US guys: Which are really big supermarkets?

[mrwash]

Hey there,

I was in Dallas during the weekend and I knew that near the hotel there was a Walmart which I couldn't wait to visit. I expected a really huuuuuge store with lots and lots of products. I was quite disappointed when I entered the store and saw that the grocerys section was not bigger then in an averege supermarket here in Germany. I actually can't remember if it was a Superstore or a regular one. But I would say it would have been a regular one. I have to say I am a big fan of huge supermarkets, so called hypermarkets.

So my questions is: Which supermarket chains have quite big stores or where are they located?

The deteregent and dishwasher products aisle was soooo disappointing. The shelves were quite empty and looked if no one would care for it. Many products seemed to be sold out but the shelves would not be refilled. Dishwasher products were just Cascade an finish and great value...nothing more. I thought American supermarkets would be so big and huge but actually in Germany several supermarkets are quite bigger.

Okay, can you help me out? Thanks in advance

 

[whirlcool]

A lot of stores here in the US only carry what is considered "mainstream" brands. As far as DW detergent goes, you only saw the mainstream brands. If you want, say Somat, you have to go to a Miele dealer for that. So for other brands you have to go to discount stores, or specialty shops. Didn't you see Ariel or Foca at Walmart? You may have been in a regular Walmart. Did you get to go inside of a HEB? They do carry a wide line of laundry detergents, but they tend to place the specialty stuff, like Vaska, BioKleen, etc in with the floor detergents rather than with the laundry detergents. They are very good on the pricing of the specialty stuff thought, if you can find it.

We used to have a store called Auchan Hypermarket (a french owned store) here in Houston that was like putting 10 Walmarts into 1. It was HUGE! They carried everything from clothing to import food items. They lasted about 10 years before they closed. In Texas, in particular, the competition for grocery stores is very intense. The stores tend to offer only what will sell fast.

It seems that the Hypermarket type of retailing just doesn't work in the United States.

 

[mrwash]

Thanks whirlcool for the answer. I just thought that I would see some dishwasher detergents like Palmolive as well. They even hadn't the whole Cascade range.

I konw Auchan, I have already been there when I was in France.

I have read that those hypermarkets tend to be located more in the north of the US due to possible severe winter conditions. In those states it would be easier to visit just one store where you can get everything instead of visiting 3 or 4.

 

[jamiel]

Tough to say, but in the Dallas area Walmart is probably running 3 different concepts, and it's tough to say what you saw. They have their supermarkets (Neighborhood Market), their standard stores (limited packaged food) and their supercenters (full supermarket). In Dallas, either HEB (should they exist) or Kroger would have larger stores...either of their prototypes is about half again as large as a Walmart Neighborhood Market.

You may be on to something about hypermarkets doing better in the North...the two operators which have had most success with the format in the US have been Meijer (based in Grand Rapids, MI; operating in MI/IL/IN/OH/KY) and Fred Meyer (from Seattle; division of Kroger, based in Seattle (?) and operating in the Pacific Northwest). Either of these stores does a far, far better job with food than Walmart...I have experience with Meijer...they started life as a supermarket and they are really great...as good or better as any other supermarket anywhere. Ask any of the guys from Michigan here...we like our Meijer. (At least around here, Meijer is the "no excuses" store...you don't have to apologize for shopping there)...everyone shops there.

 

[tomturbomatic]

severe winter conditions.

The joke here is that when a winter storm is on the way, people crowd stores for three things: bread, milk and toilet paper. Fresh bread for sandwiches if the power goes out and milk I can understand, but how unfortunate does someone have to be that they do not have a few days' reserve of toilet paper? I just know that I don't want to be out driving as the storm starts.

Harris Teeter and Wegman's are two chains in places on the east coast that have huge stores with many specialty food departments and food service areas. Publix in Florida is starting to experiment with huge stores that have similar offerings.

 

[firedome]

Not sure about size, but Wegman's, based here in NY and found only in the NorthEast and Mid-Atlantic, is rated the best Supermarket chain in the US, year after year, by Consumer Reports. The service, selection, and quality of their items, including their own brands, is second to none, and they treat their employees very well with decent benefits and pay, which, I'd wager, is one of the main reasons they are #1. The downside is that the one here in Binghamton, Johnson City actually, is so popular it is always always crowded!

