Supermarket Shopping: Ralphs And Vons Essay Examples

Supermarkets are important parts of our lives. Now that less and less people live in the country side and grow their own food, and more and more people live in cities and need food to be shipped to them, people could hardly survive without supermarkets. A cross section from all generations visits the supermarket at least once or twice a week. Some people even visit the super market once a day – sometimes because it is their social entertainment. Every super market has its own method of organization and arrangement. In order to make some observations about the uniqueness of supermarket organization, I decided to visit Vons – a well-known supermarket – a week ago. A little later I visited another popular supermarket: Ralphs. As I entered the two supermarkets I found certain things in each store that were similar. For example, there were carts outside next to the entrance doors of both stores, and the moment I stepped inside the doors of both stores I felt like I was inside a refrigerator. However, there were three major differences that I noticed upon walking through each store: the items that made up the displays that greet customers just inside the door, the type of people that were shopping in each store, and they way in which the isles were organized. The differences in just these three areas are proof that stores target specific markets. First impressions are always important and can be hard to forget. When I first entered Ralphs, I was greeted by a rather pleasant display of plants arranged on carts. However, when I walked through the door at Vons I was struck by how cheerful the artfully arranged profusion of flowers made the atmosphere. My eyes also were drawn to a stack of dark blue Pepsi boxes. A fundamental principle of marketing struck me then: marketers know that when people see a product everywhere they go they are likely to be subconsciously influenced into buying the product. I also realized that when many people go to a supermarket they either forget their shopping list or do some inspirational shopping, leading them to buy things that catch their eyes. Therefore, mixing a product into an attractive display that greets shoppers when they enter a store is an excellent marketing strategy. Vons was especially adept at employing this marketing strategy. People from all different generations need to go to the supermarket. However, every generation usually prefers a specific super market. At Ralphs, I found out that their customers come from all generations. Also, all the customers knew exactly what to buy. In Vons, though, I noticed that most of the customers were elderly. The organization of the store appealed to the elderly customers – it made it easy for them to find what they were looking for. For example, all of the health food is organized in one separate area, as are other categories of food such as the bread in the bakery onto the right of the store, and a little shop inside selling sandwiches and salads. I think these are some of the attributes that attract older customers. However, not all the customers are elderly: some of the customers are young college students from California State University, Northridge. Besides the brands of food sold in a store, the way that a super market organizes its products into isles is the most important thing that distinguishes one supermarket from the other. Vons had only thirteen isles while Ralphs that had fifteen. At Vons, I found that health food is located both in the far left and the far right of the store. I personally prefer that they keep the items all in the same area, but maybe they don’t want to remind people that other products are less healthy. I started from the left; I noticed that fresh meat, fresh seafood, and also the frozen burgers are next to vegetables and fruits. I walked all the way from the back of the super market, and I found on my left milk, more frozen food, and juices. Reaching the end of my tour I found next to the bread some fresh cheese. Starting from isle thirteen the items were full of school supplies, magazines, books, and gift cards. Between the isles thirteen and twelve there are bottles of water. Isle twelve is full cleaning stuff and some plates created for children. The next isle was for animal supplies and their needs. Isle ten was the pharmacy section, full of beauty products, medicines, toothpastes, and shampoo. Isle nine was my personal favorite isle, with its array of delicious chips and cookies. The next isle was full of juices and frozen foods such as macaroni, French fries, and burgers. Continuing on to the next isle, I also found frozen food everywhere with some ice cream. The next isle, which seems to appeal to a lot of people given the number of adults browsing in it, was full of alcoholic drinks. Isle five is full of Pepsi, Dr Pepper, Sprite, and other kinds of soft drinks. The next isle was for cooking oils and also sold salt and pepper. Isle three, two, and one are the best for people who love to cook: I found all the cooking supplies over there. The cash register is just between the entrance and exit, making is easy to find. On the other hand, Ralphs had a different organization. I found water in the middle with some chips. Starting from the isle fifteen, I saw vegetables on the left and sauces on the right. All the way back I discovered a lot of fresh food. Isle fourteen was full of tissues, magazines, glasses, and some shampoo. The next isle was full of cleaning powders mostly as well as some light bulbs. Isle twelve was for animal food as well as other pet supplies and some school supplies. Isle eleven and isle ten contained similar items: shampoos, pampers, and creams. Then isle nine and eight were full of Pepsi, Redbull, Monster, and alcoholic drinks. Isle seven was frozen food and ice cream. The next isle was full of frozen food as well, plus chocolates, hard candies, and bottled water. Isle five contained cookies, sliced bread, Cheez-Its, peanut butter, and strawberry jam. The next isle, isle four, was designated for kitchen supplies as well as salt and pepper. Isle three was the pharmacy isle, full of medicines. Isle two was for different kinds of sauces and some low priced frozen macaroni. The last isle I walked down, isle one, contained baked goods, some drinks, and all kind of cheeses. While all supermarkets have certain similarities, there are three particular differences between Vons and Ralphs. The items that made up the displays which greet customers just inside the door were different, the type of people that were shopping in each store varied, and they way in which the isles were organized was different. These are really important things in any supermarket, and I think Vons and Ralphs did a good job creating their supermarkets. I noticed that some products were put next to others in order to market them. I would make one recomnedation for these two stores: they should bring more Arabian, and Middle Eastern products to their customers, for California State University, Northridge has a lot of Arabian and Middle Eastern students. As I have mentioned before, Vons and Ralphs are both next to the California State University, Northridge. I think that they will continue to bring more customers into their stores in the future if they continue their good work.