Shopping for new shopping?

Not just any shopping, everyone's favorite weekly (sometimes bi-weekly) chore, grocery shopping!

Are you one of those consumers who selects your grocer based on convenience; or perhaps brand; or even price? Well, for me personally, it has always been about the BRAND! So, with my recent enlightenment that the brand I have so adored all these years isnt the best afterall, I decided to dedicate a blog entry to grocery store hunting.

Marge's Grocer History:

I have always been a Safeway goer. When I was little my mom knew the neighborhood Safeway's manager by first name, and I even shopped at their counterpart when I lived in San Diego, VONS! They have great bargains and I know that place like the back of my hand so my trips are short and efficient!

Until about 3 weeks ago... when I was informed by Dateline NBC that Safeway has THE lowest safety rating - the biggest violation being food temperatures. I dont want ecoli, do you?

Grocery RFP

Those of you in the brand business should know what "RFP" means, but if you dont, it is an advertising term we use when we are shopping for new agencies - Request for Proposal.

The stores participating in my RFP process do not know they are up for my business. I have started to visit different chains including QFC (Kroger), Top Foods and Trader Joes. I have automatically eliminated Albertson's from my prospects because I have never met an Albertson I liked (not even the neighborhood local from SD).

I selected the test chains based on their convenience to my home, which is in Kirkland. Here are some notes from my first round:

Safeway on 85th (my former 'go-to')

- Love their deli meats but based on Dateline, I fear the worst! I also read that fresh deli meats only last a few days vs. the packaged kind with all the yummy perservatives... ick

- Poor quality of seafood

- Meet is okay but not the best

- Great chicken sales

- All Safeways are laid out the exact same so no matter where you are, you can always find what your lookin for in its right place

- I always see people here which can be fun but also annoying... I shop in my grubbs

- Mostly good deals but they dont always have my staple items which is annoying i.e. out of the milk I like or no frsh bread bread

- Major plus- Safeway Sandys! I love love love their sandwiches

- Just up the street

QFC - Bellevue Square Location

- Poor packing i.e. who packs lettuce on the bottom of the bag?
- Major savings
- Lots of variety like organic fruits and veggies, fancy olive bar, all kinds of deli meats, great ethnic food selection

- Spice bins!

- Great flower selection

- 10 minutes away

QFC - Downtown Kirkland

- Terrible parking and accessibility

- Poor variety

- Not enough check outs

- Too Small

- RIGHT down the street.. but totally not worth it!

Top Foods - Woodinville
- One word: Overwhelming!

- Great selection of pretty much anything and everything

- Organic products available

- Candy bins!

- Spice bins!

- Nuts and dried fruit bins!

- All kinds of other things you woudl find at a Wal-Mart perhaps

- TOO big and hard to find things

- Poor parking

- Great baskets - they have small, medium and large!

Trader Joes - Totem Lake

- Great for specialty products like cheeses and sauces

- Poor produce

- Awesome wine and beer selection and very reasonably priced

- Great baked goods

- Good selection of packaged fresh veggies

- Not a good dairy selection nor meats and poultry/fish

Whole Foods - Bellevue

- Too expensive

- Great Sushi, even comes with brown rice

- Great for hard to find items like baking pumpkins

- Lots of healthy but expensive items!

- Too expensive!

Thus far you might think I am still lovin' Safeway by all the positives. Its just because thats all I have known... I really think I am leaning towards the Bellevue Square QFC at this point, but I am going to make another trip this weekend and take some additional notes.

Hope my grocer journal might help yall re-evaluate your food shopping. Stay tuned for updates!