Posted on 01/16/2017 5:17:34 AM PST by Iron Munro
Betty Duffey has a half-dozen several grocery stores vying for her business near her neighborhood in southern Pinellas County.
Publix Supermarkets is 2.5 miles down the road and she'll pass by a Winn-Dixie and a Walmart Neighborhood Market on the way there. Two miles in the other direction is an Aldi and a Walmart Supercenter. But Duffey, 63, does most of her grocery shopping at Save-A-Lot.
It's the closest grocery store to her house, but it's also the cheapest.
"I'm on disability and really have to watch how I spend my money," Duffey said. "At Publix, I'd spend $200 a month for groceries. At Winn-Dixie, I'd spend probably around $150. But at Save-A-Lot, I'll spend $80 for the same amount of food."
Previous coverage: Grocery wars: How many supermarket chains can Florida handle?
Save-A-Lot has operated supermarkets in Florida since the '80s, managing mostly to fly under the radar. But in recent years, the Missouri-based discount grocery chain known for its discount prices and private labels on staple items from milk to spaghetti, has moved into Florida in a big way. Save-A-Lot made a push to double its number of stores in the southeast in 2009, and within three years opened 100 stores, including dozens more in Florida and a second distribution center. Florida is now Save-A-Lot's largest market with more than 150 stores.
The company's stores are smaller than the average Walmart or Winn-Dixie, and they're often located in older shopping centers in parts of town where Publix Supermarkets has avoided. Because of this, coupled with Florida's average wages still lagging behind the national average, Save-A-Lot has been able to carve out its own niche.
"Groceries are relatively inelastic in that people can eat less, but they still have to buy food," said Steve Kirn, a lecturer who teaches classes on retail at the University of Florida. "Save-A-Lot is attractive because they are often the only grocery stores in a low-income market. But no matter where you live, their prices are pretty attractive."
Save-A-Lot began opening stores in Florida in the mid 1980s. Most of their early locations looked like a hybrid between a grocery store and a convenience store, and were found mostly in rural communities like Plant City and Brooksville.
"Our goal is to be a neighborhood grocery store, which means we serve people who live within two to three miles of the store. Not that shoppers can't come from farther away, but the model is based off providing access to groceries to those who live in a close proximity," said Chon Tomlin, spokeswoman for Save-A-Lot. "The theory is that if you have to run up the street to get a gallon of milk, we want you to come to Save-A-Lot. We'll have the lowest prices on those core, staple grocery items and we're the closest to home."
The company's business strategy has stayed the same even with its rapid growth. Save-A-Lot has opened more urban stores, including several in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater, but they still serve areas that are often considered "food deserts," or densely populated communities where it is difficult to buy affordable or good-quality fresh food.
"Save-A-Lot almost has no direct competitor because its business is mostly stock dry items and the model is based on convenience and price," said Jeff Green, a retail analyst based in Phoenix. "Everyone else focuses on organics or fresh produce or customer service."
Related coverage: Can all these new delivery apps like Instacart and Google Express survive in Tampa Bay?
Many of the shoppers who buy from the Save-A-Lot store on Gulfport Boulevard in southern Pinellas County walk or ride bikes from their homes nearby. The store is located in a mostly empty shopping center with a Family Dollar store next door and a handful of other independent stores. However, the Save-A-Lot store stays busy nearly all hours of the day. In a marked contrast to the atmosphere of a typical suburban supermarkets, an armed security guard stands at the front of the store.
"By moving into spaces where other grocery stores have closed or in lower-end centers where others won't go, Save-A-Lot is paying a pretty low rent," Kirn said. "That's part of how they make the formula work. They can remodel at a lower cost than building a brand new store."
Customers won't find all the extra perks at a Save-A-Lot that they see at a Publix. There's usually only a handful of employees working at the store at time. There are only four cash registers though usually only two are open at a time. Shoppers have to bag their own groceries. And most goods for sale are shelved in the cardboard boxes that they were shipped to the store in. There's no seafood department and the meat section is very modest compared to other grocery stores. Baked goods are prepared off site and shipped to the store.
"Save-A-Lot is a convenience-oriented shopping trip," said Green, the retail analyst. "It's very price oriented too. But it's for people shopping for a few things at a time, not a huge shopping trip, even if the number of customers they have in a day can be fairly high."
This "lean efficiency" model helps keep costs down so Save-A-Lot can sell items at a greater discount, Tomlin said.
"Our stores employ about 20 people, and everyone is trained to do every job instead of just being tied to one function," she added.
Save-A-Lot stores don't sell the popular name brand names seen in most other supermarkets, like Kellogg's cereal or Chobani yogurt. Instead it sells its own private label on all goods, from tomato sauce to paper towels. It's another cost- cutting measure the company capitalizes on, one that has been fairly easy to do thanks to a longtime ownership by SuperValu, one of the largest wholesale grocery companies in the country. SuperValu announced in October that it will sell Save-A-Lot to Onex Corp., a Toronto-based private equity investment firm, for $1.37 billion.
