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| - ETA 2/23/12: Rather than shop here once a week for $25 (down from my 100-200 bill 5 years ago) I now shop exclusively Whole Foods, Trader Joe's and the new Target. There is never any reason to set foot in this Giant Eagle ever again.
I've been a resident of Pittsburgh since 2006 and been shopping at Market District since it opened. Steadily over the past 5 years it has declined in quality. Here are some reasons why:
-The staff and workers surly, unhelpful and downright arrogant. If I have trouble scanning a coupon in self-checkout (which they always manually input and is *always* the machine's fault) it takes me 5 minutes to fla a person down. They're chatting or BS'ing with each other and ignore me. Although there are 20 some checkout lanes, there are never more than a dozen checkout people. This is nonsense. I've shopped early in the morning, lunchtime, 3pm, 7pm and late at night and there is ALWAYS a line for checking out. The lone good employee is Jay, a kindly older man with white hair. Jay is competent and runs circles around others. Jay once loaned me his cell phone to call someone when my wallet and phone were stolen in the parking lot years ago.
-The food is constantly, insanely rearranged. Why do stores rearrange food? So you get distracted and buy more stuff. This is a proven marketing strategy. However, it has gotten to the point in the last 6 months where they move things around SO often and at random that the employees can't keep up. I have to ask for help to find basic vegetables I buy every week (broccoli & cucumbers, for example). In the past 6 months half of the time the poor staffers themselves don't know. I blame Giant Eagle's moronic "middle management" types for abusing market research.
-The food is rarely replenished. For awhile I would have to ask a stockperson to get whole wheat tortillas from the back EVERY WEEK and I don't shop on weekends when it's super busy. This went on for 3 weeks until I finally started buying Trader Joe's whole wheat tortillas - which are always in stock. This has happened for the milk I buy, the shredded cheese, cereals, canned goods, etc.
-The selection is getting crappier while prices rise. More and more products are stocked that are low-brow and fewer new products are stocked (or current products kept in stock) that are more expensive. For example, the rows of Kraft mac n' cheese expand while organic Annie's mac 'n cheese decline. Giant Eagle Market District is serving a well off population. If people from Oakland and the Hill are coming in, build another store for them. I don't wish to shop at a store with more Shurfine products. I understand that food prices have gone up 10% this year HOWEVER I don't see prices increasing at other grocery stores.
-The prices on frozen vegetables is insane. Whole Foods has their house brand of vegetables for $1.25-$1.50 whereas retail Birdseye at GE are $2-2.50. Prices on Hagen Dazs and other high end frozen goods are slightly cheaper or the same price at Whole Foods.
-Overall I find the prices on fruits and fresh vegetables as well as frozen vegetables to be lower and more stable at Whole Foods. When canned goods like whole canned tomatoes or organic beans are on sale at Whole Foods, the deals are better than at GE. This was a place that in 2006 was known as "Whole Paycheck". I spend more and more at Whole Foods these days. Those mini babybel cheese rounds? $1 cheaper at Whole Foods.
In short, instead of spending $100/week at Giant Eagle, I am minimizing my budget there as much as possible to $25/week. I shop mostly at Whole Foods and Trader Joe's now and even a bit at Target, which had 1.5 pounds of Wild Alaskan Salmon for $9 the other week. The farmer's market serves my need of fresh vegetables in the summer.
Giant Eagle has really screwed itself lately. Their employees are surly and useless. I find the most helpful employees and clean, well stocked stores to be Whole Foods and Trader Joe's. As it is we spend nearly as much on food as we do on rent. We are a target demographic that is disgusted with Giant Eagle.
As for the girl who says she has a "foodie boyfriend"? Please. If they required specialty ingredients they would be going to Whole Foods and the Strip District.
Bad move, Giant Eagle. Bad move.
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