Colleen, you reminded me of a local truism: It doesn't matter how big or well planned the parking lot is at Trader Joe's, it will be a nightmare.

For awhile I shopped at a store I disliked. It had been a great store, but the surrounding area changed over the years and the store went downhill. I knew it was the only grocery store within walking distance for many nearby residents without cars. I hoped that my purchases would help a little to keep the store open and available for those who really needed it. Unfortunately, but not surprisingly, it closed. Now nearby residents without cars can only walk to Dollar Tree and Dollar General. There is no fresh produce or meat and not much selection of other items at them either. Hopefully, they are able to get to other places sometimes, or afford delivery now and then.

I have a half dozen or so stores that I shop at now that I love. Some have great prices, some have fun amenities, some have special products I like.

Nope!

There are no grocery stores that I hate, but all grocery stores bore me. I like to eat; I like to cook; I just finding the shopping boring. Trader Joe's, however, is always so crowded that I gave up ever trying to shop there.

I shop at three stores, two I could walk to and the other, two miles away. I get a few things like salmon and ground turkey at Aldi and sometimes other things like yesterday a lovely hanging basket for $7. The superstore is very large and I get produce there and pet food but my favorite place is Trader Joes and ours opened 56 weeks ago and I have been there 56 times. I like their yogurt and lemon curd and many snacks and frozen entrees. But my downfall is the plants. I always have fresh flowers in my kitchen now but also I've gotten many plants. Just yesterday I got a giant pot of basil and a lovely lavender plant. It's my downfall.

Thinking of stores I avoid, Walmart comes immediately to mind. I’ve only been to our local one a time or two, and found it dirty, crowded and chaotic- just ugh. I dislike big department stores like Macy’s in general because nothing is anything I want there, and I dislike the whole feel of a department store, although I do remember liking them when I was young. I can tolerate Target just fine but don’t buy food there…maybe coffee, paper products and cat food. For food, I shop primarily at a local store, Berkeley Bowl, that I love; I actually feel grateful to be able to shop there, lol. The prices are low and the produce is incredible-imagine, for example, 28 kinds of apples, 20 kinds of tomatoes, and 17 kinds of mushrooms (not exaggerating). It’s actually been written up in the NYT for the variety of the produce. I go to Trader Joe’s fairly often for some items only they carry- their prices are good. I shop occasionally at Whole Foods but I’m not a fan. Safeway if I must, but not for food. There are certain Safeways I avoid because they seem less clean, and the lines are longer.

I don’t use a car but there are several good supermarkets within walking distance. However, I seldom shop in them in person. Indeed, I’m not interested in any kind of shopping, even clothes. The boring stuff; cans, cleaning products, toiletries, dry goods, etc I have delivered every 8 weeks or so. Vegetables and fruit are delivered weekly by a local farm shop. Meat, cheese and fish are bought once a week at a farmers’ market. Wine is bought once every few months from a local wine merchant.

I've found shopping at different times helps. There are stores one can't avoid and I find them more palatable when no one else is there.

Not much in the way of options in this very rural area. The local supermarket--a 20 minute drive--is very small and has only the most basic items. Kroger and Walmart (which I almost never use) are an hour's drive and I make it once a month. The Kroger has seriously deteriorated in the quality of items they offer, eg dropping name brands in favor of Kroger brands which are uniformly inferior in quality or dropping items entirely, less variety in produce (they used to have really good organic choices), new employees who don't stay long and rapidly retiring older employees who have had it with how they're treated by management, etc.

But the only other option is a Kroger 2 hours away in Blacksburg, VA, a college town. Not really practical.

I live on an island......and not a very big one. Shopping options are limited unless I drive off island on the only drivable link to the mainland. Which I do from time to time to get to TJ's. Or Walmart or Home Depot. I don't particularly like Walmart but it is useful for household odds and ends and kitchen staples that tend to be lower priced than anywhere else nearby.

