We live near a Kowalski's, a super-upscale grocery store (I know, the name isn't redolent of "the good life"). What a contrast it presents to the rest of the pack--Rainbow and Cub Foods. A trip to Kowalski's really is not an unpleasant way to spend time. On other other hand, I generally spend as little money as possible there, because prices are SOOOO high.
So, the other night, as Beth and I were strolling through it, I got to thinking about what makes Kowalski's so much nicer than the other stores. There are many things: more and better help, high-end products, more open space, beautiful displays, non-spartan floors, high ceilings with incandescent lighting. Clearly, the low-price competitors (or what seems to pass for low prices in MN) can't do all these things and remain low price competitors.
I have been reading Moneyball. This book talks about the Oakland A's pursuit of "new baseball knowledge", of overlooked ways to allocate payroll dollars that will generate disproportionate returns on investment. Putting those two thoughts together makes me wonder--are there a few things they could afford to do, that would close the shopping-experience gap?
I have two ideas: dress up the concrete floor (I think Kowalski's is merely painted, albeit a very classy, textured paint job), and ditch the fluorescent lights. Kowalski's is high-ceilinged, and the ceiling is black. The floor is an ochre-orange shade. The overall effect this produces is, while remaining brightly lit and functional, a calm, sophisticated night-time feel.
9:46:09 PM 
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