 

[bwoods]

Hey Flo,

First comment is on the Wal-Mart's stocking. What I have noticed, even within one brand of store, that there can be a world of difference in stocking of items, customer service, displays, etc.

A lot depends on the particular manager of a store. In Ohio we have a large Wal-Mart store in a city called Xenia and the managaemaaent there is quite lackadasical on keeping items stocked and displays neat. Staff is quite variable on friendliness and helpfulness. Now in time, if enough customers complain, or Wal-Mart Inc. sends a representative, this manager could be fired, replaced or reprimanded and things may change.

In the city where I now reside, in Tennessee, items are rarely ever out of stock and, for the most part, the staff is very friendly.

In store like a super Wal-Mart of Super K-Mart, you have a comprimise in trying to be a retailer of both hardgoods and groceries. I agree with others that probably Meijer's does it best and comes closest to being a hyper store for hardgoods and groceries.

For grocieries, I think the super Kroger's (Kroger Marketbasket) is among the best for a great variety that you often don't find in other supermarkets. It's fun to shop there, but can be frustrating as it is so large, it's hard to find what you need.

The largest and most bizarre grocery, that I know of, in Jungle Jim's in Cincinnati, Ohio. Has about every exotic thing you wanted and the environment as it's name implies, is like being in a Jungle. To strange to explain here. But quite different and funm from what I hear. Havaen't been there yet but hope to.

 

[mattl]

jamiel, exactly!

 

I have no issues shopping at Meijer, about 95% of my everyday shopping is done there.  Prices are great, very well stocked, and the people that work there are not surly.  I've compared prices and it's extremely competitive.  I was just in one of their Mega stores in Grand Rapids and it huge, I've seen the same design in Clarkston but have not been there.

 

Quite honestly theee is no way on earth you would ever get me to set foot in a Walmart -ever.  I don't care if I was totally broke, if Meijer was not around I'd spend a few pennies more and shop anywhere else.  When the super-sized the Walmart by me a few years ago I went in to see what all the hoopla was about and found nothing special, in fact many of the items I compared were cheaper at Meijer and Kroger.  My dislike, make that hatred, for them stems from their business practices both on the local and national level, there should be a special place in hell for their corporate execs.  they have desproyed local communities, driven down wages, and helped ruin the national economy with their practices.

 

[westie2]

Here we have the Harp's Marketplace stores that are the Hypermart type.  The regular Harp's are above average supermakets.  All the Harps's here go head up against WalMart.  Our WalMart here (Store 4) is alwways stocked well as we are only 20 ,iles from corporate but our Harp's and Aldi and Sav-A-Lot keep grocery prices for them down.  When Lowe's cam in they revamped what our WalMart carried and for about a year also at WalMart had appliances GE and Frigidaire but phased that our.

 

The best ever Hypermart type was in New Orleans Schwegmann's  too bad they are no longer.  Tjhose stores were the best.  You could buy anything there and also bank (Bank of Schwegmann).  They opened in th50's as Schwegmann Brothers then name went to Schwegman's.  Teir downfall was the purchase of the Nationial/Canal Villera chaon and of little John (son of the owner) going into politics.

John G. Schwegmann - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[iheartmaytag]

The Dillion's / Kroger stores are about the biggest and most well stocked in our area.

Wall-Mart has recently opened Neighborhood markets that are smaller and only grocery oriented.  (Prices are higher too)

 

 

[petek]

Our Canadian local Super WalMart is very disappointing in the grocery department as well. I thought it might be just ours but I've been in the Port Huron Mich store as well and it's no better.. Lucky for me both are about equal driving distance in opposite directions.. about 2.5 miles.
Now like Jamie and Matt say, the best of the best is Meijer, way better selection. It's my favorite store as well. Unfortuantely they don't operate in Canada, yet anyways, but again for me it's only about 2.5 miles from my house.

The other thing that drives me crazy about our Walmart grocery section is that they changed the layout.. It used to be say 10 long normal grocery aisle and you'd zig zag your way from back to front or vice versa.. Now they've split the aisles halfway down with this big open area. So for example when you start going down an aisle looking at coffee the aisle ends and then you have to cross this big expanse with other shelves of stuff etc and carry on down the rest of the aisle where there may or may not be more coffee.. It just doesn't make sense really. I've overheard other people complaining about the concept as well.

 

[arbilab]

In DFW, HEB operates only their TOL 'Central Market' with no pretense whatsoever of being competitive on price. Might find some more exotic items. In their markets (Houston, Austin, San Antonio) they beat Walmart for market share.

