13 Things Your Grocer Won’t Tell You

When stores advertise 5 for 10.00 or require you to buy a large amount to save, ask the cashier if you can buy 1 and still get the sale price. Often times you don’t have to buy the full amount to save.

The busiest time at the store I work for is 4pm to 7pm, that’s when everyone is getting off work and shopping for dinner. Early morning is a great time to shop!

You say Wednesday is a good time to shop.  That is the day the food ads come out for our part of the country.  So, you cannot make a sweeping generalization.  When our store has a 5 for 10.00 or anything like that you can certainly buy just one.  WHERE is this stuff coming from?  

You say Wednesday is a good time to shop.  That is the day the food ads come out for our part of the country.  So, you cannot make a sweeping generalization.  When our store has a 5 for 10.00 or anything like that you can certainly buy just one.  WHERE is this stuff coming from?  

But don’t try this at a Walmart Supercenter. We’re busy then.

Before you complain that something is not priced correctly – PLEASE READ THE SIGN CAREFULLY to make sure that the item you pick up is the same thing that is listed on the sign.  9 times out of 10, the customer did not read the shelf label correctly when they complain about a price.

I’d take this advice with a side of caution. Exercise a little curtness and ask the management
what the stores policy is. As a cashier at Walmart, I was not supposed to ad-match 5 for $10.00
unless the customer bought the full number, but by the end of my shift I would be so tired of
being yelled at that risking my job and giving them the single product for the price seemed more
reasonable than stirring the pot.

When a 3 for $1.00 item is scanned, the first will scan at .34, and the next two at .33

The busiest shopping time is 5-6 where i live. Thats when people get off work. So why in the world would they tell you to go then??

It is VERY rude to chat on your phone while the cashier is ringing up your groceries! It is also rude to the
people in line behind you. Your call can wait until you get in your car…where you will risk the safety of other drivers while you talk talk talk on your cell.

If you need help then ask me, don’t get my attention and then start talking on your phone.  I don’t have time to wait for you to finish your conversation.  Contrary to popular belief, I DO have things that my boss expects me to get done, just like you. I was not just standing around waiting for you to show up so that I could have something to do.

Hears the deal , if you want to save $$$$$ , every sunday (except for some holiday weekend ) newspapers will not have coupon ads .  Gather up 10 family / friends ( women ) teach them how to clip coupons , you can charge them $10.00 per person , Make sure they’ve Sunday paper ( sell ads ) , teach them how to use couple of coupons for one item ( read the store policy ) , the best stores for this are ,  Target , Walgreens , local major grocery store .  You need to join ( facebook ) add the family and friends , then each day , You’ve to advertise the specials  from the stores . Do alot of research on this , it could take time , in about one or 2 yrs you will make up to $5,600.00  amonth , All Referrals / Word of Mouth . Use this as a home business and put it on your taxes ( 1099 ) .       I know this young lady who’s doing this and much more , she’s making $$$$$$$$$.
     Research all this before moving ahead .    
 Remember this …………… Everything goes up in price (s ) , Except for your paycheck !!!!!

I know people who hasn’t recieved a raise in years .

Hears the deal , if you want to save $$$$$ , every sunday (except for some holiday weekend ) newspapers will not have coupon ads .  Gather up 10 family / friends ( women ) teach them how to clip coupons , you can charge them $10.00 per person , Make sure they’ve Sunday paper ( sell ads ) , teach them how to use couple of coupons for one item ( read the store policy ) , the best stores for this are ,  Target , Walgreens , local major grocery store .  You need to join ( facebook ) add the family and friends , then each day , You’ve to advertise the specials  from the stores . Do alot of research on this , it could take time , in about one or 2 yrs you will make up to $5,600.00  amonth , All Referrals / Word of Mouth . Use this as a home business and put it on your taxes ( 1099 ) .       I know this young lady who’s doing this and much more , she’s making $$$$$$$$$.
     Research all this before moving ahead .    
 Remember this …………… Everything goes up in price (s ) , Except for your paycheck !!!!!

I know people who hasn’t recieved a raise in years .

