Too many places to spend our money

[disneysteve]

the locally grown stuff is usually a lot more expensive

Same here. I have a separate thread about that. For example, the farmer's markets are selling locally grown strawberries for $4.50 or $5.00 per quart. The supermarket is selling California strawberries for $3.00 per quart. As much as I'd like to support the local guys, that's a big difference.

[PrincessPerky]

Just curious how much bananas are in your area. Around here, they are probably the cheapest fruit you can find. We pay 39 cents/pound. Apples, grapes, cherries, strawberries, oranges, whatever are all considerably more expensive.

well at the grocery store they run around 69 cents a pound, which is cheaper by the pound than most, one bunch tends to run a couple bucks, say 6 bananas, but a bag of apples can be had for the same price and you get twice as many apples. (though you don't get to look at all of them and find the good ones)

Anyway, we now buy them at BJs for 33 cents a pound, so they are no longer expensive..well less so than other fruit. I was quoting an old thought..which changed, along with discovering variety.

[disneysteve]

We read every package of bread at the store, discounting the white and honey wheat we came up with about 10 whole wheat varietys. Of those, one did not contain high fructose corn syrup

Here's the problem. That store sells 10 kinds of whole wheat bread. Let's say there are another 10 between white and honey wheat. That's 20 different breads to stock. You find the one you like, but the next time you go to the store, you find that they stopped carrying that one to make room for something new. There are literally hundreds of new grocery items introduced each year in the US. That's part of why our grocery stores have become so huge. When I think back to the places I shopped growing up in the 70's, they were tiny compared to where I shop today, but they still had everything we needed. We ate just fine, probably better than today with far fewer processed foods.

[rob62521]

Amen, Disney Steve, on all your posts for this thread. The bread aisle alone is frightening. I know when I was shopping for a digital camera just a couple of years ago the choices were unbelievable and it's gotten worse. And the deodorant and shampoo aisles are a nightmare.

BTW, bananas cost about 40 cents a pound in Central Illinois.

[scfr]

And have you strolled down the hair care aisle lately? Not only are there 30 or more different companies and product lines, but there are now products for every imaginable hair type.

It just dawned on me ... This is another reason I love Costco! Limited choices = Less stressful shopping.

I buy the Kirkland Signature (store brand) shampoo that only comes in one variety, $5.88 for 80 ounces (two 40-ounce bottles), and it works and smells just fine.

[pearlieq]

There are literally hundreds of new grocery items introduced each year in the US.

To be fair, that does keep me employed. I suspect I'm not the only one.

My roommate my sophomore year of college was an exchange student from South Korea. I remember being both thrilled and horrified with our supermarkets and supercenters. She could see pros and cons to each model and I can too.

The market will respond to what consumers want. If folks really don't want 150,000 sf stores and 83 kinds of yogurt, start shopping at the mom-and-pop and only buy plain and strawberry.

Personally I'm not 100% comfortable with the idea of limiting innovation.

[disneysteve]

The market will respond to what consumers want.

I used to believe this, but I really don't anymore. I think marketers have gotten so savvy that they can sell ice to an Eskimo. Was there really consumer demand for ketchup in multiple colors? Were people picketing Kellogg's demanding that they bring out a new "limited edition" cereal for every kids movie that comes out? And I have yet to meet a single person who actually likes Diet Coke with Lime.

I think food manufacturers have gotten to the point where they care more about how much shelf space they occupy than they do about the quality of their product. If the production costs are low enough, getting even a tiny slice of a big pie can rake in the bucks. I think that's the bottom line.

They don't respond to consumer demand. They do everything they can to create consumer demand for products that the average consumer never even dreamed of.

[pearlieq]

And I have yet to meet a single person who actually likes Diet Coke with Lime.

My DH is a huge fan. It's also quite popular in bars as a mixer.