Unlike other grocery stores, Save-A-Lot offers its own franchise-type ownership program. About 75 percent of the company's 1,400 stores are owned by licensees, who own and operate the grocery store under Save-A-Lot's leadership.
But Save-A-Lot's secret might be out, as competitions heats up in the low-cost niche in Florida.
Adli, a German discount grocery chain, is opening stores in Florida at a rapid rate. While most stores are built brand new from the ground up, they often serve the same of kind of communities that a Save-A-Lot or a Walmart would, and are known for their discount prices. Lidl, another German value brand, is expected to make a big push into the U.S. for the first time this year.
"Some of these more traditional grocers, like Winn-Dixie and Publix, are starting to get hit on the lower end by discount stores like Save-A-Lot. It's one of the fastest growing segments of the supermarket industry, with newcomers like Adli continuing to grow and Lidl coming into the U.S.," Kirn said. He noted that Winn-Dixie's promotion to rollback prices on staple items last year was a move to keep their value-based shoppers. "There's clearly a big market here for house-branded items offered at a discount. Publix and others are going to start feeling the heat."
Back in Gulfport, Duffey says she sees no reason why she'd ever stop shopping at the Save-A-Lot close to her home.
"I've never bought piece of produce that wasn't fresh and the store is always clean," she said, adding that most of the tenants in her nearby apartment building shop there too. "I wish they would remodel the store to make that center nicer, but it's Save-A-Lot. They're not going to, and that's OK."
We shop Save-A-Lot, Dollar General, Big Lots and others
(thrift stores). Fang’s sister sticks her nose in the air
at places like that; but she also pays through the nose the
hard-earned dollars her henpecked husband earns. (I’d feel
sorry for him; but he’s a big boy & didn’t have to tolerate
her pettiness. It’s ingrained in her as she was the youngest
child & the only girl in their family.) One of those you’d
like to buy for what they’re worth and sell for what they
THINK they’re worth.
At Woodmans one can get Kringles.
This is what would happen to the health care industry if we allowed free enterprise and competition.
I passed a kidney stone recently. Not the most pleasant experience, but I could have done it on my own. In the end, my wife convinced me to go to the doctor and my doctor advised me to go to the local emergency room. They were very pleasant, but I passed the stone in the urine sample I gave them about 10 minutes after I arrived.
In the end, the cost was $5000 for two hours of very good attention at a very well equipped hospital. My insurance paid for all but about 500. I could afford it, but this is what is bankrupting us. What I really was someone to tell me to take Tylenol and drink lots of water beforehand, and to prescribe an antibiotic afterwards,
If we designed a health care system where consumers kept their money and got to make their own choices, health care providers would compete for their dollars and we would have a health care system that was as efficient and competitive advantage our supermarkets.
Based on their preferences and resources, some people would choose Whole Foods/GiantEagle, some would choose Publix/Kroger, and some would choose Save-a-Lot/Aldi. No one would starve, and we could even have a modest Food Stamp like program for the few who truly needed it.
The real problem with the health care system is they take the dollars away from the patient so early in the process, so we are not regarded as customers. The real customer is the insurance company or the government, so it’s no wonder that there is more emphasis on ever more complex rules than their is on serving the patient.
This is what would happen to the health care industry if we allowed free enterprise and competition.
I passed a kidney stone recently. Not the most pleasant experience, but I could have done it on my own. In the end, my wife convinced me to go to the doctor and my doctor advised me to go to the local emergency room. They were very pleasant, but I passed the stone in the urine sample I gave them about 10 minutes after I arrived.
In the end, the cost was $5000 for two hours of very good attention at a very well equipped hospital. My insurance paid for all but about 500. I could afford it, but this is what is bankrupting us. What I really was someone to tell me to take Tylenol and drink lots of water beforehand, and to prescribe an antibiotic afterwards,
If we designed a health care system where consumers kept their money and got to make their own choices, health care providers would compete for their dollars and we would have a health care system that was as efficient and competitive advantage our supermarkets.
Based on their preferences and resources, some people would choose Whole Foods/GiantEagle, some would choose Publix/Kroger, and some would choose Save-a-Lot/Aldi. No one would starve, and we could even have a modest Food Stamp like program for the few who truly needed it.
The real problem with the health care system is they take the dollars away from the patient so early in the process, so we are not regarded as customers. The real customer is the insurance company or the government, so it’s no wonder that there is more emphasis on ever more complex rules than their is on serving the patient.
Exactly what the people shopping there don't need.
We go to Aldi’s from time to time, and we always get our quarter back. There are some things there that you can’t find at other places.
Not necessarily.
They do have a good assortment of canned goods at good prices but also carry more basic staples and fresh fruits and veggies than you would think from those pictures.
They usually are well stocked with things like sugar, spices, rice, beans, fruits, veggies, etc. and have some of the lowest prices around.