The island is served by two grocery stores, Safeway and a local, family owned high end chain, Town and Country Markets, and I divvy up my usual grocery shopping between them. Safeway has excellent sales and digital coupons and gets the bulk of my business, especially the discount meat bin, which sells meat that's hit it's best by date at a 30-50% discount. I either use it that day or freeze. I just avoid going midday, as it is only a block from the local high school and all the students flock to the store to buy their lunch. For several hours every weekday, it is chaos!!

T&C, the other local store, is excellent but expensive but it also has the best quality meats, seafood and produce and features a lot of locally produced goods as well. And a full range of both hot and cold deli items and already prepared meals that are made in-house. The local T&C was the initial store, started in 1957, and has now grown to 6 stores spread across several counties. There is a second, much larger store (70,000sf!!!) located close by off island that offers a much larger selection, especially of ethnic foods and other specialty items, that I will visit if I am already in the area.

Unless ordering online, any other shopping requires a 40 minute drive off the island to a town that is essentially just a retail shopping destination - I'm not sure anyone really lives there :-) But that is where Costco, TJ's, Sprouts, Marshalls, Home Goods, PetsMart and other popular retail outlets are located. I maybe make that trek every couple of months.

I have shopped in places I didn't like. Usually I don't repeat the experience if I don't have to. There's a few little local shops I haven't gone into after visiting twice. I don't shop at Walmart. A few eateries that were a nope after one try. I don't do much online shopping. A few local stores and farmers markets that went downhill enough that I stopped going.

I have a small town a few minutes away. Good local grocier, pharmacy, hardware store, gas. Within a few minutes a couple dollar stores and a great food outlet store. A couple good plant nurseries I should avoid, but somehow never manage to pass by if I'm out that way. Within a 15 or so minute drive in two directions big towns that I have enough other stores of big box and variety to fufill my needs most of the time. I usually don't feel a desire to travel out the hour or so to hit other bigger cities that have more shopping options.

Most of the time it isn't the destination so much as the people and timing. I tend to avoid shopping during weekends and other peak shopping times. I avoid going into the bigger towns "just because". I plan out hitting a cluster of stores, utilizing sales and such, and just getting the shopping day done. The farmers market in one of the big towns I hit a few times even though I know it will be awful packed because there are a couple vendors there I particularly like.

I HATE going to Winners and Marshalls (same thing, different name). BUT: I head straight to the shampoo section to see if they have what I need (they have salon products that are double/triple the size for half the drugstore price) or I'll go to the housewares section. I flat out refuse to search through the clothing and shoes. I find those stores the same as second hand stores. They have one pair of pants that you've looked all over town for, but in size 0. I'm not spending 3 hours going from rack to rack looking at every. single. item. of clothing to find that one item I need.

I've learned that going to Costco and avoiding the crowds is best on Wednesday morning. Don't tell anyone! But it's the easiest way to go in, find what you need, and get out quickly. My anxiety goes through the roof when it's busy.

And if I say, "I'm never shopping here again", the staff can say, "I'll see you later", but they won't. I flat out refuse to shop in any store that's treated me like poop. As a person who works retail, I've seen plenty of people who don't like our policies and expect the staff to risk their jobs to change them, then yell "I'm never shopping here again!" And we know they don't mean it, because a few days later they're back....... ;) I mean it.

Formerly nice department chains tried to save on staffing, and lost customers. Marshall Fields died when Target took it over and tried to stock it from Minneapolis. Now it's Macy's -- and is completely blah. High end Saks, Bonwit's, etc. died. A range of second tier department stores died, including Carson Pirie Scott in Chicago. The remaining department chains have become like all the big cities in the US -- one owntown's skyscrapers barely be distinguished from another's. At least this has given small boutiques an larger base.

Now Kroger is after Albertson's. Our local Kroger is Mariano's (mentioned by bpath). It was good...before Kroger. Our local Albertson's is Jewel/Osco, the largest chain in Chicago. Our local Jewel is very small, very old, but OK for basics. Much nicer is Heinen's, an Ohio chain that arrived here a few years back, taking spaces that were Dominick's. Heinen's has two lovely, large stores near me, with good selections, at higher prices. A long-established small local group, Sunset, has newer stores in other suburbs, but the local one is antiquated; good meat and pastries in this Italian family group.

