KCRag Forum

Demosthenes wrote:I don't understand the importance of over the top customer service in a gigantic grocery store.

It's not that you expect perfect customer service, but a place that cares about the shopping experience in one place is going to have it in a place you care.

If you hire quality workers that at least care about faking it you don't demoralize the ones that do care. If half your checkout staff makes an effort because they want to it's classic peer pressure for the other half to do the same. You can't always have a manager working, a 6am to 10pm store 7 days a week is 112 hours so the whole staff has to be good enough.

And when you get to a point your workers make an effort on their own because that's how the place is you need less stupid-countering rules so the place is a better place to work.

And when it's a better place to work stuff gets done. That new box of apples goes out sooner so people want to buy them and product doesn't sit and go bad. So you have better quality to purchase as a consumer and the store gets more profit from less waste.

Compare walmart to hyvee or trader joes or whole foods or any of the higher end chains in the area. hyvee has a many workers on hand as a walmart store twice the size, it's food quality in perishables is usually better, prices are comparable, and they are doing well. their niche is that good food quality and decent customer service brings in customers and profits follow. they then steer sales into highly profitable connected businesses like caterings, wine experts to increase sales of that, the high end meat cuts and such

Fencing is up around the site. Looks like work might begin soon.

Per Twitter, the existing building is being moved today

from the 12/15 CPC agenda:

4 JE 3. Case No. 14555-MPD-1 - About 2.84 acres generally located south of E 51st Street between Brookside Boulevard and Oak Street to consider the approval of final development plan in District MPD (Master Planned Development) for a multilevel structure containing a grocery store, retail sales, offices, residential uses and parking.
Applicant: 51st & Oak, LLC

Last time I drove by there, it looked like hole in the ground foods.

A lot of prep work now going on with the foundation, pile drivers and heavy materials on site.

earthling wrote:A lot of prep work now going on with the foundation, pile drivers and heavy materials on site.

<Engineering Pedant>
Those are probably drill rigs similar to what they have used on the recent new construction downtown. I can't see the Brookside crowd putting up with pile drivers.
</Engineering Pedant>

Yeah, could be. They looked like pile drivers but didn't get a close look.

earthling wrote:pile drivers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlMSJUtqYF4

Was biking home from Brookside and snapped this. Tower crane now up...

south plaza neighborhood newsletter says the water and sewer work is done.

you guys might have your urban whole foods up and running at the pace that the finish work appears to be progressing at the central west end store. it seems to be stuck in that dust-on-the-inside-of-the-glass and nothing seems to be happening...mode.

for comparisons sake...the new urban whole foods in st. paul broke ground in august 2014 and opened it's doors last month...i think they broke ground in st. louis in december 2013, haha.


media.wholefoodsmarket.com

i 'm not a fan of these upper floor setbacks on some of the MPLS-STP mixed use projects, i must say...

Do these renderings and placement still stand?

New concept for Whole Foods:
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/rbc-anal ... 09721.html
"Whole Foods has a new store concept it has dubbed "365 by Whole Foods Market."

“A modern, streamlined design with innovative technology and a carefully curated product mix will offer an efficient and rewarding way to grocery shop," Whole Foods' Jeff Turnas said in a press release.
...
"In an effort to increase efficiencies, the backroom cooler and crisper are right behind the produce department," Kirk observed. "There is an Aloha ordering interface by the meat counter, but more curiously, there are four by the centrally located checkout area. Whole Foods has ordered only one meat weigh station, suggesting a preference for pre-labeled/pre-packaged meat (lower labor, but more out-of-stock risk). Meat and seafood sections appear to share a common kitchen/prep space, which also includes a pizza oven."

As far as innovative technology is concerned, we got some clues about that as well.

"Service counters appear to be less abundant than at a legacy WFM," Kirk said. "Instacart has been allotted space by the secondary entrance... Four preferred parking spots for electric cars.""

"curated product mix"

Fuck this world.

Chin up, chingon.

A pair of Amish-inspired narrow-gauge bison-leather button-tab suspenders will bring your day into proper focus.

On schedule to open next summer...
http://www.kansascity.com/news/business ... k=hpdigest

The complex includes a Whole Foods grocery, a 170-unit apartment structure, a student health center and a parking garage on the 2.84-acre site. When completed, UMKC will relocate its current student health center from 4825 Troost to the new location.

The complex is designed to include six levels of apartments, a mix of studios, one- and two-bedroom units, and a six-level parking garage with 445 spaces.

Not crazy about the windowless streetlevel. Maybe I'm being too critical but perhaps the second worst thing to walking along surface lots is a building with blank walls. Does the Star show the latest rendering?

earthling wrote:Not crazy about the windowless streetlevel. Maybe I'm being too critical but perhaps the second worst thing to walking along surface lots is a building with blank walls.

I agree. An epic failure at the street level.