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Hawaiian Shirts: An Investigation into Trader Joe's

  • Writer: Alessia Vialle
    Alessia Vialle
  • Jan 21
  • 3 min read

Sliding doors open to a stream of customers, red shopping carts in hand, standing underneath hand-drawn signs. When checking out, a smiling “crew member”, dressed in a Hawaiian shirt, fills a paper bag, carrying unique products that are often wrapped in handcrafted packaging. They ask about weekend plans or mention that they love a particular new product as they pass the customer-chosen goodies over the conveyor belt. The crew member might even carry the cart back to the customer’s car, if needed.


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Photo Credit: The Salt Lake Tribune


For many, grocery shopping is a dreaded and overwhelming experience at the end of a long workday. Even buying the simplest product –like ketchup – is exhausting: organic; no sugar added; added vegetables; jalapeno; no salt added; sweetened with honey; ‘simply’; and more. Do customers really need this many choices when it comes to one product on their shopping list? Trader Joe’s tries to keep it simple, as having too many options actually requires more effort and can leave customers ultimately unsatisfied. Even the packaging of the products aids the customer in their choice. “[We want to] give our customers information to help them in their decision making, in their shopping. And we want that shopping to be adventurous, to be friendly and fun. It absolutely applies to our product designs and the work to make those packages look great,” says Matt Sloan, VP of Marketing at Trader Joe’s on the podcast Inside Trader Joe's. But simple does not mean boring. Quite often and especially for holidays, unique and exciting products are introduced.  Some are brand new, and some make their comebacks every year.  Many sell out quickly, creating the hunt part of the experience.

Trader Joe’s has commercialized the “neighborhood grocery store” experience and visiting Trader Joe’s can actually be fun. This is not an accident, as it delivers that local feel although it is a large, national chain. One of the ways Trader Joe’s connects with its customers is through the use of handwritten signs instead of computerized labels. Another technique is to really make the employees accessible by calling them “crew members.” These crew members actually seem to like working there, are dressed in a ‘friendly’ manner to make them approachable and know their stuff.  If you ask them to search for the last box of “Jingle Jangle,” they will literally scour the store and backroom until the mystery is solved. It also doesn’t hurt that kids who visit the store can play a game of hide and seek with a hidden stuffed animal.


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Paul J. Richards/Getty Images


Through a series of creative business tactics, Trader Joe’s has established a loyal customer base that regularly uses the grocery store. It sets itself apart from other major supermarkets by developing the image of a simple, accessible, and most importantly, reliable brand. Trader Joe’s intentionally chooses to disregard customer loyalty programs or product discounts, differentiating them from other competitors. By avoiding these common business practices that complicate their pricing model and the overall experience, Trader Joe’s has offered a business quality that consistently provides simple yet effective products to the community. Tara Miller explains Trader Joe’s appeal as a co-host of podcast Inside Trader Joe’s, “When you shop at Trader Joe’s, you know what the prices are going to be. We don’t change our prices unless our costs change. Every customer who enters the store has the same values on every product.” By offering customers lower prices from the beginning and not participating in the weekly deals on specific products, Trader Joe’s caters to the community, making customers feel a sense of belonging that cannot be replicated in other supermarkets. 


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Image via Shutterstock.


Another tactic that the brand utilizes to attract greater amounts of customers and provide for a unique shopping experience is the lack of focus on digital shopping. According to Capital One Shopping, 58% of United States customers buy groceries online. Yet there is no Trader Joe’s mobile shopping app. This is a key differentiator as the company has decided to focus their attention on a “brick and mortar” shopping experience only, making it more appealing to the community, rather than extending digital options to customers. One word stands out for Trader Joe’s: simplified. This is what Trader Joe’s prides itself on and continues to strive for in the future of grocery shopping. So go ahead and hunt for that Laneige lip mask dupe, because yes, it is going to sell out!


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