November 19, 2010 – Daily Brief

It is pretty astounding that the store was able to open just two and one half months after signing the lease. It appears the City permitting people were wise and signed off on most things since it was already purpose built as a grocery.

Thank you for sticking up for proper apstrophe use, ND. Lynne Truss would be proud.

I think some of the mainline grocers will shut their doors before Valley or Sprouts. If these were the only two horses in the race, I’d bet on Valley. Sprouts doesn’t hit the right notes, lacks product breadth and depth. $10 says Albertsons near Tesoro goes first. The new grocery area at Walmart off Copper Hill is PACKED, day or night, and that Albertsons is almost always empty. Also note Walmart’s grocery raised the bar a notch or two from their previous “Great Value” standard (more Tier 1/2 brands), and their prices are crazy low. Now with Valley down the street, Albertsons is horribly redundant.

in a situation like this you either need to concentrate more on customer service or adapt to consumer demands. For example, bbq sauce, Walmart generally has 2 types and that is it, so a grocery store might want to stalk different types etc… Also, even after the cross valley connector opened Sam’s Club is pretty empty and Costco installed the gas station to keep its members…

Have you been to the Walmart off Copper Hill? I haven’t checked BBQ sauce but they have more non-alternative staples for our household than I’ve ever seen at a Walmart. It’s night and day, Mike.

You can buy BBQ sauce in a store? Like in a bottle? How does it taste?

Mike, Down right tasty! I love me the kraft bbq sauce

Sweet Baby Ray’s!!

Oh yeah

Down Low, Too Slow is strictly from scratch.

Salt Lick, from Texas.

I would shop in the grocery section at the Walmart if they could just get rid of the sewer or overflowing Andy Gump smell coming from the produce section that hits you when you enter the doors. And, you increase the number of customers coming in, but have less registers open. AND, YOU GOT RID OF SELF CHECKOUT!!!!!

just citing an example, of how some companies are adapting to walmart. Now you have walmart, costco, target and so forth. I know that after Target moved to Golden Valley that Stater Bros.,dropped prices on certain items and have kicked-up their customer service

We must not shop the same cashiers at SB. Love the meat/produce/convenience. Don’t love that the cashier and bag person chit chat and ignore that I am standing there until it is time for me to pay. Also don’t love that the lines are always ridiculous and the cashiers seem to do nothing to resolve this. Last night a women in front of me was doing some promotion that required the purchase of 10 Kraft items. The machine wasn’t taking off the $$$, it claims she only bought 9. They end up unbagging the whole cart looking for the missing Kraft item instead of just over riding the whole thing and moving the line along.

Agreed (although I disagree with the meat counter love… I think its pretty weak). I live within walking distance of Stater Brothers in Vista Del Canon, and I avoid it like the plague. Sure I’ll run in there for a quick one or two things, but if its a full shopping trip, its down to Ralph’s on White’s and Soledad. No matter what time of day, they never have enough cashiers open, and you’re exactly right…. all they do is chit-chat among each other, and rarely engage the customer.

Walker, I’ve never had a problem with the cashiers and always strike up a conversation. Also, today she swiped a coupon for me (without me asking) that she had, and saved me a couple of bucks.

Seriously, ND. Walmart sucks. The produce selection is horrible. And Albertson’s is not almost always empty.

Wait… honey? Is that you? ps produce at WMT does suck. but ALB is truly near empty most times we go.

I would rank the closure probability this way: 1. Albertsons on Copper Hill 2. Pavillions on McBean 3. Sprouts 4. Ralphs on Decoro

Now, that’s funny!!

I’m a big fan of Abundant Harvest and used them for a long time, but aren’t they middlemen as well? Farmers’ Market, FTW!

