Hungry!

[stickmaker]

For more than a month, I've been trying unsuccessfully to buy several items which I used to get at both of the local Kroger's stores. The two most prominent items are Progresso Reduced Sodium Chicken Noodle soup and Nature Valley Roasted Almond granola bars.

Both stores have spaces on the shelves (in roller racks, actually) for the soup, but both have another flavor of soup in the space for the flavor I want. (And it's different for each store!)

Both stores no longer even have shelf space for the granola bars. Indeed, they seem to have greatly cut back on all varieties of crunchy granola bars, in favor of chewy "granola bars."

Wal-Mart, here I come...

Comments

[kengr]

I've noticed that "space for X filled with Y" stuff at stores before. And from complaining to clerks/managers, at least some of the time, it's because those section s get stocked by folks from another company, and they have a tendency to just go with what they have lots of to fill the shelves.

Or they see Y in the space and add more Y without checking the shelf tag.

But that's mostly chips and sodas. I can't see soup getting stocked by outsiders.

Then again, stockers for the store can have the same sort of tunnel vision.

Regardless of who does it, from what I understand about inventory tracking software, this is a major *hole* in the software. The programs track sales, and order more of stuff that sells well. But they *don't* check actual stock levels directly. So if the slot for X is filled with Y, the inventory program will conclude that the order for Y should be reduced because it isn't selling. When in reality, it's not that it isn't popular, it's that there's none there *to* sell.


So be sure to complain to a *manager* about that sort of stocking problem because the odds are good that the system isn't set up to notice that sort of thing except at inventory time.

So your complaint could clue them in to something they'd otherwise not have a clue about.

[(Anonymous)]

As someone with a sensitive diet, I have the same sorts of problems. There are some brands I can eat, some I can't and have told (via a letter) a supermarket the reason I don't shop there any more was due to such shenanigans.

One thing, when you find a supermarket that HAS what you like/can eat, let them know! Tell them that xyz brand/product is good and why it is. More than likely they wont know your preference/requirements and may even investigate and get more such things.

Good luck finding your soup/bars!

Damaged

[(Anonymous)]

Err, apparently I fail at using livejournal, this was meant to be a reply to the OP.