Monday, March 05, 2012

Insane Lines Just To Get In: Sunday Afternoon At Trader Joe's On Court

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4 PM Sunday in front of Trader Joe's on Court Street.  I first thought that the store was giving something away for free, but when I asked, I was told by some of the people standing in line that they were just waiting to get IN.  And the line was not moving fast.
Insanity, right?
Needless to say, I did not even attempt to go in.


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22 comments:

Lisanne said...

I hope some of these people thought of going to Sahadi's instead!

Anonymous said...

I can't figure it out. Trader Joe's is not inexpensive by any stretch of the imagination. I've gone there numerous times and turned around and shopped elsewhere because I didn't want to spend so much time waiting. TJ has some nice private-label products, but...

R.Robot said...

The fact that we have a generic Trader Joes in the middle of one of the best food shopping areas in the city.... travesty. Even more so being how popular it is with new and old residents alike.

Rich M said...

That was a bit much. It is always crowded and the line inside to pay is wrapped around the store. I've walked in & out twice lately refusing to wait 20 minutes to pay for a handful of cool items.

Anonymous said...

And all last week people were saying that the new Whole Foods was going to put stores like Trader Joe's (also a large national chain) out of business. Clearly, there is plenty of high end grocery business to go around.

This clearly proves that wrong.

Anonymous said...

We are so lucky to have Trader Joe's

Great food choices, astounsting prices and such a positive attitude...

Ok, I'm a big fan...

For the lines, yes that looks crazy... I know it is difficult to do so, but evening hours after 8pm or early morning almost everyday, the store is nearly empty... And during the weekdays daytime for the lucky homeworkers...

Michele C said...

Oh my goodness! That is crazy! What could you possibly need that would make you wait on that line and not go back another day or go to another store.

tony said...

i don't patronize trader joes--the kazoo voices all going on at once really drives me mad!

Anonymous said...

This particular trader joes seems understocked. Only across the street is a wonderful market and a quick drive away is the Fairway, which I love!!! Of course I am looking forward to Wholefoods also (I know many of you are not, but I can't help but love Wholefoods)

Jillian said...

I was there around 3pm, and while there wasn't a line to get in, the store was filling up with people. It was impossible to move. I guess they hit capacity. But those people in line were probably pretty disappointed when they did get in, 'cause Trader Joe was running out of stock quickly. Anything popular was long gone, and a lot of shelves were half empty. (No, not half full)

Unknown said...

the best time to go is 8 am monday morning but the only folks there are other parents who have been up since 6 so this is prime time for them :) Brooklyn Rocker Dad

Anonymous said...

SERIUOUSLY? Like, where's the fire? I hate that place. All that frozen stuff made god knows where. And when they put stuff in the freezers it's half melted and has to refreeze. I've seen it.
The only thing I like is their peanut butter. Low grade peanuts or foreign peanuts, good taste and cheaper than most. Really why the line when there are 5 million other places to shop a few blocks away!

Anonymous said...

I stopped going after I bought my favorite green tea mochis and came home and realized it had melted and been refrozen (you can tell because the consistency changes). I called and the manager I spoke to was friendly and said I could come in and get a refund - but I don;t think they should have sold it in the first place. I do hear that they treat their employees very well - good health insurance, living wages.

Anonymous said...

I don't understand the love for Trader Joes and the hate for Whole Foods.

Anonymous said...

And people laugh at the cult of Park Slope Food Coop. OMG.

Rob said...

I've been to TJ's before but I have to be honest, what am I missing that makes this place so popular?

Margaret said...

@10:00 people who do not want WF at the corner of 3rd/3rd do not have to be WF haters. It is an out-of-scale project for an inappropriate place that threatens the security of manufacturing in Gowanus, period.

Anonymous said...

Margaret, haven't you realized already that manufacturing in NYC is sadly dead. And soon, it'll be dead in all of North America. Our beloved politicians drove out all the companies. So, considering this, what exactly did you wish to see at the Wholefoods site? I'd rather see a neat store with possibly some nice public space rather than the wasteland of yesteryears it currently is. I wish manufacturing was ever present. My grandparents arrived from Europe on ship and went to work in factories in Brooklyn.

Margaret said...

@11:15 - you are grossly mistaken. Manufacturing and industry in Gowanus is THRIVING. This is a statement of FACT. I was the co-curator of an exhibit at the Brooklyn Historical Society a few years ago celebrating 150 years of Industry in Gowanus. My co-curator, Christine MacKellar, and the project photographer, Enid Braun, and I visited a selected group of business (from a long long list) to show the range and variety of Gowanus Industry. For a description of the exhibit, here is a link. http://brooklynhistory.org/exhibitions/gowanus.html#start
The topic that came up consistently when we were interviewing business owners was the concern over how their businesses could be threatened by potential rezoning. One business, a woodworking industry that, among other things, restores woodwork in Park Slope brownstones (so the Gowanus location is key!), was on a month to month rental because the owner was hoping for rezoning. That's not an ideal way to run a business. Another business needed to find more space because it wanted to expand. It could not find any. Yes, you might think that tere is nothing going on behind those closed doors, but open those doors up, as our exhibit did, and you will be amazed! It was a wonderful experience doing this, by the way! xoxo

Anonymous said...

So glad I went early in the morning !

Anonymous said...

Thank you Margaret, I am 11:15. I know Brooklyn is full of craftsmen and artisans and truly appreciate them. But the manufacturing of yesteryear of Brooklyn, supplied the world with products. All this is now in Asia. My grandmother worked for the Ladies Garment Workers Union at the Arrow factory in Brooklyn.

Margaret said...

@9:30 Is your point that because much clothing is now made oversees we don't need Gowanus zoned for industrial/Manufacturing anymore? Actually, one of the business in our BHS exhibit was a clothing manufacturer. Some of the industries in the exhibit have been around for a very very long time - i.e. the extrusion die mfg (think how your Cheerios and pastas are formed), marble cutting, concrete mixing, a grilles mnf. The list of recipients of the services these companies provide includes the World Trade Center, Radio City Music Hall, the Google bldg, one of Mel Gibson's homes, etc. There was an inventor who creates foldable bikes. The list goes on of what is going on in Gowanus right now if you could open the doors to see. And industry should be encouraged, not threatened. And proximity to the community you serve is crucial for certain industries as well. Can you imagine hiring your custom woodwork for your brownstone from China or India, for example? There were so many businesses we would have liked to have interviewed, but they were too busy. For example, I would have loved to have featured a Mr. Tripiano who restores organs. You originally made the statement that manufacturing is sadly dead. I am countering that with fact and examples that this is NOT TRUE. And the reason I am taking all this time to tell you this is because it is very important to rectify this misperception!