Are "we" too hard on QFC?

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Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by SamSpade »

When I made the map for Washington state of QFC, Fred Meyer, and Albertsons Cos stores, I learned a lot about the QFCs. I also had reason to recently shop a QFC in the market south of Washington and have some 2c opinions now.
  1. I think we have been too hard on QFC. Other than price sensitivity, really they are doing just fine at providing a slightly better than middle grocery presentation.
  2. Kroger was/is smart to keep QFC on the premium Angus beef licensing/brand. It furthers that image.
  3. Top Pot doughnut program looks good, even after COVID. I feel since ACI swapped their doughnuts here, they're not even worth buying. Fred Meyer's haven't been since the "Krogerization" at most of their bakeries as well.
  4. Smartly using more Schwartz Bros and other local bakery thaw items over standard Kroger. Not sure how they got this, but they do. Fred Meyer has little to no Schwartz selection.
  5. Seafood is well presented. In a market where people regularly consume fish believing it to be fresh and well sourced due to location near the ocean, QFC has a few extras that you no longer see at ACI (or Fred Meyer) stores, such as fresh clams and mussels.
  6. Murray's Cheese rebrand in most of their stores and their large cheese island is a strength. This could be the one area that ACI might advance on if the merger goes through.
  7. Most locations continue to have a Starbucks, despite many of them being in tight floorplans.
  8. Deli has really been trashed by COVID and staffing issues. The store I was in used to have a pizzeria. That is now all mothballed and stacked with takeaway containers facing the customers. Not exactly "upscale" or alluring.

Stores themselves vary widely. You can see that some QFC executive at some point wanted their stores to "stand out" by being a weird corner anchor of a shopping plaza, rather than the traditional end on a shopping center. Many centers are L shaped and wouldn't be suited to expansion. However, other stores are newer/larger and have 2 entries and are pretty typical supermarkets for the future. They even built one new QFC under an apartment building in West Seattle (I had no idea).

As an aside, the Fred Meyer 'Stadium' store is still quite a bit like a QFC. It has the Top Pot Doughnuts now, a sushi bar, a reopened growler/beer/wine bar, more local baked goods in both sweet and bread areas... they took out a lot of the GM after trying briefly to offer sports apparel and shoes after the expansion (weird idea).
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by babs »

SamSpade wrote: November 10th, 2022, 12:20 pm When I made the map for Washington state of QFC, Fred Meyer, and Albertsons Cos stores, I learned a lot about the QFCs. I also had reason to recently shop a QFC in the market south of Washington and have some 2c opinions now.
  1. I think we have been too hard on QFC. Other than price sensitivity, really they are doing just fine at providing a slightly better than middle grocery presentation.
  2. Kroger was/is smart to keep QFC on the premium Angus beef licensing/brand. It furthers that image.
  3. Top Pot doughnut program looks good, even after COVID. I feel since ACI swapped their doughnuts here, they're not even worth buying. Fred Meyer's haven't been since the "Krogerization" at most of their bakeries as well.
  4. Smartly using more Schwartz Bros and other local bakery thaw items over standard Kroger. Not sure how they got this, but they do. Fred Meyer has little to no Schwartz selection.
  5. Seafood is well presented. In a market where people regularly consume fish believing it to be fresh and well sourced due to location near the ocean, QFC has a few extras that you no longer see at ACI (or Fred Meyer) stores, such as fresh clams and mussels.
  6. Murray's Cheese rebrand in most of their stores and their large cheese island is a strength. This could be the one area that ACI might advance on if the merger goes through.
  7. Most locations continue to have a Starbucks, despite many of them being in tight floorplans.
  8. Deli has really been trashed by COVID and staffing issues. The store I was in used to have a pizzeria. That is now all mothballed and stacked with takeaway containers facing the customers. Not exactly "upscale" or alluring.

Stores themselves vary widely. You can see that some QFC executive at some point wanted their stores to "stand out" by being a weird corner anchor of a shopping plaza, rather than the traditional end on a shopping center. Many centers are L shaped and wouldn't be suited to expansion. However, other stores are newer/larger and have 2 entries and are pretty typical supermarkets for the future. They even built one new QFC under an apartment building in West Seattle (I had no idea).

As an aside, the Fred Meyer 'Stadium' store is still quite a bit like a QFC. It has the Top Pot Doughnuts now, a sushi bar, a reopened growler/beer/wine bar, more local baked goods in both sweet and bread areas... they took out a lot of the GM after trying briefly to offer sports apparel and shoes after the expansion (weird idea).
The Burlingame Fred Meyer might be the most QFC like in the chain. No sit down wine bar but they have the better bakery and upgraded meat/fish market.