Hears the deal , if you want to save $$$$$ , every sunday (except for some holiday weekend ) newspapers will not have coupon ads .  Gather up 10 family / friends ( women ) teach them how to clip coupons , you can charge them $10.00 per person , Make sure they’ve Sunday paper ( sell ads ) , teach them how to use couple of coupons for one item ( read the store policy ) , the best stores for this are ,  Target , Walgreens , local major grocery store .  You need to join ( facebook ) add the family and friends , then each day , You’ve to advertise the specials  from the stores . Do alot of research on this , it could take time , in about one or 2 yrs you will make up to $5,600.00  amonth , All Referrals / Word of Mouth . Use this as a home business and put it on your taxes ( 1099 ) .       I know this young lady who’s doing this and much more , she’s making $$$$$$$$$.
     Research all this before moving ahead .    
 Remember this …………… Everything goes up in price (s ) , Except for your paycheck !!!!!

I know people who hasn’t recieved a raise in years .

At my store, you HAVE to buy five items to get the five items for five dollars or whatever the ad is. Its VERY annoying FOR me and the customer. However, we also tell them when they can save. For example, this month, they bring a certain candy bar to the register, its on sale for buy one get one free, and I always tell them, hey pick up a free one. My boss doesn’t like it, he’d rather sell the other for half price, but I think its good customer service! 
Also, the cell phone. HOW annoying! there is no conversation so important that you can’t take five minutes out to pay attention to me while I ring up your items? And if its an emergency, get outta the store and take care of it!

At my store, you HAVE to buy five items to get the five items for five dollars or whatever the ad is. Its VERY annoying FOR me and the customer. However, we also tell them when they can save. For example, this month, they bring a certain candy bar to the register, its on sale for buy one get one free, and I always tell them, hey pick up a free one. My boss doesn’t like it, he’d rather sell the other for half price, but I think its good customer service! 
Also, the cell phone. HOW annoying! there is no conversation so important that you can’t take five minutes out to pay attention to me while I ring up your items? And if its an emergency, get outta the store and take care of it!

no wonder why the childhood obesity rate is so high being unethical just make a profit is whats wrong with the world today

Stay off the cell phone while checking out.  You distract the cashier and for sure they will make a mistake- usually not in your favor.  That includes double billing you for items because they can’t hear the beep, wrong change, items left behind, etc.  Overall, not a pretty picture. 

If you have been working at at store long enough you should be able to ring groceries up without any problem.  That includes if someone is on the phone or screaming at bad children.  I seen where cashiers talk to other customers or other cashiers when I was in line to pay for my groceries.  That is just as rude.  So when the cashier stops talking to others when I am in their line then I will stop talking on the phone.  The best time to shop is after 7pm.  Everyone is there during the day that doesn’t work then the people that work come in after 4 to shop for dinner.  And one last thing, the cashiers are NEVER there to help us out.  The are just there to make their poor hourly rage and go home.

sorry you feel that way but thanks for comming, and secondly i will continue to be rude to you and ignore you entirely if you ever did that to me

HQ

Getting off the phone at the end of the check out is not polite. The moment you step into line that thing should be off and away from your ear. The moment a cashier sees it it puts them in a foul mood. 

And to nice customers we do well them out, but not to people like who you think we’re nothing but dirt because we work at a grocery story. You don’t know us, so don’t judge us.

Or they do that on purpose just to annoy the person on the cell phone.

Or they do that on purpose just to annoy the person on the cell phone.

So, you can’t say no to your child?

I’ve been watching sales since I was a teenager.  I worked in a grocery store and noticed that they would put things on “sale” that were regularly 3 for .99 on sale they were 3 for a $1.00.  i.e. I went to Love’s the other day bought 2 bags of chips bag price was .99 a bag they had them on “sale” 2 for $2.00 so 2 pennies higher than regular price.  If you know your pricing you know when your getting taken at the store.

I get so upset with people who wait until all their groceries are rung up and have a total AND THEN get out their $$ or card to pay.  It’s so inconsiderate of the people behind you.

I get so upset with people who wait until all their groceries are rung up and have a total AND THEN get out their $$ or card to pay.  It’s so inconsiderate of the people behind you.

I get so upset with people who wait until all their groceries are rung up and have a total AND THEN get out their $$ or card to pay.  It’s so inconsiderate of the people behind you.

