they will continue to give Safeway so many $$$$$ customers... but I am surprised they have allowed it this long.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

Received in the mail $10 off $40 purchase, only good at Raley's ONE Reno.

Front of card has a photo of conventional items mentioning your "budget friendly" favorites are available at the store.

Would be nicer if they did not put the store on a higher pricing structure, than all of their other NV Stores, for those items.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by HCal »

In my experience, whenever a store starts to send out $5 off or $10 off coupons, that's a bad sign. They are desperate to boost numbers even if it kills the margins. The exception is if a store is brand new and unknown in the community (like an Aldi opening) but that doesn't apply here.

I remember Fresh & Easy doing this right before they shut down.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

HCal wrote: January 14th, 2022, 2:29 am In my experience, whenever a store starts to send out $5 off or $10 off coupons, that's a bad sign. They are desperate to boost numbers even if it kills the margins. The exception is if a store is brand new and unknown in the community (like an Aldi opening) but that doesn't apply here.

I remember Fresh & Easy doing this right before they shut down.
I cannot believe they took a store that was probably doing $1 million a week a year ago, and now it has come to this point. Sure Safeway opened 5 miles away, but also hundreds of new houses and apartments have become occupied within 3 miles of this store (and the Safeway) in the past year.

I just don't know why they won't just put this back to the normal Raleys format and do a marketing campaign that they have brought back the old store... this thing of having mainstream items on the bottom shelf is just weird; there is something somewhat unnerving about picking almost every item from the bottom shelf. Like it is supposed to make you feel bad or something, for getting something from "down there."

Maybe we can get a Save Mart in this location instead. Or some other chain that will actually try to listen to the customer's wants, vs. trying to cram down what the chain wants down the customer's throat.

They are running this store much better now than they did the first six months of the conversion but it doesn't matter how well it is run when they've run off so many customers...
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by veteran+ »

The top dude at this company and his "team" remind me sooooooo much of Tesco with Fresh & Easy.

Their hubris just keeps on beating to death a dead horse.

Actually, quite amazingly bizarre!
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

veteran+ wrote: January 15th, 2022, 9:05 am The top dude at this company and his "team" remind me sooooooo much of Tesco with Fresh & Easy.

Their hubris just keeps on beating to death a dead horse.

Actually, quite amazingly bizarre!
What is striking is they had a real good thing going before the Reno conversion- they charged prices that are at the upper end of market range, have a more extensive center store mix than typical, and have the upper middle class not price sensitive customer in a tight grip, then they do this, take items out, tell the customer what they will sell them in a what felt like a hiddenly condescending manner, re price the store to a higher price structure never used before in NV and take it out of market range, and completely alienate that customer. Right as a brand new Safeway opens.



At least it only involves 2 conversion stores and 1 new store and they quit saying they were going to convert the entire chain to this format... they have a store under construction in Roseville that is supposedly opening under this format too. Let's see if it opens under this format.

I really like the idea of a clean ingredient store. But maybe that is too much. Maybe a clean ingredient brand. Raleys could start with a clean bakery/deli and a clean private label. They had to pull something like half of their standard bakery/deli items out of the ONE Store since the items did not meet their ingredient standards; some of those items are made in a facility Raleys owns. That seems like a logical place to start "going clean" if you own the manufacturing facility... then a little harder but next with the private label items, since you control where those come from... they have/had a clean "line" called Raleys Purely Made but many items are just standard Raleys brand.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by rwsandiego »

Had Raley's opened two new O-N-E stores instead of converting two existing stores, this could have worked. Taking two stores and yanking out products like Coke and Tostitos and replacing them with "organic" equivalents was just a bad idea. If Sprouts suddenly replaced its organic and "all-natural" (whatever that means) product with conventional product they would experience a similar backlash.

You're right about starting with bakery. I don't think anyone would have minded if they "went clean" with ingredients as long as the products tasted as good or better than the old stuff. Fresh bakery is a premium product that sells for a higher price, so they really ought to be made with premium ingredients. Replacing conventional meat and produce with organic is tricky, as the price of organic is so much higher than conventional products.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

rwsandiego wrote: January 15th, 2022, 10:01 pm Had Raley's opened two new O-N-E stores instead of converting two existing stores, this could have worked. Taking two stores and yanking out products like Coke and Tostitos and replacing them with "organic" equivalents was just a bad idea. If Sprouts suddenly replaced its organic and "all-natural" (whatever that means) product with conventional product they would experience a similar backlash.

You're right about starting with bakery. I don't think anyone would have minded if they "went clean" with ingredients as long as the products tasted as good or better than the old stuff. Fresh bakery is a premium product that sells for a higher price, so they really ought to be made with premium ingredients. Replacing conventional meat and produce with organic is tricky, as the price of organic is so much higher than conventional products.
That takes an investment in labor and shrink... since you can't get as much shelf life out of clean ingredient stuff and it would take more labor to handle it. They did have some ONE-specific bakery items but they were not premium; they were closer to inedible. Luckily they have reverted back to the old Raleys bakery/deli program in this store but there is a lot less product than before and freshness isn't like it was before.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by bryceleinan »

storewanderer wrote: January 15th, 2022, 10:18 pm
rwsandiego wrote: January 15th, 2022, 10:01 pm Had Raley's opened two new O-N-E stores instead of converting two existing stores, this could have worked. Taking two stores and yanking out products like Coke and Tostitos and replacing them with "organic" equivalents was just a bad idea. If Sprouts suddenly replaced its organic and "all-natural" (whatever that means) product with conventional product they would experience a similar backlash.

You're right about starting with bakery. I don't think anyone would have minded if they "went clean" with ingredients as long as the products tasted as good or better than the old stuff. Fresh bakery is a premium product that sells for a higher price, so they really ought to be made with premium ingredients. Replacing conventional meat and produce with organic is tricky, as the price of organic is so much higher than conventional products.
That takes an investment in labor and shrink... since you can't get as much shelf life out of clean ingredient stuff and it would take more labor to handle it. They did have some ONE-specific bakery items but they were not premium; they were closer to inedible. Luckily they have reverted back to the old Raleys bakery/deli program in this store but there is a lot less product than before and freshness isn't like it was before.
Interesting article in the RGJ today from Raleys, and this store was a main point of discussion:

https://www.rgj.com/story/life/2022/02/ ... 317119002/

Looks like Raleys is sold on this concept - no idea why.
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Re: Raleys converting Reno Store to ONE Market Format

Post by storewanderer »

bryceleinan wrote: February 7th, 2022, 6:12 pm

Interesting article in the RGJ today from Raleys, and this store was a main point of discussion:

https://www.rgj.com/story/life/2022/02/ ... 317119002/

Looks like Raleys is sold on this concept - no idea why.
Probably knows enough to play the politics to tow the line in order to get the job... and keep repeating they are sold on this concept. Facing the truth will not be tolerated (that customers hate this format). I suggest they convert more stores. They can also go invest in Albertsons since they are throwing so many customers Safeway's way every time they implement this format.

The store is dead. There are a few more customers than before and I shop there again and buy more than I was at one point, but the store is a sad shadow of its former self. Assortment and freshness are nothing like before. Customer counts are so low. The "busy" time is at 5:30 PM when they have two checkstands open. It doesn't last long and by 6:30 they are back to one checkstand. The 4 self checkouts sometimes have a small line now though. I think traffic is up a little.
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