I always thought one of the dumbest things Kroger did in the Portland market was not buy the Lake Grove Albertsons turned Haggens after the bankruptcy. That would have been a perfect QFC market. King City Barrows Road, and West Linn would have worked as well.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by storewanderer »

I don't think we are too hard on QFC. I think Kroger who hasn't been opening new stores, didn't take any of the Haggen failures (didn't even appear to try to in OR/WA; we know they bid on a couple in SoCal) to expand QFC, is the one who has been hard on QFC.

You bring a good point on QFC's seafood (and also "seasoned/prepared raw meat") operation, I think they call that the Chef Express department. That program is definitely developed beyond other Kroger divisions or competitors into something that is very uniquely fit to the Seattle market and the availability and higher demand for seafood. That program was a non-starter down in Portland.

Then again it won't matter much by 2024.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by pseudo3d »

I'll need to ask the right people but I remember seeing someone from the PNW compare prices, the prices for Safeway consistently beat QFC in several categories. This is not usual for Safeway/Albertsons markets. Usually it's Kroger with a solid price advantage.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by storewanderer »

pseudo3d wrote: November 10th, 2022, 9:29 pm I'll need to ask the right people but I remember seeing someone from the PNW compare prices, the prices for Safeway consistently beat QFC in several categories. This is not usual for Safeway/Albertsons markets. Usually it's Kroger with a solid price advantage.
QFC is like a boutique grocery store. It does not have the large size of a typical Kroger store. It does not have the mix. It has smaller shopping carts and far smaller transactions. Pricing is higher due to a lack of volume as the stores are constrained by the space. They have fewer private labels than a typical Kroger store. The customers who shop there are less price sensitive than those shopping in a typical Kroger store and buy more higher end/gourmet products all around the store.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by Super S »

QFC came along when I still lived in Vancouver.

QFC always had a higher price point. They were consistently the highest on center store items, and were not a place to do most shopping. They did have some features such as a very good deli, excellent meats, and a large wine selection. Produce was good. I did stop in from time to time for mainly deli and/or meat items.

They did add a second store in Vancouver. As time went along though, the lines blurred considerably between QFC and Fred Meyer.

The first QFC, the one I shopped at, closed several years back, and is now a Wilco farm store. The other, newer location is still open, and although I have not been there in several years, is one of the nicer QFC locations I have been to.

I think the QFC formula is something that can work in the right locations, especially where there is not enough room for a full size Fred Meyer, if they offer a better experience, but many people have figured out that Fred Meyer offers a similar product mix at better prices. That is part of why they have not really done all that well in the Portland area.

But in all honesty, I do think that we could see a few banners disappear in WA if this merger happens. QFC and Haggen are uncertain due to their relatively small geographic reach compared to Safeway, Fred Meyer, and even Albertsons.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by storewanderer »

If by some whim Kroger keeps control of the Safeway banner in WA, I don't think converting QFCs into Safeway would be a far reach. But I'd pause at converting Safeways (especially rural/medium market Safeways) into QFC. I think QFC has a reputation as a "rich person Seattle store" and will not play well in rural/medium markets. QFC has limped along even in Lacey for instance but the store there was finally remodeled sometime in the past four years.

QFC has basically limped along in Portland and I see little to no point of expanding the QFC name there unless they have no options. Like if they do not have rights to the Safeway name in OR and have to rebrand stores they keep to something... at that point a Fred Meyer banner on the medium size stores may be best. Not many 20k square foot Safeways out there which I'd call a fit for QFC.
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by marshd1000 »

If Kroger keeps the Safeway banner in WA and QFC too, could they thin out some location to Soinco and have a joint QFC/Safeway ad in Western Washington? Also will Kroger keep the Albertsons fried chicken recipe?
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by BillyGr »

marshd1000 wrote: November 11th, 2022, 8:12 am If Kroger keeps the Safeway banner in WA and QFC too, could they thin out some location to Soinco and have a joint QFC/Safeway ad in Western Washington? Also will Kroger keep the Albertsons fried chicken recipe?
Soinco? ;)
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Re: Are "we" too hard on QFC?

Post by marshd1000 »

BillyGr wrote: November 11th, 2022, 10:07 am
marshd1000 wrote: November 11th, 2022, 8:12 am If Kroger keeps the Safeway banner in WA and QFC too, could they thin out some location to Soinco and have a joint QFC/Safeway ad in Western Washington? Also will Kroger keep the Albertsons fried chicken recipe?
Soinco? ;)
Spinco! LOL I had a case of fat fingers!
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