I've been in two Walmarts, both times to find what I would have found in a Woolworth's decades ago. ACE is the closest for hardware. I could probably have found my two Walmart purchases there, come to think of it.

We shop Costco five/six times a year, having joined when we had the Maui condo and it was the only place to find even Choice beef (in 2001).

It looks as though the big "R" is coming, with companies laying off workers, expecting fewer people buying *things* now that they are Covid-free and able to spend on *experiences*.

I love the chain supermarket that I use for groceries, to the extent that I have told the kids to scatter some of my ashes there. But I like this specific one; the other locations are not as nice. I travel three towns over to get there. That being said, I do look at the weekly ads from other chains that I do not like, and if I am going to save a chunk of change by buying paper goods or coffee on sale, I will go in and buy those specific items. Anything for a bargain! My mother would approve!

I only hate Amazon, which not a store. Only shop there when totally necessary.

Other than I don’t hate any particular store. I could hate the parking. Trader Joe’s can be tricky so if I go, I go during off hours.

I go to Stop&Shop 3 towns over because the parking there is ample unlike the one that is closer.

Way back when I lived in San Diego, Ralph's was my go to - found the quality of fruits and vegetables good (and they always had a certain unusual variety of squash that I liked), they carried the only brand of decaf black tea that didn't taste fishy to me (ha, now I can't remember the brand), certain bakery cookies were my favs, and prices were decent on everything - especially sales. Plus they were only couple of blocks from my house. This was decades ago!

I always went to Trader Joes for certain things - that is where I bought my frozen fish, for one, some bakery items, some jarred items/condiments, nuts and dried fruit. For a long time that required a trip to a nearby suburb, or a stop on my way home from work (if I didn't have to pick up DD from the babysitter) but they finally opened one in my north county town. Here, TJs is across town, not insurmountable, but I don't go regularly for anything. They don't seem to have the price differential now that once made them extra amazing, and worth the trip.

IIRC, the competition in Encinitas included Food Basket, Lucky, Vons, Big Bear, maybe a Safeway (not close). I would stop into any of them if they had a special that I wanted. One of them was my go-to for birthday cakes, far better than Ralph's, but I can't remember which one now! I believe that Lucky and Food Basket and maybe Big Bear are no more.

In the small central Texas town where I love we have a grocery chain called Brookshire Brothers which is where I mostly shop since the only other choice is Walmart. Brookshire's has a meat market with an actual butcher, unlike Walmart. About 45 minutes away there are HEB, Costco and a Central Market for things I can't get in town.

" you reminded me of a local truism: It doesn't matter how big or well planned the parking lot is at Trader Joe's, it will be a nightmare. "

My experience is different. While the success and customer volume of TJ contribute to parking problems, I've found that its stores located in otherwise busy locations may exacerbate the problem but not by itself cause it. When possible, we go to TJ locations that are at less busy sites and parking at such places is usually not a problem.

floral, having spent time visiting friends on many occasions who live just outside a market town in the UK, the shopping patterns you're describing are very typical of shopping in such locations and quite different from how things are in the US.

I must be the only one who doesn't have a parking problem at Traders Joe's. Ours was built a year ago on land where a Borders once stood. Zero parking issues but now a Chic-fil -a opened next door but they are separated.(hopefully won't be a problem)

There are rarely issues with TJ's parking here except in the incity, downtown locations. Parking is never a issue at my local TJ's, however the Costco parking lot directly across the street is always a zoo and you have to walk miles to get to the store (or so it seems)!!

Why has no one mentioned the sudden drive to eliminate checkers, or is not happening in your area? Perhaps you like doing it all yourself, weighing the produce, bagging it all up….and coupons, which I always forget, so no biggie there. . CVS has eliminated anyone behind the counter, though there is usually one clerk standing around .. As for Checking out, no one beats T.Js, nor for their friendliness and getting help quickly. But there are too many/no national brands unavailable, and unlike Lars, I dislike having to shop around. Im beginning to dislike the management at my Ralphs, but It’s usually on “my route”.