The owner, Vernon Peterson, grows all the stone fruit, plus some of the other stuff. It is true that the rest of the produce comes from other farmers, but they are all friends of Vernon’s, deals are made on a handshake and, in the end, all the farmers not only make more money than if their produce were sold through a supermarket or farmer’s market, but the farmers are also guaranteed a return on crops, even before planting, which never happens in the real world, unless you are growing subsidy crops. My family has visited Vernon’s farm twice, we’ve had Vernon over to our place for lunch, I’ve met and talked with some of the other farmers (like the folk who grow all the herbs), I’ve met and talked with the workers, seen the whole process from harvesting to packing boxes, and I can tell you, AHO is the real deal. There is nothing slick or fancy about their operation, and it is as down home and community as it could come. If you want good produce, AHO is the way to go. If you want good prices, AHO is the way to go. If you want to support local farmers, small farmers, family businesses, AHO is the way to go.

With the stories coming out about the “certified farmers market” people looking the other way when a FM turns out to be faking it, I don’t trust them any more. It’s Francisco’s (just over the County line on 126), Underwood (Moorpark and Somis), or nothing!

Underwood carries tons of supermarket bound produce. It’s a neat place for the kids, but neither it nor the stands on the 126 can hold a candle to what you get at the COC Farmers’ Market or through AHO.

Indeed. The informed voters of California are apparently very happy with the way Dems have lead the state over the past several years. Swell job guys. The folks truly deserve the Government they elect.

Yeah, we hear how bad the business climate has been… except we heard it from the same NutMeg that also brags about forming ebay in that same environment… under Gov. Moonbeam himself! It’s all BS. The Times did a great job dispelling this myth and had the numbers to prove it. But as for the local legislators not minding the bottom line… it’s time to clean house.

Would like to read that article if you have the link. BTW, don’t think Moonbean was at the helm when ebay set up shop (late 90′s??)

Here is the link to that article: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/10/californias-business-tax-burden-no-heavier-than-average.html

Hey Little Natie, my wife and I would be long gone from Calyphonia, but we have children and grandchildren here so we’re not leaving. Plus, I’m fairly confident that my retirement portfolio will withstand an expected considerable measure of liberal lunacy here on the left coast. As for you dopey 30ish youngsters who are barely getting by on your crap jobs and not advancing your “lot” in life, good luck.

I am in San Diego this weekend for the Broncos- Chargers game and can’t believe people still live in this state. 3.19 for a gallon of gas? Really? No wonder businesses are leaving every day. Please keep it up! The rest of the nation needs it. How about we pay our leaders by performance? Bad economy means leaders make a soldiers wage (22,000) good economy means federal workers wage (58,000)

Examples of escessive gov’t pensions: It’s one thing to see the statistic that over 3,000 nameless retired teachers receive $100k + per year pensions, it is another to see the actual list of peoples’ names for LAUSD. http://www.californiapensionreform.com/database.asp?vtsearchname=inai&vtsearchemploy=los+angeles+unified&vtquery=1&vttable=calstrs 9,111 CA government employee retirees get $100k+ pensions, here’s the list: http://www.californiapensionreform.com/database.asp?vttable=calpers

Haha always the pensions and I am sure tax cuts still pay for themselves… But then John Adams proclaims that the stimulus didn’t work? What? But 40% of it was tax cuts for the middle class… Wait? And Bill and his Teabagger boyfriends claim they are being taxed to much right after they received the largest middle class tax cut in history. Next two years will be fun… Waiting for this new reformed congress to raise the debt ceiling in the first month.

Not saying you did with any ill intent but why did you equate doing a bad job to a Soldiers wage? If anything, these high level politicians should forego any salary or special interest money. And I make a little bit more then $22K, just a little though lol.

And Bill, did you read this? http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/11/deficit-commission-co-chairs-simpson-and-bowles-release-eye-popping-recommendations.php They also recommended freezing military pay raises for 3 years. While only a recommendation, any politician involved such advice needs to be voted out of office at the soonest election.

I guess us 30 somethings can just sue our government contracted employers.

Howard and Phils Military Surplus is looking at entering into a long term lease. They will be selling the latest version of the F-22 Raptor as well as M1-A1 tanks.

Hoooaaawwwhhhh!