One customer joked about the bagapocalypse. A few seemed annoyed that they had forgotten their reuseable bags, or that cashiers had to charge a nickel per paper sack. But all in all, everyone coped. The first day of no plastic bags at Wegmans’s New York stores turned out to be the Y2K of the grocery…
Tag: Wegmans
You feel good. You knew that you would.
The entrance to the typical Wegmans store delivers customers to a cornucopia of fresh produce. Beautiful purple eggplants, spiky pineapples, whole sections of berries and greens. The presentation amplifies the company motto: “Food you feel good about.” Yet increasingly, the profit center has been prepared foods. Wegmans has managed to meld your desire for junk…
Tech tics
Late Saturday night, a happily stoned young man asked me if we sold playing cards. I searched the new Wegmans app and was rewarded with page after page of beauty bars and body washes. The guy wandered off as I continued to scroll. “Found ’em!” he finally shouted from several aisles away. Since Wegmans launched…
Evil plastic, be gone
We’re all bracing for the supermarket equivalent of a tectonic plate shift. On Monday, Jan. 27, Wegmans stores in New York State will stop using plastic bags. This is HUUUUGE. For customers, the company, employees, and the environment. Shoppers will have to buy reusable bags or use paper, at five cents a pop. The company’s…
Latest recommendations
Black vinegar: A great addition to Asian dishes and marinades. Wegmans organic Greek vinaigrette: I stumbled onto this when I bought a Greek Santorini salad. Delicious, but not overwhelming, mix of tahini, apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, tamari and sesame seeds. Organic 6-seed bread: Find it in the bakery. Eat it fresh. Stay away from:…
Is self-checkout a bad thing?
Wegmans is one of the largest employers in Monroe County, NY, where the company has its headquarters. Might its ranking slip because of self-checkout? Store by store, registers are being replaced by scanners. Aisles once staffed by cashiers are supplanted by scanning stations overseen by far fewer employees. At a few stores, shoppers can scan…
Ad target: your child
One day I overheard a mother telling a young girl sitting in the front of the cart, “It’s marketing 101. Don’t fall for it.” This was one smart mom. Grocery stores are filled with advertising aimed at children. With the debut of the Disney movie “Frozen II,” the aisles are stacked with products featuring Elsa,…
It’s unnatural
Personal attachments to Wegmans are so fierce that the syndrome should qualify as a psychiatric condition. Some customers come to our store every day. One dedicated shopper rides her bike, regardless of weather. As a Wegmans employee, I probably sound like a lackey saying this. Believe me, the place isn’t perfect. (More on that in…