As you saw, Walmart is sprawling but their food/grocery section disappoints. Not only are key products missing but it takes much longer to get in and out. Even the parking lot is a zoo. Franky, I don't find their prices that amazing. Some things are even more than in Kroger. And Kroger house brands are superior.

We also have Albertson's, a national chain that has been shrinking lately, and Tom Thumb, a division of Safeway. Both stores are overpriced. Oh, and Target, which ostensibly competes with Walmart.

 

[hunter]

NO on walmart meat

I will buy things occasionally in Walmart. Some things are not gettable elsewhere, or are SIGNIFICANTLY higher. (I buy flour by the 25 pound sack, and ONLY Walmart carries my brand, Hungarian High Altitude, for example).

Having said that I will never, ever, ever buy meat from Walmart. They pump it full of water+salt to make it heavier. At least this was my experience when I bought it once. So not again.

 

[whirlcool]

Years and years ago I was in a store in Holland, MI called Thrify Acres that was very large. Later on I heard that Thrifty Acres turned in to Meijer and that was their very first store!

I've seen Meijer in Chicago. I always call it MY-Jer. My sister said it is pronounced "Meyer". I thought they were OK, they tend to be very large stores.

We have one HEB Central Market here in Houston. I love going there. I can get a lot of specialty items there like Home Run Inn pizza from Chicago as well as Chateau Bread Dumplings (ooohh I love those!). But the one we have is in a very upscale section of Houston and we live way up on the north side, but I've heard that HEB is thinking of opening one up here in The Woodlands. I hope they do.

A few years ago we bought some ground beef at Walmart. It was loaded with bone chips and fragments. I didn't find out until I made a meat loaf with it. Never again.

Awhile back I complained that Walmart dumped a lot of the brands I used to buy there. And some of these brands were major ones too. But I read recently that this came back and bit Walmart in the a**. What it did was drive Walmart customers to their competitors for some of these brands. They are now scrambling to reinstate some of these brands back in their stores.

Albertson's & Safeway were driven out of Houston on a rail. These companies (especially Safeway) can't get away offering standard brand & house brand goods at convenience store pricing here in Houston. As far as groceries go, Texas is one of the most competitive places around. Safeway still has Randall's, but I don't know how much longer they can hold on. When Randall's was an independent grocery store they were the most popular in Houston. Now that Safeway has taken them over, they are all ghost towns. And I mean go in there at 2:00pm on a Saturday and you'll most likely be the only person in the store!

 

[nmassman44]

Wegmans

We have a new Wegmans that just opened this past weekend in Northborough Mass. We checked it out on Tuesday and I was very impressed. The place was a mob scene a by the time we left the place. I am loving the Wegmans store branded stuff. Its reasonable and not cheapened like Market Basket store branded stuff. They will make it here in Mass but they need to ramp up the sore openings. They are going to be building one closer to me in Burlington but that wont open til spring of 2013. But that place will be mobbed too I think once that opens up.

 

[sudsmaster]

Out here (California) Safeway is probably the biggest supermarket chain. The size of their stores does depend on the location - with those in the suburbs generally larger than those downtown in the cities. Out here, Safeway has a sort of bulk chain of stores, called Pak 'N Save. The one in my town is considerably bigger than the Safeway downtown, and it carries nearly all the same items as the Safeway store, except in more quantity and often for lower prices.

Other big supermarket names out here are Lucky's (formerly Albertsons). and Ranch 88, which is a chain of very large supermarkets geared towards the Asian population. There are a lot of Mexican/Hispanic market also, up here at least they tend to be on the smaller size. Perhaps in LA they are bigger.

Walmart is probably the last place I'd shop for food. I get a fair amount of staples (rice, coffee, etc.) at Costco.

 

[rapidry1000]

It's Ranch 99 not Ranch 88.

 

[mrwash]

Thanks

for all the answers. I think I will go for Fred Meyer then. That would be one store that I could reach in Seattle during the next trip. Meijers in Chicago is just too far from the hotel. I also tried to find a SuperKmart or SuperKrogers but without success so far.

The following picture shows a Fred Meyer store in Portland. That would be the type hypermarket that I am looking for.

 

[foraloysius]

Don't you love those big supermarkets? I bought a pair of Lee jeans at Fred Meyer's. Couldn't believe how cheap they were in comparison to jeans in Europe!