Retail Watchers

So far,ALDI hasn't yet crept into the Sacramento Valley,but there are already 2 Fresno-area locations.Based on the product mix listed online,they do carry some name brand items and aren't nearly as 'artisan' as Trader Joe's which is owned by the opposite ALDI entity.

norcalriteaidclerk wrote: ↑March 30th, 2022, 7:29 pm So far,ALDI hasn't yet crept into the Sacramento Valley,but there are already 2 Fresno-area locations.Based on the product mix listed online,they do carry some name brand items and aren't nearly as 'artisan' as Trader Joe's which is owned by the opposite ALDI entity.

Aldi is like a less assorted version of Grocery Outlet. But perhaps it is more predictable than Grocery Outlet. You won't spend much time in Aldi when you go in there, you will get in and out fast.

Hmm--I'm not sure I'd agree with the characterization of Aldi (house brands heavily predominant, corporate ownership, standardized operations, low costs primary, limited assortment, routinized promotions for food (German week; then 3 weeks later Italian Week, then on and on). with Grocery Outlet (franchised, no house branding, individual operations, opportunistic buying and merchandising, well-monitored short-date programs, significant individual item handling (managing short dates among other things). Perhaps Save-a-Lot would be the better comparator to Grocery Outlet.

Romr123 wrote: ↑March 31st, 2022, 7:43 am Hmm--I'm not sure I'd agree with the characterization of Aldi (house brands heavily predominant, corporate ownership, standardized operations, low costs primary, limited assortment, routinized promotions for food (German week; then 3 weeks later Italian Week, then on and on). with Grocery Outlet (franchised, no house branding, individual operations, opportunistic buying and merchandising, well-monitored short-date programs, significant individual item handling (managing short dates among other things). Perhaps Save-a-Lot would be the better comparator to Grocery Outlet.

Yes, I always thought of Save-A-Lot and Aldi as comparable.

Aldi does have a more "upscale" feel to it though.

Romr123 wrote: ↑March 31st, 2022, 7:43 am Hmm--I'm not sure I'd agree with the characterization of Aldi (house brands heavily predominant, corporate ownership, standardized operations, low costs primary, limited assortment, routinized promotions for food (German week; then 3 weeks later Italian Week, then on and on). with Grocery Outlet (franchised, no house branding, individual operations, opportunistic buying and merchandising, well-monitored short-date programs, significant individual item handling (managing short dates among other things). Perhaps Save-a-Lot would be the better comparator to Grocery Outlet.

Save-a-Lot seems very uneven. I don't go into them often but whenever I go into one it doesn't seem to remind me of the last one I visited. They have varying policies (some charge for bags some don't), varying fresh programs, different point of sale systems/payment policies (some take credit some don't; one had a minimum purchase for card use)... I've even seen different private labels (some in CA used to sell Best Yet items). There was one outside San Diego that was like a hispanic grocer with full service meat, bakery, hot food, weirdest thing I've ever seen. I've seen some in the midwest that sell fried chicken (but otherwise have no formal deli).

Grocery Outlet generally speaking has pretty consistent layouts between stores and despite the operations being "operated" by independents the operations seem fairly consistent between location.

Grocery Outlet does have house branded items though... the Lady Lee Milk is house branded and so are the Harvest Day Bagged Nuts... I think there are other random canned items, gallons of vinegar, that may be Grocery Outlet private labels but not flagged as such as they look like packer labels maybe.

Aldi seems to be very consistent.

Lady Lee? Harvest Day? Those are former Lucky brands!

Interesting--down here in Palm Springs the milk brand is Rock Dale. There are a few packer-level labeled (one step above generic---no artwork or customization) products which are sourced from Grocery Outlet LLC or whatever, but they really have all the appeal of government surplus cheese/canned goods. I've been to two locations--Palm Springs and Cat City--Palm Springs seems to have more snack and (way) more toiletries, Cat City more Hispanic groceries) Cat City may be in the old Fresh and Easy on Date Palm; Palm Springs is in an adapted building downtown (props to them for eliminating a pedestrian food desert)

Romr123 wrote: ↑April 1st, 2022, 8:44 am Interesting--down here in Palm Springs the milk brand is Rock Dale. There are a few packer-level labeled (one step above generic---no artwork or customization) products which are sourced from Grocery Outlet LLC or whatever, but they really have all the appeal of government surplus cheese/canned goods. I've been to two locations--Palm Springs and Cat City--Palm Springs seems to have more snack and (way) more toiletries, Cat City more Hispanic groceries) Cat City may be in the old Fresh and Easy on Date Palm; Palm Springs is in an adapted building downtown (props to them for eliminating a pedestrian food desert)

I also notice a lot of Hy Top items at Grocery Outlet lately. Many spices and other odd fill ins like salad dressing and some condiments. I am not sure if it is a coincidence or they are having to go to a supplier to keep some categories stocked.

Cathedral City is a former Fresh & Easy.

storewanderer wrote: ↑April 1st, 2022, 7:04 pm

Romr123 wrote: ↑April 1st, 2022, 8:44 am Interesting--down here in Palm Springs the milk brand is Rock Dale. There are a few packer-level labeled (one step above generic---no artwork or customization) products which are sourced from Grocery Outlet LLC or whatever, but they really have all the appeal of government surplus cheese/canned goods. I've been to two locations--Palm Springs and Cat City--Palm Springs seems to have more snack and (way) more toiletries, Cat City more Hispanic groceries) Cat City may be in the old Fresh and Easy on Date Palm; Palm Springs is in an adapted building downtown (props to them for eliminating a pedestrian food desert)

I also notice a lot of Hy Top items at Grocery Outlet lately. Many spices and other odd fill ins like salad dressing and some condiments. I am not sure if it is a coincidence or they are having to go to a supplier to keep some categories stocked.

Cathedral City is a former Fresh & Easy.

And that F&E (which I opened) was a dog from day one until the end. They were lucky to do 75,000. per week.

Also, hard to get to because of the median on the road. You had to make a u-turn at the light.

storewanderer wrote: ↑April 1st, 2022, 7:04 pm I also notice a lot of Hy Top items at Grocery Outlet lately. Many spices and other odd fill ins like salad dressing and some condiments. I am not sure if it is a coincidence or they are having to go to a supplier to keep some categories stocked.

Cathedral City is a former Fresh & Easy.

Grocery Outlet buys opportunistically, so they take products that other stores may have ordered in excess. I have seen everything from HEB to Stop&Shop house brands at Grocery Outlet in California.

Their own house brands are hijacked from Lucky. A number of years ago, they opened a store under the Lucky name and tried to steal the trademark, claiming that Albertsons had abandoned it. They also started using the Lady Lee and Harvest Day private labels. Albertsons went to court and successfully fought to get the Lucky trademark back, but apparently didn't bother with the private label brands, so I suppose Grocery Outlet now owns those.

While the company is technically franchised, I get the impression that their "owner-operators" are basically like managers who are independent contractors rather than employees. The company owns the stores, supplies the products, etc., and the local owners are essentially managing it with a bit more autonomy than a store manager at other chains. Perhaps they could be viewed like Uber drivers, running their own "business".

Back on the topic of this thread, Aldi is obviously much more consistent that Grocery Outlet or Save-a-Lot. They seem to be finding a niche in the ultra-low-price limited-selection market. With small stores, very few employees, and almost exclusively private label goods, they don't need full baskets to be profitable. A steady stream of customers buying the basics is sufficient. Those customers can then go across the parking lot to a larger store to get the rest of their things.