Our shopping world has taken an ugly turn, and there’ll be no going back, Im afraid.

so, Lars, yes I do, but that may change soon.

Lars, which Ralph's in Westchester do you hate? The one on Sepulveda, the one on Lincoln, or both? I used to shop both when I lived in Playa. The smaller one on Lincoln was easier for parking at the time, but there has been a lot of development since then. I miss Gerald's, the Ace Hardware store that was near it.

The one on Sepulveda is the one closer to me.

There is another Ralphs on Lincoln in Marina Del Rey that I would sometimes go to when I first moved to Venice, but then they renovated and upgraded the Ralphs on Admiralty Way, and I shopped there instead, partly because I could avoid Lincoln Blvd, which I hate, especially in the summer when the beach traffic is horrendous. My house was on Abbot Kinney, close to the canals.

Gelson's in MDR was close when I lived in Venice - there were essentially no supermarkets in Venice itself when I lived there, but it has a Whole Foods now.

I've not been to the Ralphs on Lincoln in Westchester - just the one in MDR.

Martinca, I actually like bagging my own stuff. When I go to Trader Joe's, though, I have to ask them to keep the frozen/wet stuff separate from the dry stuff. If I forget then I'm in my trunk doing it myself before I drive home. I really hate having soggy boxes of dry food.

The only Trader Joe's nearby is about 25 miles away on a very busy road in that city. Hate the road so much. I've learned not to go there on the weekend or anytime near quitting time for most people, otherwise not only is the traffice a nightmare but so is TJ's parking lot.

I would never shop at a store I hated. Fortunately, that's not an issue here.

I regularly shop Trader Joe's (no parking issues) and Sprouts. Add to the mix Whole Foods, a couple independents, Albertson's, and occasionally WM & Target. Costco too, but that's mostly dh's run. I used to shop Fresh Market fairly regularly. I like their produce department.

Forgot the Asian market, but that's only once every couple months.

If I did not care about money, I would never shop at a store that I did not like, but I do try to be a bit thrifty at times. I don't really skimp when food shopping, but groceries seem to be a large part of my budget.

I tend not to look at prices of individual items, but I do notice the total bill.

No!

Lars, I'm the same. If you asked me how much something cost, I could not tell you. Stop&Shop has the wand. I scan and bag as I shop. I can keep track of the total.

When I think about it, I check my points for my gas rewards. If it's a few dollars from rounding pup, I will buy an extra item.

I want to keep checkers and baggers employed. I also appreciate that Jewel (Albertson's) is a union shop.

FWIW, I bring my own bags when I shop, and I have an insulated cold bag, so the cashiers at TJ's know what goes where.

Here you either bring your own cloth bags or everything goes into the trolley unbagged, as plastic bags are banned and paper bags are not popular. I don't mind doing a self check out but I prefer to deal with a staffed check out, mostly to keep the cashiers in employment. When I place my groceries on the conveyor belt, I place a bag and then the groceries I want to go into that bag, then another bag and the groceries, and so on. This way they gt packed as I want them to be, with cold items in the insulated refrigerator bags and no bag too heavy for me to lift.

If we buy wine at the grocery store, we cannot use the self-checkout because someone has to see us to make sure we are over 21. If someone looks like they might be under 30, then the checker has to ask for ID. I got carded until I was over 40, which was somewhat of a nuisance. My brother did not.

I hate noisy environments so I don't like going to most stores. Some are worse than others. Target used to be quiet. Now they play a loud loop of annoying music. Plus, they made their aisles a labyrinth forcing you to traverse the whole store for a few items. Some stores feel the need to make public service type announcements every few minutes. The way stores are designed today with the shiny hard floors, open metal ceilings and the awful lighting adds to the discomfort. So the best I can do is go as late as possible and get out as fast as possible. I really do avoid Target the most. Walmart is actually laid out better and quieter as long as I go late. I shop where I can find the things I am looking for the fastest.

