Trader Joe's Named Favorite Grocery Store

LOUISVILLE, Colo.—Trader Joe’s took the title of North America’s favorite grocery store, according to new customer satisfaction research conducted by Market Force Information.

In the study of 6,600 consumers, Trader Joe's, Publix Super Markets and Whole Foods Market all made the top three. These stores received high marks for courteous staff, inviting atmosphere and high-quality produce. Hy-Vee also scored well on the same measures.

Market Force’s grocery retailer study was designed to uncover where consumers prefer to shop, as well as why they favor one grocer to another. When asked to rate their satisfaction with recent grocery store experiences, consumers scored Trader Joe’s above all others. Publix, Whole Foods, Wegmans and ALDI also ranked high on the customer delight index, which reveals the intersection between overall satisfaction and the likelihood of recommending a grocer to friends and family.

Trader Joe’s operates nearly 400 stores and has experienced steady growth in recent years. With a neighborhood-store feel, the national chain is known for its customer-centric operations and a revolving inventory of products that carry the Trader Joe’s brand name.

Market Force also looked at which grocery stores consumers visit the most, asking where they spent the majority of their money in the previous 30 days. Stop & Shop ranked first in the Northeast, Kroger in the South and Midwest, and Safeway in the West. In Canada, consumers ranked Loblaws as No. 1.

Convenient location was a  factor consumers said they liked most about their preferred grocery store – in fact, it ranked higher than prices or sales and promotions. However, these characteristics aren’t necessarily helping grocery chains earn more business. No specific brand dominated the votes across the three characteristics, and it was the operations-focused attributes that seemed to make a bigger difference.

Some stores did stand out in certain areas of the research. Ralph’s ranked first in the important convenient location category, ALDI and WinCo were the price leaders, Winn-Dixie scored the top spot for sales and promotions, Meijer was recognized for its merchandise selection, and Walmart and Target were tied for one-stop shopping.

 “With most consumers satisfied with their grocery-shopping experiences, it makes for a very competitive playing field for grocers looking to distinguish themselves from the masses," said Janet Eden-Harris, chief marketing officer for Market Force. “We start to see the greatest opportunities for differentiation in operations-related attributes such as fast check-outs, gracious staff and atmosphere."

Competitive differentiation emerged when viewing operational excellence attributes. In these areas, Market Force found that higher-satisfaction brands tend to outscore other grocery brands.

Both Trader Joe’s and Publix performed well in the operational excellence attributes, with Trader Joe’s ranking first for its atmosphere and quick checkout process, and second in the other three categories. Publix ranked high among shoppers for its cleanliness and courteous staff, and it was second to Trader Joe’s in atmosphere. Hy-Vee and H-E-B also fared consistently well in key categories.

When it comes to consumers’ perceptions of high-quality, healthy product selection, natural-food grocer Whole Foods dominated across the board. It ranked first among shoppers in every category studied—from high-quality meat and produce to organic options and sustainable practices. It had an especially sizeable lead in the produce category. Trader Joe’s also scored in the top three of most of the attributes, as did Publix.

Although some shoppers are practicing extreme couponing, it doesn't seem to be a common trend, according to the research. In fact, findings suggest a steady decline in coupon use over the past three years. Of those who are redeeming coupons, most are clipping them from a newspaper, magazine or other print media. The second most popular source for coupons is the grocery store.

For on-the-go snacks, convenience stores beat out grocery and discount stores as the most popular source. New market data shows consumers are increasingly finding value in convenience stores, marked by a 2% gain in customer traffic and a nearly 6% increase in dollars the first quarter of 2013.