AND, they have it on speaker so you can hear both sides of the conversation.  Who wants to hear all that?  I think they just want to sound important.  They do just the opposite.

AND, they have it on speaker so you can hear both sides of the conversation.  Who wants to hear all that?  I think they just want to sound important.  They do just the opposite.

make them pay a the deli.

I don’t think Publix is employeed owned and everyone is always friendly and helpful

not where I live, people shop 24/7 here, I used to shop in the mornings and that’s when they are stocking and a lot of times they had not stocked items I was shopping for and there’s the boxes and carts in the middle of the isle, Sunday nights are not as crowded but the fruit and veggies are not that great

exotic fruits and veggis are over priced anyway!

exotic fruits and veggis are over priced anyway!

It’s a pain to go to the grocery store every week and spend an hour shopping. Buy in bulk and go to the grocery store once every six weeks.

don’t take your kids to the store, because when you do you know you’ll  buy junk like big packs of bubble gum. Not taking the kids to the groicery store will save you $200 a year.

Look at all the modern stuff. Like computers, cell phones and Ipads and everyone has to have them, but unless you’re a guy that has to reeive calls and you are hunting or out in the field you don’t need one.Women only need one if they drive long distances or they drive at night.

we also hate it when you leave your cart by your car rather than go to the cart return FIVE FEET AWAY
i hate it when we do not have enough cart pushers and we, the cashiers get called to the parking lot
do us a favor and put your dang cart up, ok?
also, when you go to an express line with fifty items, don’t yell at us when we take forever, we are going as fast as we possibly can, we hae few bags and have to wait every time we run out of the two bags we have, WHICH IS ALOT
the eighteen year old behind the counter is not the supreme ruler of walmart, do not get in his face because something weant wrong or you want a discount, you scare the crap out of us and we litterally have ZERO power to help you, making it extra scary
you want help, yell at a customer service manager, they actualy have the authority to do those things
i swear on my last day if somebody yells they are going to have two hundred and seventy pounds of angry state ranked wrestler getting angry, and believe me, i’m scarier than you can ever dream of being

I’ts the same in my part, all ads come out on wednesday, I see a lot of people in my store on that day, and I’m one of them. I would argue that Tuesday is the best. New ad is coming out the next day and everyone is waiting, clipping coupons organizing pantry and planning meals. The person writing this article probably never shopped for food.

I’m a cashier at a grocery store and I agree mostly with these. I would honestly go to the store 7pm-Close on a weekday, and before 4pm on the weekends and Friday nights. Also, you should be nice to your cashier. A good cashier will be nice to you until you’re not nice to them. If I have an extremely nice customer in my line who’s buying a salad (which has to be weighed) I will take more off the weight of the container so that it costs less. Also at my store we have special promotions where you get stickers and what not at the end of the checkout. If you’re nice to me, sometimes I’ll give you extra just for being nice. 

Publix IS employee-owned but I also think they purposely look for people who are friendly and polite. Great store.

So, what you’re saying is that you being rude by being on your cell phone at the register is on the same uncivilized level as that of a moron screaming at a misbehaving child…or perhaps you’re on the same level as the child – that seems more like it to me.  Whatever, you are as annoying as that screaming child to both the cashier and those of us stuck behind you listening to your yapping. 

When you have small children, it is easier to 1st buckle them in and then put the groceries in the car. Do you then walk away from your children in the car seats to put the cart away?
For me it is not laziness, it is a child safety issue. 

How is that easier? I leave the kiddo strapped into the child seat in the cart, put the groceries in the trunk, give them an additional ride to the cart return. Get the kiddo from the cart, and we walk (or I carry) them back to the car and strap them in.

stay towards the outer aisles of a grocery store. typically this is where your gonna find the good stuff. produce, breads, meat market, deli. most of the items towards the center of the store are considered junk. that being said, the long your stare at junk the more appealing it is and more likely you are to buy it. such as the aisle being long or a multitude of them.

WHAT!? What kind of backward sexist remark is that?  Are you a female taking cheap sexist shots at your OWN gender? You are worse than the “men” who would tell me that my job was “too hard” for a woman even as I was doing it!   Sexist SOW.

I think it depends on where you live. My supermarket is practically devoid of all human life forms from 5 to 7 PM, M-Th.

