I know, might be a stretch, but I was thinking about this today.
I shop at Trader Joes a lot, because it’s cheap but for the most part they have all the organic stuff I consume. And they have a few items that I really, really like.
But I don’t like the stores all that much. They’re usually dingy, feel like a 3rd world marketplace, and I just want to get my stuff and get out quickly.
Whole Foods though, aaahhhhh…I am in love. The place is incredible, the energy, the lighting, the organization, the overwhelming amount of perfectly lined up good-for-me products, I just want to try them all! And go broke in the process! Yay!
Have you ever eaten in a Whole Foods? The choices are overwhelming. Their deli is incredible, it’s good for you, and it tastes, well, mouthgasmic (yes, that’s a phrase I coined).
Of course, you’ll need a second mortgage…but I guess I can skip the whole paycheck jokes. We all know.
But that’s kind of why I love it, too. Exclusivity. Consistently as perfect as a store can be, and offering the best products money can buy – but not everybody can shop there.
Maybe I’m stretching this, I was thinking about it though. Trader Joes meets my needs, but I’m by no means committed to it. Whole Foods? If I could only shop at one grocery store there wouldn’t even be any other competition, I’d commit. Yes, forever and ever. lol.
What’s more, ever since a Whole Foods moved in about 3 blocks away from the Trader Joes I usually go to, I’ve been shunning Trader Joes to go just a little further and spend a lot more, just to be in Whole Foods. I feel seriously dirty going into Trader Joes now after stepping into Whole Foods. It’s purely psychological, but I’m being dead serious.
What’s the lesson? I think, off the top of my head, it’s that being cheap and easy will get you customers, but none of them will love you (like a standby girlfriend). You’re just a useful necessity. But do something different, be a little exclusive, be perfect (haha no seriously) and I think along with that stay consistent…and people will commit to you (like, "baby here’s a lot of bling and a fancy car" type commitment).
And that’s the goal, right, customer (brand) loyalty? I mean, I’m not wearing a Whole Foods logo on my chest anytime soon, but anytime I talk about a good grocery store (Like Huckleberry’s in Bozeman, MT, which sparked this post) I’m calling it "like a Whole Foods type store". They’ve got me.
And all it took was them being expensive, exclusive, and excruciating about the details (like how I got the 3 e’s in there? yeah, I know). And of course growing that nationwide to be the biggest and the best…
Trader Joes
Whole Foods