Randall’s brings reason to a 3-ring grocery shopping circus

Have you seen this before?

The scene is your local grocer. Mom or Dad scrambles for the groceries while their son or daughter tries to incite mayhem. Dad stretches for the wheat bread on the top shelf; while his son sneakily reaches for that 32 ounce ‘breakable’ glass jar of jelly. Meanwhile, your daughter has fled to Aisle 3, the home of the various trail mix snacks and candies, and she’s ready to sample.

Personally, I know how difficult it is to grocery shop with children. Young brains don’t mesh with methodically checking things off the grocery list and planning meals on the fly. To a child, the grocery store is not a place to purchase necessities for the week, but a place of wonderment, creativity, imagination.

To avoid madness and a plodding headache, I play along with the kids. Every trip down HEB’s aisle 3 becomes ketchup and mustard fun and games. I am the walking hot dog while my children pretend to cover me in ketchup and mustard – unbreakable bottles with the lids-on, of course.

Any busy, child-toting parent knows that reading labels or prices becomes challenging amidst the chaos. To survive, I’ve becomes a speed-scanner of labels and prices.

I saw a recent TV spot from Randall’s, an HEB competitor; Randall’s may have found a better way. The noise you just heard was parents breathing a collective sigh of relief.

Randall’s is now promoting recognizable, consistent signage throughout the store, stressing benefits near many different products: Gluten Free, Organic, Sugar Free, Good Source of Fiber, Fat Free.

We all want to eat healthier.

We all want to make sure our children are getting proper nutrition as their minds and bodies grow, but who has the time to scan the microscopic type of many food labels?

Now, I am not expecting that the nation’s grossly obscene obesity rates plummet because of Randall’s simple, clear signage, but it could help us down the path of smarter nutritional choices.

Randall’s is clearly relying on the manufacturers to truthfully share the nutritional information; let’s hope these manufacturers hold up their end of the deal. As consumers, we are confident and thankful that we can quickly make smart, reasoned decisions ‘on the fly’ while our children may have mischief on their minds.

Thanks Randall’s for helping to make Aisle 3 an intelligent menu not a war zone. Don’t fret; you’ll still find me doing the Aisle 3 hot dog dance – no matter what the sign says.

Want more on grocery stores and retailing? Check it.
(reminder: this was written before the ubiquity of mobile devices.)

Until next time,

Dan Naden