Community Chat

[Harvard99]

@Its Me LuLuBelle2 @homedecor1   I've lived in S. Florida for 33 years and for all but the last 6-8 years,  Publix had little to no competition.  It's wasn't like up north with so many different shopping choices.  Winn Dixie was always here but was inferior to Publix in every way.  Albertsons left here ages ago.

Walmart  and Target came along with in store groceries with low prices and then Walmart opened their Neighborhood Market stores everywhere they didn't have a superstore.

Then supermarkets cropped up to serve the Latin shoppers (Publix opened strictly Latin stores but failed and they closed).  Next, Whole Foods and Trader Joe's opened up here.

Now Aldi has been here for 5 or more years and they're giving Walmart and Publix a run for their money.  Lidl, another European chain like Aldi is scheduled to come into this market next.

Because of all this competition, Publix is cheaper than they used to be.  Since they are the largest privately owned corporation in the state of Florida, I hope they can survive. They have never had to compete with all these other companies. I think they are having a harder time than they've ever had before.

Eta-  Produce prices are higher here because our second largest industry, agriculture, exports all our best produce, and we get the leftovers at the highest price. Tomatoes, etc, have no flavor because our soil is basically sand,

And there is nothing like a Jersey beefstake tomato or NJ or NY fresh corn.  If you haven't had it, it's hard to describe the incredible taste.  Delish!

[gidgetgh]

Publix is my go to here in Atlanta.  We have 5 close to us.  Terrific stores.

I only go to Kroger if I'm looking for a specific item that Publix doesn't have, which is very rare.

Walmart is the other choice closest to us.  I don't grocery shop there and the grocery section is always so freezing cold that I can't handle staying in there long.

[FrostyBabe1]

I absolutely LOVE Publix and wish we had them up north. I’d shop there instead of Meijer or D&W in a heartbeat! The Publix on my island is somewhat unique in that they had to design a smaller store to fit within the property that was available to them. As a result, the aisles are narrower than other stores and the selection may not be as vast as other stores, but I can always find what I need. Unfortunately, it’s the busiest time of the season, so I’ve learned to do my grocery shopping at either 7 AM on Sunday morning or 8 PM on Thursday night. Folks that have just arrived on Saturday  for a week are either still sleeping on Sunday morning, and by Thursday night, they’re done buying groceries.

[JCF]

@Its Me LuLuBelle2:  I moved to FL from KY in 1996 and fell in love with Publix.  In 2006 after retirement my husband and I moved to middle TN to be closer to family in Franklin and Nashville.

In 2006 there were not any Publix in TN and I thought I was going to have a withdrawal.

In 2007 or 2008 Publix came in to TN and they are now in so  many TN cities.  I'm once again in my Publix element. 

I was in a city about a 90 minutes from where we live and I went in  the brand new Publix.  This particular one has a salad bar a hot bar where there is a featured meat of the day that is carved for you at time was ordering.  It had more amenities than the older ones.  As long as it's Publix I can still shop the original's.

[tarsmom]

I'm going to FL for a visit soon and can't wait to go to Publix.  Their almond bear claw is divine!  Their store brand yogurt is really good, too.  Nice, clean store!

[Marp]

@Its Me LuLuBelle2, I've not yet read the responses to your post so perhaps this has been already been mentioned.  Publix is an "employee owned" company and I believe that, along with company policies and expectations, is a primary reasonfor how Publix stores are operated.  Everyone has a vested interest in Publix's success and part of that success depends on happy customers.

[jlkz]

@Its Me LuLuBelle2 

Loved your post on Publix !  We too are snowbirds but because of a December heart issue, we are just leaving today for Naples.  Cannot wait to do Publix:  they are exactly as you described.

We normally shop for dinner stuff around 7 PM...but one night got back from an adventure late.  DH was looking for their meatballs and saw none.  An employee saw him searching, came over and said he would make some up.  Their meatballs are excellent.  ( so are their breads and pastries unfortunately! )

That kind of service just doesn’t happen here !

[riley1]

There are 2 Publix stores in about an 8 mile radius from me and both are fairly new. Both clean and store managers and workers couldn't be nicer.

However, there is one about an hour from me that is an older store and could use a "facelift". Not as clean or up to date either.

We also have Lowe's food stores that are very nice as well.

IMO, both of these stores are pricier than say a ShopRite which is where I shopped before I moved.

[songbird]

I've only been there a couple of times, when I was visiting in Florida.  At home we don't have it.  Just their rivals Wegman's. 

I haven't been to any supermarket in the past year or so.  Thanks to Amazon Fresh, I order all my groceries have it delivered the following day.

[CelticCrafter]

We've recently had a Lidl open up and our Aldi expanded.

Shoprite has been getting less and less of our money for our everyday staples.

So far there are only 1 or 2 things that we wouldn't buy again from Lidl or Aldi.