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Supermarket Inc: Inside a $500 Billion Money Machine (TV special)
CNBC ^ | 1/30/11 | CNBC

Posted on 01/30/2011 2:56:06 AM PST by Daisyjane69

The typical modern American supermarket stocks 48,000 items, each battling for precious shelf space. How do they get there? Why are they arranged the way they are? Did you know that some stores use heat maps to track which aisles you walk down — and which ones you don't? Or that they put the milk at the end of the aisle so you're forced to pass a hundred other items on your way to get it? It's all done to gain an edge in a cutthroat business built on razor-thin margins.

CNBC’s Tyler Mathisen goes behind the scenes for a fascinating look at today’s supermarket industry. It is the story of a crowded and brutal business generating half a trillion dollars in annual sales. Established brands like Safeway, Giant Eagle and Kroger are cultural icons as familiar as our own street names, but they are under constant attack from brilliant upstarts like Whole Foods, big box retailers like Wal-Mart and Costco, and from ever-changing public tastes. Go behind the familiar facade of your neighborhood market to see how it really works.

(Excerpt) Read more at cnbc.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: couponing; coupons; food; foodprices; groceries; grocery; grocerybusiness; grocerystores; marketing; supermarket; supermarkets
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To: Toddsterpatriot; Mase; expat_panama

Logistics (and I don’t mean shipping a parcel via UPS).


21 posted on 01/30/2011 5:52:15 AM PST by 1rudeboy
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To: Daisyjane69

Supermarket, Inc youtube clip -8 minutes

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcO-plO4lro
Giant Eagle Market District: CNBC “Supermarkets Inc.” feature

Uploaded to YouTube by Giant Eagle.


22 posted on 01/30/2011 5:52:18 AM PST by libertarian27 (Ingsoc: Department of Life, Department of Liberty, Department of Happiness)
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To: Daisyjane69
CNBC’s Tyler Mathisen goes behind the scenes for a fascinating look at today’s supermarket industry.
Today's supermarket industry is no different than it was 10-20-30, even 40 years ago.
Unless you're very young, this is not a new story.
23 posted on 01/30/2011 6:02:14 AM PST by oh8eleven (RVN '67-'68)
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To: Eric in the Ozarks

Wow, did not know that. That is a loooooong time.


24 posted on 01/30/2011 6:25:02 AM PST by onona (I've played)
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To: onona

With certain exceptions. For example, a state law in Missouri mandates suppliers of agricultural commodities must be paid in 30 days.


25 posted on 01/30/2011 6:27:57 AM PST by Eric in the Ozarks (Go Hawks !)
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To: Eric in the Ozarks

A 6 month interest free loan.It’s good to be King.


26 posted on 01/30/2011 7:11:28 AM PST by Farmer Dean (stop worrying about what they want to do to you,start thinking about what you want to do to them)
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To: Squantos

“About 18 hours of food on the shelves of modern grocery stores in the bar code computer era. Americas just one 70’s like nationwide truckers strike from trouble IMO .”

TOTALLY, and they can keep it. I’m at roughly 6 months of food and 4 years of every other non-perishable I can think of (other than gasoline, as that’s not practical to store - but I do have some and as long I don’t drive I have plenty for cooking and hot water).

Others, I suspect, look at the always-stocked shelves at their supermarkets and the huge quantities at Sam’s Club and figure they can stop by, once things go south. They will have to learn things the hard way, I guess.

Another way to look at it...there is roughly one Sam’s Club for every 100,000 members in the United States. At any given moment in time, there may be about 100,000 rolls of toilet paper in a store. Well, that’s one roll per member. It will not take all that many members to snap up that toilet paper once things go south.


27 posted on 01/30/2011 7:15:59 AM PST by BobL (PLEASE READ: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2657811/posts)
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To: Daisyjane69

It is also on CNBC World.


28 posted on 01/30/2011 7:27:18 AM PST by archivist007
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To: BobL

Agree...same here. Year plus food supply on hand. Hunt fish an garden an 150 gal bed tanks on trucks. SHTF sn have to stay home we’re good for at least first 3 fire fights.

Stay Safe an Sage....


