Turns out, Trader Joe was a real guy...

[DGUtley]

Turns out, Trader Joe was a real guy...

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Turns out Trader Joe was a real guy, and his shrewd instincts led him to create a counter-culture grocery empire.


Joe Coulombe, a struggling convenience store owner in Los Angeles, decided in 1967 to open a grocery chain to appeal to the small but growing number of well-educated, well-traveled consumers that mainstream supermarkets were ignoring. “I have an ideal audience in mind,” he told the Los Angeles Times in 1981. “This is a person who got a Fulbright scholarship, went to Europe for a couple of years and developed a taste for something other than Velveeta” ordinary beer and Folgers coffee, he said.


Coulombe recognized that international travel was about to explode thanks to the new Boeing 747 hitting the market. For the name of his new store, Coulombe landed on Trader Joe’s to evoke exotic images of the South Seas. The name was inspired by Trader Vic’s, a popular Tiki Bar restaurant started in California.


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https://www.cnn.com/2022/05/07/busin...mbe/index.html

[Peter1469]

I like Trader Joes. I just have never lived close enough to one to use it.

[DGUtley]

I also like it. They're about 35 miles from us. They open early on Sundays so b/c we hit Mass on Saturdays we go then before the crazies get up.

[Common]

I have no one near me at all...I like their products...Its Aldis Big Brother

Which Reminds me Aldi isnt what it used to be, they have less imported products and alot of gargbage instead....shame it was a great place to get certain things at one time

[Peter1469]

I also like it. They're about 35 miles from us. They open early on Sundays so b/c we hit Mass on Saturdays we go then before the crazies get up.

Good plan.

[Collateral Damage]

I have a Trader Joes fairly local to work. They have a couple things I enjoy, but not worth a specific trip. If I happen by it, I'll stop, but otherwise, eh.