OBSERVATION LAB –GROCERY STORES

By

Zachary Esparza

MY SIX STORES

• I wanted to compare and contrast various stores that either were grocery stores or had a grocery component in it.

• My six stores are Trader Joe’s, Albertson’s, Target, Sprouts, Sam’s Club and Walmart.

TRADER JOE’S

• Trader Joe’s has a very colorful, vibrant vibe

• The signs are filled with large font and numerous colors

• They were highly noticeable and really bring the customer’s attention to them, but it also gives off a fun aspect

TRADER JOE’S (CONT’D)

• Right upon the entrance there were multiple

flowers of different colors

• Also when you enter there are more flowers

on the left and colorful fruits on the right

• This represents a lane and leads the shopper

right to the outside of the store

TRADER JOE’S (CONT’D)

• Trader Joe’s also even put in its effort to customize some of its art to the city where it was located

• Also the laid back wear of the cashiers as well as tables outside bring about a very laid back atmosphere

• It’s almost as if we were at the beach judging from the Hawaiian shirts

ALBERTSON’S

• When you walk in front you see again flowers and balloons and a deli to the left

• Both showing colorful types of foods though not nearly a large enough caliber

• This again is to brighten up the store for the customer’s right as they walk in

ALBERTSON’S (CONT’D)

• Something I never would have noticed but saw everywhere for this assignment was all the advertisements for the monopoly game

• Even on the speaker system that played the softest music suddenly was loud when they were talking about the monopoly promotion

• There must be a lot of incentive to shop at this store for the monopoly if they have all this advertisements

ALBERTSON’S (CONT’D)

• Also walking through the packed aisles I noticed these branches of products sticking out

• Upon further inspection I noticed that these branches had something to do with the products they were surrounded by

• For example there were bags of candy and the branch had clippers that would be able to seal the bags of candies

• In the other picture there was kids toys right next to crackers that parents would likely purchase for their children

TARGET

• Before walking into Target I noticed they really try to put an impression even before you enter the store

• They have these red balls that signify going into target

• And they put a target on the floor that sparkles

• I think it’s similar to the flowers upon the entrance

TARGET(CONT’D)

• Of the boxed sized retailers Target aims for a simplicity to it

• It has short little quotes around it and has by far the best lighting of all the stores

• It’s walkways are very long and there a little to no advertisements in the middle giving it a very clean feel

• Target has to be aiming for this open look which to me brings about a sophisticated feel

TARGET(CONT’D)

• The entire food section is on the left away from the once entrance which is on the right

• Because it’s far away Target doesn’t seem to make their grocery a prominent stock

• Also it was strange that the holiday candy was in the far left away from everything

• This must mean that in order to get it customers have to walk through everything to see it

SPROUTS

• Sprouts a health food type store almost synonymous with a Whole Foods Store has its vegetables and fruits way in the back

• The produce that is most bought is in the back so that customers have to walk through the entire store

• Also the produce on the wall was watered almost every five minutes to give it that watery look that looks very fresh

SPROUTS (CONT’D)

• Sprouts also has a lot of food where you scoop into containers thus not using any containers

• It has candy, coffee, nuts, and even spices that you get into your own containers

• This really brings about a local authenticity to it as opposed to some manufactured product regardless if it is

SAM’S CLUB

• Sam’s club like Costco is unique in that it serves function more than aesthetic

• Unlike the rest of the stores that stock all of their produce in the back, Sam’s club is a warehouse with its stock above all the shelves

• They also have the same warehouse lighting that’s effective but not as pleasing as target

SAM’S CLUB (CONT’D)

• Sam’s club has a very specific walkway they want you to follow as well

• Most stores want you to do the same thing but Sam’s club provides incentives along the square route by using samples as a way to get people to ”follow the trail”

• Also right after you finish paying they have a food court set up with large signs and the aroma of fresh pizza at low prices

WALMART

• Walmart was very similar to Target but it did have some differences

• One of these differences was that Walmart had many signs spewing the lowest prices everywhere I looked

• Walmart exclusively focuses on its prices

• Also they have a lot of the store full of product including those long aisles which gives it more of a cramped feeling

WALMART (CONT’D)

• Right upon walking in McDonald’s was right in on the left

• Also unlike Target, Walmart had its food right in front of the entrance right along as you walk in

• They have their produce in the front and as you walk back the refrigerated sections and like all of the other stores dairy in the back

• Walmart makes their food much more accessible and therefore a more populated area than Target

SIMILARITIES

• One thing I noticed of all the stores except for Sprouts is that all of the stores have alcohol in the back right corners

• This is probably because it’s illegal to any children but also may be the norm for people to find it

• Also while Sam’s club used incentives along its walkway all stores have a desired walkway for the customer to view most of the store. If a customer doesn’t seem something there is no way he or she will buy it