Have you ever returned from an exotic vacation craving that one food that you were snacking on day and night while away? And then, by chance, you actually find it in a supermarket here in the US and it costs roughly 100 times what you paid for it on vacation?
Joe Coulombe, owner of several Proto Market convenience stores in the Los Angeles area, recognized the frustration of Americans looking to satisfy their exotic taste buds. He decided to convert his c-stores to a series of specialty grocers inspired by his own name. Coulombe opened the first Trader Joe's in 1967 in Pasadena, California. Offering the staples in addition to more foreign fare at great value, the chain has since expanded to over 300 locations across the United States and, according to Consumer Reports, has earned a reputation as being one of the overall best supermarkets in the US.
The store gained popularity by offering an impressive collection of gourmet and organic foods for bargain prices (and their $3 wine is popular among starving college students and artists alike). Trader Joe's has maintained a low price scale by forgoing in-store decor and ornate packaging, and skipping the "middle man," instead selling almost all products under a Trader Joe's label (like Trader Giotto's for Italian, for example, or Trader Joe-San for Japanese). "Any penny we save," the company's website reads, "is a penny you save."
The store guarantees that any product stamped with Trader Joe's logo is free of preservatives, artificial flavors, MSG and trans fats. Trader Joe's also cuts down on PA system costs by using a more quaint "bell system," for which any number of consecutive rings translates to a particular need at one of the registers.
The company prides itself in being "a real neighborhood store," too, hoping to gain the respect of those potential customers who have sworn-off chains. Trader Joe's donates to community organizations as much as possible, even having a Donations Coordinator on site at every store. "We think getting to know and contributing to the organizations that are important to our communities makes us better neighbors," the Trader Joe's website reads.
In 2008, Trader Joe's paired a serious love of West Coast baseball with an equally serious fight against hunger. With the "Trader Joe's Hits That Help" campaign, the company made a donation of $75 to 2nd Harvest Food Bank of Orange County every time the LA Angels hit a double. Home runs brought in $250 a pop. With "Trader Joe's Goes the Distance," the company donated $250 to the Food Bank @ St. Mary's every time the Seattle Mariners hit a home run during a home game. Through this fun (and truly American) program, Trader Joe's donated a total of $60,000.
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Image courtesy of machinedamour.