They also have very good weekend sales specials.
I went into a Save-A-Lot to buy bananas and was looking at the beef. I saw steaks at a really good price and it was the first time I ever saw meat from Mexico. I didn’t buy any.
This writer was apparently picked up in a bargain store at a deep, deep discount because of defective writing skills.
I live in a small town. We have a Kroger and a WalMart superstore, and a Save-A-Lot.
I do a fair amount of shopping at the Save-A-Lot. The regional brands of canned veggies are high quality. Ditto for the regional brands of frozen veggies. Meat section is small, beef is only OK. Chicken is chicken. But the pork is not only a better price, it is far superior in quality to that of Kroger and WM. Ditto for ribs.
I do the majority of shopping at Kroger, our store is OK, but not at all impressive. WalMart only for items that Kroger doesn’t carry.
But since our town is small & nothing is more that 5-10 minutes away, the Save-A-Lot is very convenient for the items that I do want there. It fills a particular market niche well. Ours is very much a local store. One of the ladies in management I know has been there 20 years.
I'll bet you've seen it before elsewhere, but never noticed.
I agree. Our Save A Lot has great prices on meats and is very clean. You can get awesome Delmonico steaks for $6.99/lb and as low as $3.99 on sale. Never had a bad one. We got a 5lb bag of white potatoes for $1.88. There are some bad produce items at times and selections are limited compared to other stores. Overall, we have switched from Tops and Wegman’s to mostly Save A Lot.
Well I’m glad to hear it. I’m not a penny pincher but I do believe in value and what my wife and I like to do is cook up a big 20-pound turkey on a Sunday afternoon (like we are doing today). Potatoes, onions, carrots, garlic, turnips, celery and other vegetables will go into the leftover carcass to make soup that will get us through most of the upcoming week. I reckon our daily cost for dinner will be around $10 a day when it’s all averaged out. I never get tired of turkey and homemade turkey soup in the wintertime.
Agreed, but I can't do my weekly grocery shopping at either, because the stock is continuously changing.
It's a nice (usually fun - I always find something cheap and tasty there that I shouldn't eat) supplement. But not a replacement.
FWIW, the Save-a-Lot in my area isn't very good at all. Dirty, understocked. Would be a last choice.
Based on where I see them choosing to locate here in the Tulsa area, I tend to agree. There is a recently announced plan to open in North Tulsa, a "food desert" that the local bleeding hearts regularly bemoan. The location is one where other name stores have previously occupied and left because their margin could not be maintained. It never comes out publicly but I'm sure shrinkage is a significant issue. However, I do wish them success in their ventures as access to food is a basic human desire that has history of business success, i.e A&P, etc.
Actually save a lot is in poorer communities because more affluent shun it’s business model. Store is mostly house brands and you must bag your own groceries and pay for the bags if you want them separate. Not deli or Bakery etc there model is for those who are looking to save on their food costs and they do indeed offer far cheaper food bill.
I have shopped at save a lot for years, never had an issue but I know most in my income bracket, especially wives would be mortified at the very prospect of shopping there even though it is in the same shopping plaza as the supermarket they shop at.
I’d love to have a good grocery store nearby. Oklahoma, in a lot of areas, is a food desert. In the south we had Publix, and Kroger, and Winn Dixie, and Food Lion, Harris-Teeter, etc. Lots of good grocery stores, within a reasonable distance. Here in Oklahoma, we are pretty much stuck with Reasors, which is our state, almost monopoly, grocery store, and it is expensive. In some areas, you might be lucky to have another choice. If you live in a bigger city, you could be lucky enough to have a Whole Foods, or a Sprouts, Sams, etc. There is an Aldi about 20 miles away from me, but I rarely drive there. Costco and Sams are too far for me to drive. I grow a garden, and can and freeze, so I’m lucky. I don’t buy a lot of meat anymore because even here in cattle country, it is ridiculously high. I usually buy the family packs of boneless chicken breast from Walmart because it is only $1.99/lb, and I divide it up and freeze small portions. Occasionally, I find a good sale on something, and I stock up and put it in the deep freeze. I feel for people who don’t have transportation to get to the store, or a way to grow their own food.
Publix has those water rolls, great for small burgers, my KellyGold butter, fancy produce that I love, and Progresso lentil/andouille soup which is surpringly good for a canned soup. Yet I don't shop there often because the final bill so high. I have shopped Aldi but it is a lot of trouble and not much fun. Walmart I hate because it is tiring and the clientele makes me uneasy---Sam's is better if I'm going to tire myself out.
Most of you probably pay either reduced sales tax or no sales tax on your groceries, but here in Oklahoma, we pay the full sales tax on every food item that we buy. For me, in my city/county I pay 9.5% on ALL my groceries. So, that adds significantly to our grocery bills.
For most items, but for meat, Save-A-Lot blows Aldi away on variety, quality and price. They have an in store butcher and the meat is of good quality.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.