What makes Wegmans’ love potion so powerful?

Brie Dyas called out eight reasons why she and others really LOVE (not just like) Wegmans in a mid-October Huffington Post blog. For Ms. Dyas, the connection is so strong she describes Wegmans as her personal “Cheers” — a place to go to feel like a human again after a particularly trying day. Wow! That’s quite a testimonial.

Learning from the winning formula

Some of her reasons are things we’d all expect — amazing prepared food, high product standards and not too expensive. Others are a little less obvious, but they show that the company is very much in touch with what their customers care about and appreciate when delivered. Among them:

1. The company treats its employees well. It offers educational scholarships, and training can involve trips to where food is produced.

2. It’s a pleasant place to shop. The more-pleasing (less harsh) light levels in the produce department give it the feel of an open-air market, for example.

3. They offer the largest selection of gluten free products, and they’ve been doing so since the 1990s. How’s that for being ahead of the curve?

4. Express checkout lane signs are grammatically correct, a signal that they understand that the little things count.

5. They give gifts to shoppers who sign up for the free membership card, such as coupons for free herb-infused basting oil, a reusable shopping bag and cookbook.

Are you surprised by any of the above reasons? Who else is succeeding with some of the less obvious things that are important to shoppers?

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