29 posted on 01/30/2011 8:12:00 AM PST by Squantos (Be polite. Be professional. But have a plan to kill everyone you meet)
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To: raybbr
"Razor thin"? Really?

Really. Kroger, for fiscal years 2008, 2009, 2010 combined had revenue of about $223 billion. Net income was $2.5 billion.

Source

30 posted on 01/30/2011 8:20:19 AM PST by Toddsterpatriot (Math is hard. Harder if you're stupid.)
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To: Daisyjane69

It makes the case that the customer wins when companies compete.


31 posted on 01/30/2011 8:34:51 AM PST by secretagent
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To: Toddsterpatriot
Really. Kroger, for fiscal years 2008, 2009, 2010 combined had revenue of about $223 billion. Net income was $2.5 billion.

Doesn't explain all the grocery stores going up. You would think they would be consolidating to increase profits.

32 posted on 01/30/2011 10:00:24 AM PST by raybbr (Someone who invades another country is NOT an immigrant - illegal or otherwise.)
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To: Daisyjane69

I buy by my shopping list and clipped coupons. Unless they have something I have a coupon for and I can save more by buying it on my shopping day, it gets passed by. I shop by need, not what catches my eye.


33 posted on 01/30/2011 10:09:56 AM PST by GailA (2012 rally cry DEMOCRATS and RINOS are BAD for the USA!)
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To: raybbr
Doesn't explain all the grocery stores going up.

I'm only showing the thin margins.

34 posted on 01/30/2011 10:12:35 AM PST by Toddsterpatriot (Math is hard. Harder if you're stupid.)
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To: Daisyjane69

They don’t make their money on food.

They make their money on sundries. And on Valentines candy. And on impulse buying for stuff like batteries.
That kind of thing.


35 posted on 01/30/2011 10:16:31 AM PST by djf (Touch my junk and I'll break yur mug!!!)
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To: Daisyjane69
We saw it while flipping channels and stopped on it. Unusual for us in this day of the DVR when we rarely watch a show during its airtime (so we can speed through commercials).

We found the 5 days a week statistic hard to believe - that's how many times they said the typical grocery store shopper goes in to a grocery store.

36 posted on 01/30/2011 10:25:54 AM PST by old and tired
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To: Daisyjane69; All

FYI, I recently found an excellent series of books to help guide Americans through the minefield of food and “food-like substances” in the supermarket and other places.

They are available at most bookstores, and are cheaper at Amazon.com where they are about 12 bucks a piece, if you buy 25 bucks worth the shipping is free.

The series is “Eat This Not That”.

I recommend “Supermarket Survival Guide, Eat This Not That” for tucking in your purse (ladies) while shopping. This book tells what is full of bad additives, and what can be purchased instead.

“Restaurant Guide,Eat This Not That” is an eye opener as to what crap is in food at chain restaurants. The book warns of the worst and tells the best of what is offered at restaurants, so we can make informed choices and avoid gross fat laden, sodium laden concoctions.

For entertainment, I also bought “Best and Worst Foods” edition. It reads like a horror show. Fascinating what garbage some food retailers will offer to the public. Again, on one page is the worst, opposite page is a much better alternative.

The first book I got is general info covering some of the supermarket, some restaurant and other topics, it is “Eat This Not That, The No-Diet Weight Loss Solution”. It is a nice introduction to the series, but if I could do it again, I’d probably skip this one since the info is in the other 3 books I now have.

Just search Amazon for “Eat This Not That” and all the offerings will appear. They are all an easy and interesting read.


37 posted on 01/30/2011 6:02:05 PM PST by TheConservativeParty (President Sarah Louise Palin....Resistance is futile! Prepare to be liberated!)
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To: All

I live in Corpus Christi, Texas where the growing conditions fruits and vegetable are not the best, but I have relatives in East, central Texas where they grow the most delicious peaches, plums, watermelons and tomatoes you can imagine.
These you get in the supermarkets taste like cardboard.
Why?
Why can’t the supermarkets use the farmers here and get this delicious produce to the supermarkets while it still has some taste?


38 posted on 01/30/2011 8:10:12 PM PST by patriot08 (TEXAS GAL- born and bred and proud of it!)
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