5 things: Are supermarkets losing the food fight?

Can the supermarket hang in there? Forget Amazon and Walmart — when supermarkets were first introduced, they were the disruptors, putting general stores, butchers, and cheesemongers out of business. Is it now their turn to fade away, asks this piece from The Wall Street Journal. Supermarkets and smaller-format grocers made up around 37% of Americans’ total food spending in 1997. As of 2022 that was down to just a quarter of that total. If supermarkets want to avoid going the way of the dinosaur, the WSJ writes, the key will be offering something both big-box retailers and discount grocers can’t. —Chloe Riley

Not berry nice: Times are tough, so feel free to take home some extra berries. Actually, please don’t — grocers frown on stealing. One Toronto grocer, Food Basics, had to put its disapproval in writing. Apparently, too many shoppers were taking blueberries from one container and putting them in another, hoping the price was based on unit instead of weight. It’s not, and the berry theft was running rampant, forcing a sign to be placed right under the product: “Please do not take from other containers to fill yours with extra berries. They are pre-weighed. Any tampered-with containers past the sale weight will be charged the full price.” Other stores in the area also deal with unruly behavior, like half-eaten fruit and pits placed back in the produce pile. As a grocer, you can’t put that disgust into words. —Bill Wilson

Cart change: As the saying goes, “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery,” and Aldi might be feeling the love from Pennsylvania-based Weis Markets as the company tests out rentable carts at four Weis Market locations in Pennsylvania. Shoppers will need to dispense a quarter into a cart device in order to use one while in the Williamsport, Milton, Bloomsburg, and Mount Pocono locations. Once finished, shoppers can return the cart and retrieve their quarters (just like at Aldi). Weis said it is hoping the system will minimize shopping cart thefts and damage to cars caused by loose carts. Customers new to the system during the transition need not worry, since Weis said it will have quarters available for the first few weeks. While local news group WNEP reports mixed feelings about the carts from shoppers, for now, they’ll just have to get used to carrying more change. —Alarice Rajagopal

Live, breathe Aldi: Can’t get enough Aldi? Try living there. Or if not in the store itself, you can come pretty close via a four-story, 257-unit apartment complex in Tempe, Ariz., being  proposed by the German discount grocer. The 10-acre site will be anchored by an Aldi store, and the apartment complex itself will have pickleball courts, a 2,500-square-foot swimming pool, and outdoor game areas. It’s an Aldi party…and you’re invited! —CR

With this ring, I thee grocery: Price check on…wedding ring. A Wegmans worker in Massachusetts is hoping his customers will come through for him — big time. After Martin Rivera put in a full day bagging groceries, he noticed his wedding ring suddenly absent from his finger. He says it must have fallen off while he was slinging product, and the store was so busy on that day it’s impossible to narrow it down to a shopper or two. Rivera and his wife, Karen, have the same wedding ring, so the couple, which are celebrating their anniversary in August, have sent pictures of the symbol of their love all over social media. Customers also have been encouraging Martin, saying the ring is bound to show up somewhere. No word on whether a cash reward has been offered, but Rivera may want to consider one for whomever comes forward. —BW

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According to the Wall Street Journal, supermarkets and smaller-format grocers are fast on their way to becoming extinct. WSJ said the two made up 37% of Americans' total food spending in 1997, but in 2022 it made up just a quarter of that total. Mega stores like Costco and Walmart are winning out, but do you think the dominance will continue until other stores are forced out? 

Let us know in the comments below, or email your thoughts to the SN staff at [email protected].