Introduction The City of Garland’s Economic Development Department has conducted a study on the volatility of grocery stores in the City. The following White Paper will introduce the findings that our department has found pertaining to grocery options, issues that stores are facing, and new initiatives that are underway. The process has been thorough, involving stakeholders throughout the community and multiple data resources. The White Paper is a culmination of all the research and stakeholder input into a clear picture of Garland’s strengths and challenges relevant to future grocery store development. The White Paper is intended to position these strengths and challenges in connection with the future goals and vision of the community stakeholders …show more content…
Currently, there are over 12 large chain grocery store operators with anywhere from one to six locations. It is important to note that there are many more place that sell groceries such as Dollar General or Family Dollar, however, the primary focus of this study was on a more traditional grocery store. Economic Development staff spoke with store managers and real estate managers for each large grocery store in the City. Stores had been categorized into groups for this White Paper to generalize types of grocers. The types of grocery stores that we spoke with are as follows: 1. Hypermarket Grocery Stores: Hypermarket grocery stores (e.g. Walmart Supercenter and Target) offer expansive retail carrying a wide range of products under one roof combining a conventional grocery store with a department store. 2. Conventional Grocery Stores: Conventional grocery stores (e.g. Kroger, Winco and Albertsons) operate under a traditional supermarket format offering a full line of groceries, meat and produce, with some operators offering a mix of general merchandise …show more content…
At the same time, customers are becoming more loyal to certain stores that have lower prices, a better customer experience, and/or are convenient. In the competitive grocery supermarket environment, retailers are trying to meet the needs for the budget conscious and the health conscious consumer. However, groceries are sold in more places these days, with pharmacies and dollar stores looking to groceries to lure customers. Kohl’s recently announced that they will start selling groceries in some of their stores. Newer grocers to the market often find it challenging to compete with the existing