My point was that people buy this stuff. Seriously--tracking this is what I do for a living. They buy the colored ketchup, the limited edition cereals, the Crystal Pepsi, and the low carb beer. When they stop buying it, the manufacturers stop making it. Purchases indicate demand. Consumers are firmly in control of the market.

I give consumers a bit more credit. Most people aren't simpletons who will just buy what they're told. They may try new things, but they don't become longtime buyers just because P&G has a huge development department and a great ad firm. People buy things because they meet a need or desire. Perhaps some of that desire is manufactured, but no system is perfect.

We are flooded with choices. But out of every group of Dryels there's a Swiffer. I don't want us to stop trying, to stop creating, and to stop reaching for something better.

[geomatster]

Too much to buy!

You bet, when I go shopping......I am surrounded by so many choices, I ultimately end up buying things which I dont want. Sometimes I dont get what I want and end up buying something else! Guess we need to pay the price for development

[disneysteve]

My point was that people buy this stuff. Seriously--tracking this is what I do for a living.

Purchases indicate demand.

I don't want us to stop trying, to stop creating, and to stop reaching for something better.

Very interesting topic and I appreciate your input as someone on the "inside" of the field.

As an outsider, an average consumer, it seems to me that companies crank out as many new products as they can to see which will stick. Many fail but there is the occasional blockbuster that makes all the failures worthwhile. I suppose that is the nature of innovation. However, I don't think that is the same as "demand." To me, demand is me doing something and saying, "Boy, I wish they would come up with a better way to do this." Or, "I wish they'd come out with a better tasting whatever." I don't think any parent ever sat at the breakfast table saying, "Gee, I really wish someone would make Shrek cereal."

As for non-food items - toasters, irons, blow dryers, whatever - with low production costs in China, manufacturers are able to offer a much broader array of items, apparently whether we need them or not.

So sure, people buy this stuff, but that doesn't mean we needed it or that it really represents "something better." More is not always better.

[SnoopyCool]

And I have yet to meet a single person who actually likes Diet Coke with Lime.

I have never tried it, but the commercial tune still sticks in my head from time to time (effective marketing?):

You put the lime in the coke, you nut, and drink them both together...

hahaha and grrrrr all at the same time.

[parafly]

I understand your point, but the fundamental key to a capitalistic economy/society is growth. This type of growth and diversification in the economic sector is predictable and inevitable. The alternative is a complete and systematic crash of capitalism.

[disneysteve]

I understand your point, but the fundamental key to a capitalistic economy/society is growth. This type of growth and diversification in the economic sector is predictable and inevitable. The alternative is a complete and systematic crash of capitalism.

Can't you have growth in sales without having growth in the number of product choices? If folks need a blow dryer, they are going to buy one whether there are 3 choices or 20 choices at the store. If they don't need a blow dryer, they aren't going to buy one even if there were 100 choices.

[parafly]

Can't you have growth in sales without having growth in the number of product choices? If folks need a blow dryer, they are going to buy one whether there are 3 choices or 20 choices at the store. If they don't need a blow dryer, they aren't going to buy one even if there were 100 choices.

It isn't only about growth in sales, it's about growth in the economy. A larger number of choices will increase the number of suppliers feeding into the GDP, increase the number of parties exchanging money, and increase the competition to raise levels of quality and service.

The key to capitalism is growth. Diversification, not monopolization, is what drives that growth and allows the system to function properly. At some point, the increase in the number of suppliers will level off, but as long as we live in a capitalistic economy/society, this type of growth is inevitable.

[cschin4]

I no longer shop in a variety of stores. Way too many choices and the more stuff I see, the more likely I am to buy something unnecessary. I do not shop for "recreation". I only shop when I plan to buy something. And, there are only a few stores I go to. If they don't have it, then I don't need it! I basically only shop at Walmart, Sears, the Hardware store, Dollar Store and Grocery store. There isn't anything I need that I cant' get there. Also, it helps me to manage my receipts in case i have things to return as well.