Most times I prefer self checkout. It's faster and more efficient.

Wildchild, I hate the loud music and inane conversations in certain stores, so I wear earbuds and listen to my own music or a podcast. I’m with you on the harsh lighting, too.

We have never had paper grocery bags or baggers here, unless some school or youth group is doing bagging for charity. Plastic bags are not banned but we do have to pay for them. So they are not popular. We take our own bags. There is always a member of staff on duty by the self check outs so age verification is not a problem.

I had a bad experience at one TJ Maxx store. DD was home so we went to check out a few stores, by the time we walked in TJ Maxx, it was about 30 mins before closing. Our shopping cart kept missing in that store, The distance between clothing aisles is so tight, so I parked it at the end of the dress aisle, after I looked through all the dresses, the cart was gone. I found it not too far away at a different spot. Then I went to look for tops, put it at the end of aisle, when I turned around the cart was gone again. The cart had several items in it, and we only saw 1 other customer and a few workers nearby. DD didn't touch the cart, It had to be one of the workers was having fun hiding my cart. I lost my cart 3 times in that store. I stopped going there after that.

Summer, TJ’s doesn't have clothing. Do you mean Target?

I don't spend my $$ at a store I don't like, unless absolutely necessary. I'm a bit rural, and the nearest grocery has gone 100% self checkout. I don't shop there anymore, as there's rarely an employee even available for assisting when something going wonky. Very poor customer service. At the height of the pandemic, they didn't provide sanitizers or wipes for the carts, which is when my attendance started dropping. Always had to remember to bring my own sanitizing wipes.

Only if I absolutely, absolutely, absolutely have to. Unfortunately, the grocery store that I hate is the one that is located the closest to home by miles. I routinely drive the 5-7 miles to avoid it.

This is a store that cards everyone for adult beverage sales. You could be 95 years old, look like you are 110 and they would still insist on seeing your ID.

eld6161, TJ=TJ Maxx. :-)

Ci_lantro, when I lived near a military base, the whole town did that. It was policy. Can't get into a club, buy a drink, buy a bottle of wine, anywhere, without ID no matter how old one looks. Even just now, when I had a bottle of Manischewitz delivered with groceries for cooking, I had to show ID. These policies keep workers from cheating the law. Gives them an out, when their friends cajole, like, ”My folks won't let me” go to XYZ. When I was in high school, I wasn't a partier, but even I knew which places would serve minors without checking IDs. Stores do it for CYA, and I don't blame them.

With so many chain stores providing curbside pickup, I don't get why people who hate shopping those stores don't avail themselves. You don't even have to get out of your car 😃

Plllog, I know why they card everyone. But it is just one more irritation and one more reason why I hate that store/ small chain. First, I have to dig out a store card to get the advertised discounts and then I have to dig out an ID if I want to buy booze. Two reasons among others that I almost never shop there. If I want spirits, then I hop to the neighborhood liquor store where I am not asked for ID or, if it is wine for cooking, then I get that at Aldi where they don't ask for my ID either.

They recently remodeled the Target where I live and it's just terrible. Like Wildchild said in her post, it's like a labyrinth to try and navigate through to find things. Kind of like trying to find something at Macy's. My husband and I went after they remodeled and we both vowed to never go back....but I'm sure we will have to from time to time for something they have but the other stores do not. I absolutely hated being in there! A huge thumbs down to Target's new and improved (HAHA!) stores!

Target lost me when they remodeled a few years back. I didn't like it. Their clothing styles are awful. They used to to be fashionable at a good price.

OH yeah, the Target's clothing, looks like the Costume rack at the Salvation Army thrift shop! Pathetic!