Our circulars come on Tuesday so tuesdays are busiest for us. But I think the generalization the writer is making is just that, a “general”ization meaning that for the majority, the general poulation, (though that may be only 51% or so) these things hold true. That leaves the rest of us as the 49% who experience their shopping phenomenon differently. I think it best to do what works for you and always, ALWAYS ask about specials like 5 for $10. It never hurts to ask!

my favorite is when customers complain that the listed price is less and it was… for preferred card holders like alberstons, kroger, and brookshires! Oh general populus, when will you become smarter?

When the Kroger I shop at advertises 10 for $10, that also means 1 for $1.

Uh, no. I agree with Jai Infame…I ALWAYS put in the groceries first, and then put the cart away, and then take the kid to the car. It’s not rocket science, and nobody’s safety has to be an issue. That is TOTALLY a cop out

Well…someone took feminist classes in school didn’t we?

Sorry, but women are horrible creatures.

Ads come out on Monday in my part of the country, and a lot of times you have to purchase the full amount (5 items for a 5 for $10).

Why don’t they hire cart pushers, usually teenagers who need a part time job. This is why there is high unemployment.

Don’t shop for food on an empty stomach.  You will want to eat everything you see and thus buy more.  Have a hearty dinner and then hit the markets when the lines are short.

You can always buy one, but you may not be able to get the discounted price.  It depends on store policy as to whether the discount will be offered on fewer items than stated in the advertisement.

Most of the time, I treat people the way I would want to be treated.  My husband, however, can just be a jerk with retail workers (and wives for that matter).  Karma rules.  I seldom have a problem when I ask a cashier to double-check a price for me – and most of the time I have misread or misinterpreted something.  Hubbie, on the other hand, is constantly having a bad day when he shops.

I make it a point to do most of my grocery shopping in the morning,you don’t want to be in my local HEBs at dinner time after work.

My sales paper comes out on Tuesday starting for Wednesday, So Wednesday the stores are packed with shoppers starting at 6am thru 2, I’m in Louisiana so that Tip mentioned does not apply here or me, just saying

My sales paper comes out on Tuesday starting for Wednesday, So Wednesday the stores are packed with shoppers starting at 6am thru 2, I’m in Louisiana so that Tip mentioned does not apply here or me, just saying

My sales paper comes out on Tuesday starting for Wednesday, So Wednesday the stores are packed with shoppers starting at 6am thru 2, I’m in Louisiana so that Tip mentioned does not apply here or me, just saying

  I reported a grazer and his family to a MEIJERS STORE manager. The manager said that he expected some grazing and not to be concerned about it! Believe me folks ~~~ it’s built into the price we all pay for things we buy there. Sounds like stealing to me!!! So now I go to a MOM & POP STORE which is much closer than MEIJERS! And just like this reply WORD~OF~MOUTH is thre best kind of advertising. How many of you out there agree with me? 

I HATE grazers … not just because they are stealing from the grocer who is having a hard enough time staying in business, but because it is disgusting that people walk around a store shoving food in their gobs. Nasty disgusting people.

State law also affects this … in California, if you advertise ’5 for $10′ then the seller HAS to sell at comparable per-unit price (i.e., 5 for $10 equals 1 for $2) UNLESS the advertisement (including shelf labels) explicitly states “must buy XX units”.  So … if the ad / shelf label does not state you have to buy the full monty, then you will get the unit price savings.

State law also affects this … in California, if you advertise ’5 for $10′ then the seller HAS to sell at comparable per-unit price (i.e., 5 for $10 equals 1 for $2) UNLESS the advertisement (including shelf labels) explicitly states “must buy XX units”.  So … if the ad / shelf label does not state you have to buy the full monty, then you will get the unit price savings.

In Moab Ut. there is not a right time to shop except before 8 am because of the many tourist that come to visit ou beautiful red Mtn and desert.

I don’t understand why the major chains can’t do as Aldi’s and put a quarter slot on the carts so you have to return them to get your quarter back. If you still choose to leave your cart in the parking lot, there will be folks there ready to take it back and get your quarter. This will save my car, and perhaps yours from getting the ” shopping cart dings” from lazy, inconsiderate people.

