I like to shop at local stores rather than chain stores whenever possible. There are two local grocery stores in my town that make an effort to purchase produce from the local area or as close to here as is reasonably possible for that particular season. I really appreciate there efforts to do this as it helps support local farms as well as is better for the environment when less diesel is burned transporting food. One of those stores is also GMO free, which is a huge added bonus and means I don't have to check labels on everything made with corn I buy.
Most of the stores in a convenient distance from us are chains, unfortunately, as that's something I've considered in the past as well. Transportation costs win out in the end, and we end up just sticking with the chain stores, but if there were alternatives closer I'd definitely consider them. We do go to the farmer's market a lot, and there are a few awesome restaurants close by that partner with local farmers and get a lot of their food directly from them, that we try to support more frequently than big chain restaurants.
I've been going to our local discount grocers more than the big chains for the past 2 years. They do carry some local produce, but I actually don't even go to them for that, because I can just go to the local farms and greenhouses and get them there myself. I go there for their overall lower prices. They don't carry as big of a selection as the big chain stores do, which helps them to keep their costs down because they don't have as much waste and they aren't stuck with a bunch of product they can't sell. For just my basic staple items, I can easily save quite a bit of money - like $20-30, just by buying their fresh products as well as their cheaper store brand items in place of the big brand items. The chain stores have done nothing but get bigger and bigger over the years, and their costs have gone up as well. I appreciate their selection, but I resent paying an arm and a leg for everything. I go in there for 3 things and end up blowing $20, it's nuts.
I don't make a point to buy at local grocery stores, but I do like some that are close to my house because they have some products I can't find anywhere else and some things are cheaper there than they are anywhere else, like tea. So I go there often to get teas and some stuff from the bakery inside the store. However, for big purchases I still use big chain supermarkets just because their prices are lower and they have everything I need in the same place. As I work 8+ hours a day it's the most conveniente for me.
We don't have any local shops any more. The last one I knew of closed down about 5 years ago and it was horrible at that point anyway. The prices were significantly higher than chain stores (even more so than you would expect as normal), they didn't carry much of anything, and the quality of goods/services was on the decline. I hated going there.
I'm thankful that there are a good selection of grocery stores to choose from in my area, although I don't always like the selection of produce in one particular store. They always seem to have only one brand of apples that I find pretty tart. But again, luckily I'm able to choose from other stores to get some other apples that I actually like.
Great post. Absolutely. I try to purchase as many things as I can from local stores, for all the reasons you mentioned. Also, in small towns without a lot of shopping nearby, you learn to appreciate the stores that are available. Since you don't want them to close up shop, leaving you with nothing close, you tend to try to support them as much as possible.
Er, local stores in suburban areas that are not at least 15 years or older, often tend to be corporate stores. Maybe in older housing areas of cities and towns, may hold to more local stores, but most newer houses these days are surrounded by corporate stores. I don't ultimately do not care which store I go to that much, because it all depends on the products and services in a local or distant stores that I need or want. However, if you [OP] were implying about privately owned local stores "versus" publicly trade local stores, then I wish to shop at the private places much more, but at times such stores do not carry what I need or want. Shopping is all about needs and wants, and what is the cheapest and easiest way to purchase such a product or service, and although people shop at privately owned places to try and minimize their carbon foot prints, it makes no difference if you're still buying a product that required mass labor and resources to produce. The biggest factor to carbon-foot printing on this planet, which I have done my own personal research into and taken a few schooling courses about, is directly caused from humans, which corporations are but a creation from human needs and wants; it's has always been the "way" we create and use, that determines the outcome of our actions and inactions in the micro and macro dynamics of nature.
We don't have local grocery stores anymore in my area. When a large chain does close one of their local stores a ethnic store comes in to service the local community. The big chains have taken over our area completely in the grocery store arena. We do have local restaurants and boutiques for clothing only.
My local area has a few mom and pop stores left but I won't shop at them. They all three go to Wal-Mart to get their goods to stock their shelves and charge almost triple what WM charges. I, instead, take my business where its less expensive and is closer to me. I do visit the farmers market to get the in season fresh fruits and vegetables.
I prefer to shop at my local grocery stores for the same reasons. The one in my neighborhoods get produce, meats, and cheeses from local farmers. I don't mind paying a little extra for them. For some cheap staples I'll go to another store: things like pasta, flour, sugar, etc. because the sourcing/pricing is similar across the board.
JaneHansen, I think there is something wrong with your post, most of the letters didn't show up. I have also noticed a huge quality difference between the local stores and the chain stores, especially in produce. I think the competition issue really pushes smaller stores to do better rather than rely on the big name and advertising to bring people in.
I only shop at our local grocery store. We have Publix here in our town and the store in incredible. Very clean and the customer service is amazing !!! I have never had a bad experience there. They always have what I need and if they don't they offer to order it for me!! They even help you to bring your groceries to the car !! Their motto is " Where Shopping is a Pleasure" and they live up to that!! Love Publix.... bigger is not always better that's for sure!! Danyel
Fortunately, we have lot of local stores in Bay Area. They are very friendly and usually have better produce than supermarts. Keeping in terms with the supermarkets, most of the stores in my area have gone online make it even more convenient for us to shop from there. Any day, I'll prefer going to the local store over super markets, Also, I second DancingLady's stand on GMO.
We have a couple grocery stores in this small town. Sadly those grocery stores are very high priced. A local Walmart is about 20 minutes away and it is definitely worth the drive. When something is on sale at our grocery store, it is actually the original price. I am all for locally grown but this town is in major debt due to I do not know what. My family has a link card and if we go to any of the grocery stores in town, we will spend all the money with just half of the cart filled. It is sad. Even baby food is way more expensive. I know that it is hard to have a grocery store stay open in a small town but we only go there if it is an emergency or if they have an amazing deal. Otherwise, it is pointless. I would rather spend the extra gas money to go somewhere I can at least get a cart full of food.
Good for you I don't know of any local places like that. Maybe in my old home town, but I'm in a big city now where the mighty dollar wins it all.. nothing like that left, that I know of. Corn is by far not the only GMO you have to worry about if you're avoiding them. I get all my food from farmers, I do my best to stay away from all processed foods.. they're filled with the worst ingredients human bodies just don't like and most contain GMOs at this point. And definitely, there is a huge taste difference when you're food has little travel time from ground to plate.
If you can find a farmer's market, they are amazing. I can usually buy really fresh produce significantly cheaper than chain stores. The savings usually more than make up for the transportation costs. It is a bit of a hassle though, because the best time to go would be early in the morning. But it's nice to really see who was responsible for getting the crops to you.
Adding on to your Question: Will you consider buying your groceries online, when your local store goes Online?
The local grocery stores have all but disappeared in my town. There was one local store that was beloved by all of Richmond, and it was purchased by Martin's/ Giant a couple of years ago. They held on to the bakery and some other items from our original local store (Ukrops). Now, all of those items have gone downhill with the rest of the store. We do still have a local natural foods store, but Whole Foods is opening another store nearby. I imagine our local store will lose the competition.
It depends for me. I live in a big city so when I can help out the smaller businesses or local market, I try to. Unfortunately, they sometimes don't have the variety that the big box stores have. Plus, it's generally more expensive for things like cereal or soup. While I want to support them, if the choice is $2.50 for a box of cereal or $5.99 for the same box, I'm going for Walmart. For produce though, a local market can be a great option with much fresher food from local farms. And when the local market has specials or coupons, is definitely just as good.