I have to on a daily basis. I live in a small town in rural MI. My shopping choices are quite limited, mostly mart mart discount chains. Almost all are horrid. Any nice retail we had shut down years ago. So sad and unpleasant. In my youth, we had many small retail businesses, and since we all went to school or church together and our folks were in Jaycees or other service clubs or youth clubs together, I knew many of the proprietors and sales people. Shopping was fun. I could not wait for allowance day to walk downtown, stop at the root beer stand, and see what my weekly paycheck would buy . . . not anymore. I would be hard pressed to come up with a store that isn't horrid. Even my local Goodwill, which has great stuff, is a pain because you have to sift through all the stuff and there's that thrift store smell . . . We have a nice antique store in town but I am maxed out on tchotchkes. Some nice farm markets regionally, but not anywhere near me. This is one reason retirees often leave my town for better places to live. Add to that no nice places to go out to eat and a paucity of good medical services. We take monthly shopping trips to the bigger cities and will move to one once my Dad is gone. Grocery shopping is like going into battle, and the selection and quality has gone downhill. And now, long lines and clog ups at the auto checkout. This trend I think will get worse but ultimately not last. Fewer and fewer employees, then automation is the first step in something disappearing all together. Not sure what will take its place. An interesting ponder . . . I think there is a space for savvy entrepreneurs but rents are through the roof which is one reason retail is dying. An odd combination, decaying retail spaces with through the roof rents . . .

I grew up with a wonderful smaller grocery stores, in strips along with pharmacies, hardware, fabric and other stores so the grocery was mostly actual grocery items, and then there were wonderful actual farm markets and orchards . . . At this point Mr. Robinson would advise Benjamin Braddock that the future was "warehouses."

Edited to add that our local Shopper's Guide advertisement paper flyer just closed. First, it automated and moved all its business offices to virtual, away from our actual town. It also had cumbersome and unreliable means of placing ads, but to add insult to injury, higher rates, way higher and longer lead times. So pretty soon the whole thing went "Pft." It was a great resource in its heyday, which was 2000's. Digital marketplaces are not reliable, not everyone is online or even wants to be. The flyer came in the mail every week, my brother was a delivery boy. With production costs going down, not sure why these actual paper flyers are not able to stay profitable, since paper ads are still a proven effective marketing tool. And then don't get started on the assaults on the mail service. To me, these are big declines in some great institutions. What's replacing it is a mixed bag of a lot of marginal stuff, way less value, IMHO. I studied digital marketing, it is no better than paper as far as time invested vs results . . .

I just about loathe to go in any retail establishment anymore. I hate the overhead insipid music. That includes the grocery store . I go in and find what I want and get out without lingering.

I am so sad taht Target used to be a refuge for a quiet experience and they changed all of that in the last few years. I no longer like shopping at Target and I find that their selection of goods has changed from most of anythng that I find a need to buy. I abhor the overhead noise at Target now and get in and out as fast as possible. It was the one place that I liked to shop, but no more.

Grocery stores are so packaged up anymore that you smell nothing good in there at all. There is no food experience going on and with the awful soundtrack blaring, I am only too happy to hit the usual things and get out of there.

Then some of the stores are so darned cold in the summer with all the air conditioning that my fingers are numb by the time I get out.

There is not much shopping left where I live and what is left is not pleasant or inviting for me.

The shopping mall closed and we have no shoe stores or furniture stores or appliance stores or kitchen stores, and I live in an affluent suburb of DC! Of course, we have all the big box stores that populate the landscape all over America, but they carrry a lot of useless crap and trendy junk. If you are looking for something with some quality you are not likely to find it in the usual suspects.

I remember when there used to be hobby stores, and fabric stores. And then there was Radio Shack which was really helpful for it's time.

Now, if I want something I just go right to Amazon because that is about the only place that I am going to find anything. The more we shop online the more stores close. The more stores close and we are left with Amazon.

What is worse, the awful ambience at the big box store that probably does not have what you are looking for, or having to shop online without having the ability to actually see or feel the item?

The result is that I buy very little of anything anymore. And, that is actually something that I can live with. Most people have way too much junk anyway. It has really added to my resolve to NOT buy more of just about anything. But, sometimes you do have a need for something.