Trader Joe's Essay

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Started in 1967, Trader Joe’s was created by Joe Coulombe out of competitive need. Previously, Coulombe was the owner of a chain of convenience stores called “Pronto Market.” Pronto Market stores were known for their convenience items and variety of alcoholic beverages, especially different types of California wines (Traderjoes.com, 2017). Coulombe was able to purchase these stores with financing through Adohr Milk Farms. However, in 1965, Adohr was purchased by 7-Eleven. Coulombe saw the writing on the wall that his stores were next to be threatened by the competitive drive of the 7-Eleven chain. With this scenario playing out, Coulombe knew he had to change his stores’ strategy in order to avoid being taken over or put out of business …show more content…

By analyzing their present and future environment one can get a sense of what direction Trader Joe’s may need to consider in order to stay competitive. In looking at the potential environmental opportunities Joe’s may have, the opportunity to exploit new market segments is definitely a possibility. While Trader Joe’s has been known for very specific target markets for store placement, typically based on education levels in that area, the change in importance of quality ingredients in the mindset of Americans may provide an opportunity for Joe’s to develop a secondary plan for store placement (Forbes.com, 2017). Due to this new mindset of fighting large companies for healthy options without hidden ingredients and better labeling, it may also be an excellent time for Trader Joe’s to seek faster market growth. While the company has been in existence since 1967, they remained in only 15 states by 2001. Since 2001, they are now in 40 states and storefront numbers have gone from around 160 to 418 (Hill, 2017). Between these changed mindsets on the foods people choose to eat and the change in the family work week and the lack of time many have to drive to a specific store, it may be in Trader Joe’s best interest to consider more storefronts and in these other areas in order to increase

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