By Phil Riske | Senior Reporter/Writer
A study published last month by researchers from Washington University found shoppers don’t just choose one store when it comes to grocery shopping.
“People aren’t as store loyal as we thought, Clearly, people are polygamous. The majority of people are shopping at six grocery stores,” the study stated.
Despite that conclusion, I would never cheat on my grocery story, despite my near-death experience last year.
I am one of those routine-oriented people (much to the dismay of my bride, who is spontaneous and adventuresome). So, when something turns my obsession for order on its head, well, I become an unhappy camper (although I don’t camp).
Part of my routine in semi-retired life is to do the grocery shopping. My grocery store over the years became a comfortable place because I knew where everything was, the staff was great, and I had a favorite clerk in the 15-item checkout lane.
There was a time, however, when I went shopping at my favorite grocery store, only to find corporate management has decided to totally redo all the aisles. The store was a mess for two weeks. FREAKED ME OUT!
Where are the canned goods now, you morons? What the hell did you do with the crackers and cookies?
What was usually a 15-20-minute shopping time nearly doubled because I had to ask the hired help where stuff was — and they didn’t know half the time.
And to top it all off, my favorite checkout lady wasn’t there so I could cry on her shoulder.
I got nauseous and faint. I didn’t think I was going to make it to the parking lot alive.
As is always the case, the bagboy says, “Would you like some help out?” I was tempted to get into the cart and have him wheel me to my car.
A little later, I saw a news story the store was sold to an even larger corporation.
I wasn’t sure I was going to recover.
All now is fixed, and I didn’t cheat during that rocky time.
And I always adhere to my wife’s rule to avoid grocery shopping when hungry.
