In the PNW, I don't think it even creates the illusion. What grocery stores are left that wouldn't be under that umbrella? In Redmond, WA, the only ones that come to mind are Trader Joe's, PCC, and Whole Foods. One could probably shop at PCC and get everything one needs for food. Whole Foods, sure, but it's pricey and now you're dealing with just another giant corporation trying to eat the world.
But it is starting to look like there's going to be Kroger and Publix (if you live far enough south). Meanwhile our government agencies are over there playing with their fiddles.
Near me, the QFC is tiny compared to the Fred Meyer stores. It's much more convenient to get in and get out quickly. Prices are higher than Fred Meyer on most things so we tend to use it for items we ran out of and do our weekly shopping elsewhere.
There's a lot of Kroger-labeled things on the shelves, so it's clear they're owned by the same company.
Another option are the organic-only stores, like Natural Grocers.
>Near me, the QFC is tiny compared to the Fred Meyer stores.
QFCs are essentially just the "Grocery" department from Fred Meyer. Remove Home Goods, Apparel and Electronics from FM and you've got yourself a QFC.
Edit: Someone step in here and correct me if I'm wrong, but that's Kroger's basic MO. Even Ralph's and their Kroger-branded stores just feel like the exact same grocery store as QFC and FM's grocery department.
And (sorry to rant, lol), yeah, a dude named Fred Meyer in Portland really did found the store in the 1920's, but do y'all have to put his picture and a big spiel about him and "local community" up at the front of your store when we all know that the present-day reality of FM is bullshit?
Good point, I've missed quite a few. I guess I was thinking more of "one stop shopping", which even PCC barely qualifies for only a select group of people. But at the end of the day, should the merger go through and Krogerson's tries to go all monopoly, the listed alternatives will serve as mitigating factor.
As far as "one stop shops" go, there are few in the PNW. I'm down in Federal Way, and though we have Fred Meyer and the Walmart Super Center, everything else (Safeway, QFC, Trader Joe's, WinCo, Grocery Outlet, Chefs'tore and possible Amazon Fresh, though I've not been in there yet) are just grocery stores, and Target and Costco (plus what we call "the old WalMart, used primarily as a management training store for WalMart) are big-box stores that also happen to carry food.
With the rise of e-commerce, I don’t really see the allure of one stop shopping.
I live in the PNW and almost never go to Kroger/Safeway stores. I just want groceries, I don’t want to have to wade through endless cruft to get there.
That's true, but there's no Walmart in Redmond itself. The Seattle area is unusually Walmart-light, as I explained in a comment on a similar thread the other day.[1]
> What grocery stores are left that wouldn't be under that umbrella?
The best one, Winco. And of course, Walmart, Target, Costco, New Seasons, Trader Joe’s, Grocery Outlet, Natural Grocers, etc. Lidl and Aldi are making huge gains nationwide too.
A big shout-out for Winco--albeit their ~140 stores is dwarfed by the Kroger, Albertsons, and Publix triumvirate. Winco is without a doubt the best non-luxury grocery store I've been to in decades.
How did tiny Boise, Idaho birth both the worst mega-grocer (Albertsons) and one of the best?
Personally I've moved all my shopping to ethnic grocers, but I'm lucky to live in a diverse area with multiple Mexican, asain, and African ones nearby. I also cook all of my food, selection would be awful if you stick to more pre-made stuff probably.
I would honestly be surprised if Amazon didn't have a large network of grocery stores in the PNW within the decade. The no cashier system seems to be working well in D.C. and removes both a huge pain point for customers and a huge cost center for the business. I expect them to be really aggressive with this, especially on home turf.
I’d take the other side of that bet. Their walk-in walk-out arent doing well in urban Seattle. When I lived in the city, I hated going there and preferred going to the QFC nearby. I’d expect it would do even worse in a suburban setting.
The one across the street from where I live does quite well, and compared with the QFC up the street, I prefer it. It doesn’t have a meat counter or fresh bakery (stuff is clearly trucked in), but for most stuff, I prefer it and can also return Amazon packages there.
But Amazon already has a big PNW chain (and nationally, too): Whole Foods
Appropriately for this post there's a Haggen's a little north in Woodinville. Just across the border into Bellevue there's the Asian family market, Mayuri, and a host of other small Indian/Asian stores. Target and Costco are also options as other's mentioned.
But it is starting to look like there's going to be Kroger and Publix (if you live far enough south). Meanwhile our government agencies are over there playing with their fiddles.