Same here, I worked for a supermarket chain in Texas for 16 years. The busiest time was always between 4pm and 7pm, when every one has gotten off work.

“11. The baby formula is locked up because thieves resell it on the black market.Ditto for the cough and cold medications, smoking-cessation products, razor blades, and batteries.”

No where I shop has baby formula locked up, razor blades, nor batteries locked up.

They do have smoking-cessation products locked up because of laws on Tobacco not to mention 18 yr old requirement to buy.

Same for the cough and cold medications and only the ones with pseudoephedrine because they are made into meth.

Nyquil is not behind the counter anywhere I shop and kids trip it on all the time and you have to be 18 to buy it. 

They also lock up the formula, razor blades and medications at my store because thieves will COME BACK and return it for gift cards at our returns desk.

All this may be true in California, but I do not live there! Californians need to worry more about SMOG, and overcrowing! And BROKE~DOWN ACTORS running the state!

exactly! i did my shopping before work and we were in and out. we forgot something and had to go back to the store after work…I just had to make due with what I didnt have because the lines were crazy at 6pm!

Where I live the majority of Ad’s come out on Sunday’s, but the local grocery store’s ad comes out on Wed. 

I check the ad’s online, too, before I go shopping, and take a list of what I’m buying, and where I’m buying it. Otherwise I end up getting only about half of what I wanted, and a lot of impulse purchases.

Your suggestion would be fine if we didn’t like fresh fruit and vegetables.

I go at least once a week, usually twice a week, and buy the fruits and vegetables that are on sale. It’s healthier and you get a good variety of fresh food that way.

I do most of my shopping at a small local grocery store. The parking lot isn’t very big. I always return my cart to the inside of the store. If I need help out, the person helping me returns it. 

If this is the only reason they are hiring these people, unless there is enough business to justify the pay,  they are wasting money. In the process of wasting money, they will have to raise prices in order to cover the pay.

We get a lot of tourists, too. Unless it is beach season (May-Sep), the times to stay away from the stores are Friday afternoon – Sunday night. During the season, mid-morning and mid-afternoon during the week are the times to hit the stores. And take the back streets! There are so many people who seem to think that because they are on vacation they don’t have to look both ways before crossing the street it’s not even funny anymore!

agreed guys agreed

What? The worst time to shop around here is 5-9pm, because that is when people are getting off work, getting kids from daycare and stopping in to buy dinner. I avoid that time. Also Wednesdays are not good because that is senior citizen day for most stores.  The best time to go is early morning, right after dropping kids off at school. It’s just middle aged women – no kids. 

I used to bartend and would do my grocery shopping after I got off work… at 2am. Talk about no lines! Yay for 24 hour grocery stores…

I used to bartend and would do my grocery shopping after I got off work… at 2am. Talk about no lines! Yay for 24 hour grocery stores…

early am if you can, shelves are stocked overnight at walmart and not many people, also not many cashiers but 8am not an issue. If an item you love or have bought for years and it’s no longer there as is the case w/walmart everday, talk to a manger & email the company. The large can of Hanover green beans with the white top are the best. They dropped them for a few years, had to make a special trip to a small expensive store, Piggly Wiggly to get them. Now back on the shelf. Makes you wonder why they dropped them in the first place. After almost 3 months of not finding a product I’ve bought for 20 years, it was on longer there but the same brand in every other color was. I finally asked an employee, she ordred it on the spot, said it will be in in 2 weeks. I was there around 8am, no product. I was told it was suppose to be but just call the next am. I did and they held them for me, I got all “whopping” 6 boxes that came in. Felt bad but everyone else was buying them, just my luck the shelf was empty everytime I went. It’s VITAL to email these companies about products you want to see on the shelves. If you don’t speak up they’ll never know. I complained about fancy feast cat food, only a few flavors and usually picked over. I was told dog food was their biggest seller. My comment was, if you had it on the shelf it would sell. Now I make a special trip to a pet store to stock up. Yes, it’s higher but there’s so many flavors I’m overwhelmed. I do have the stores card so I one day will get something back off that. It started out at .42 per can. Now it’s .60 yet I was told it was on sale, usually .62. Shocked. I’d never start another cat on canned food. I see many cats way bigger than mine that live off dry food just fine. They can have a can of tuna for a treat once in awhile.