"Bottom Dollar Food"

[JohnnyRingo]

A new grocery store opened near here with that name. I'm no marketing analyst, nor do I have a background in business, but I was shocked that anyone would use "Bottom Dollar" to bring in customers to buy food.

I know people look for bargains these days to stretch their food budget, but I assume everyone wants to at least pretend they're getting quality goods when it comes to the family dinner. Bottom Dollar Food's slogan could just as well be "We all know you're poor, leave what's left of your pride at home and save a few bucks".

This is like opening a repair shop called "Good 'Nuff Brakes".

http://www.bottomdollarfood.com/

[enough]

1. I think that name is more likely to appeal to older people than younger.

My parents and grandparents, born in the 1890's and 1920's respectively, used that phrase with a distinct connotation of being thrifty. They were not ashamed of being thrifty, they saw it as a sign of intelligence and discipline. They were proud of it.

However, most of those people are gone by now, and I agree that people in the current generations are likely to see the name with a negative connotation of swallowing pride. Funny how things change.

[Loudly]

2. Starve-Yall Foods

[gelsdorf]

3. Owned by the same folks as Food Lion

Low pay low help

[Brickbat]

4. It's not a super-new name; it's been around in some areas for several years.

[shraby]

5. That's a big problem in this country these days..too many people pretend.

Pretend they "need" to carry a gun.
Pretend they are rich because they drive a huge vehicle.
Pretend they are rich because they built a McMansion that they can hardly afford to heat and keep the lights on.
Pretend their living room is huge because they put a 50" t.v. in it.
Pretend they are helping the economy and jobs because they voted for republican.
Pretend they have mucho bucks because their child goes to a private school..or a school run by the church/
Pretend "organic" foods are better than any other kind.
Pretend they are patriotic because they put a ribbon on their car or fly a flag at their home.

I for one am sick of pretenders. Come on people, come back to the real world. Put your feet on the ground and look around you. 99% of the 99% are pretty much the same...their farts stink, they put one leg at a time into their pants.

[surrealAmerican]

27. To quote a children's book:

" How can you see something that isn't there?" yawned the Humbug, who wasn't fully awake yet.
"Sometimes it's much simpler that seeing things that are," he said. "For instance, if something is there, you can only see it with your eyes open, but if it isn't there, you can see it just as well with your eyes closed. That's why imaginary things are often easier to see than real ones."
- Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth

They're not so much pretending, as unable to see the real world.

[djean111]

6. I am living on my social security right now.

I would certainly check that store out.
Can't eat pride. Can't eat pretense.
And interesting how some cheap things have the same ingredients as the pricier stuff, just no advertising budget.
I don't want to pretend anything.
I really mean no offense, but your attitude about this is more demeaning than going to a cheaper food store

[Indpndnt]

11. Well said.

[djean111]

13. Thanks.

Guess it is not just the conservatives who jeer at poor people, eh?

[JohnnyRingo]

17. Once again...

..someone made it their fucking goal to make me rue posting in DU. Thanx for that.

My point, which apparently went right over your judgmental head, is that it's poor marketing in my opinion. My mother shopped at off price groceries when I was young, and often bought white label generic items, but she did it at stores like Valu King where they knew a name should focus on quality and a positive image. Even Aldis knows not to use words that demean the pride of shoppers looking to shave pennies from their budget.

Fortunately, self righteous people like you make me get up from the computer and get outside to do something constructive, and that's exactly what I'm going to do now.

[djean111]

19. It is judgemental of you to assume people would be checking their pride at the door.

[Are_grits_groceries]

20. Are you in a horrible situation now trying to obtain food with little money?

I would go to that store in a heartbeat. I would check out what they sold and its quality. Would "Dollar Store Food" be any different? That is a concept in use for years.

How about if there are no other stores like this around? People should starve rather than use them?

It isn't an optimum name. However, your disdain attaches itself to the people who use it whether you mean to or not. This attitude adds more negativity to people who are barely getting by.

Direct your fire specifically at the executives who run it. That's better than a scattershot approach that takes in others who have enough problems.

As far as judgemental, i suggest you be real careful getting off your very high horse. You might break something.

[liberal_at_heart]

22. I think instead of demanding poverty stricken customers shop at other stores, we should be demanding

our politicians raise the standard of living in this country. We need a fully funded social net such as food stamps, SS, Medicare, and Medicaid. We need a fully funded education system, a living wage, and single payer health care. Then not only would poverty stricken customers be able to chose where they shop, but the employees at these discount stores would have a better standard of living as well.

[JohnnyRingo]

37. My entire point was that I think it's bad marketing.

I was even careful to add a line that expressed my compassion for people who have to stretch their food budget, but perhaps you misread my post and added your own content.

I know for a fact that negative words are important in branding. Logos that point downward are shunned and names that impart a sense of low quality are more important than a brand name that focuses on saving money when it comes to our food safety. Aldis is well known as a cut rate grocer, but they didn't call it "Aldis Cheap Food" for a good reason. BTW, I live next to a Dollar General and shop there regularly, but it's not called "Last Dollar General", is it?

If you disagree with me and believe that the name "Bottom Dollar Foods" is a great name and a sure sign that you will definitely save money at that store, then I respect your unfounded opinion, but I think it will become a stigma for most in a very competitive market. Many Americans have to cut corners to put food on the table, but very few want to broadcast that fact by shopping at stores that openly advertise price over quality. WalMart knows this as seen in their commercials where people can't believe those juicy steaks came from their store. The overall message is quality, regardless of fact.

As a GM retiree, I don't appreciate your implication that I deride those who live paycheck to paycheck, as I survive in the same boat, although I no longer have a family in my home. If the name "Bottom Dollar" gets you into that store, good for you, but you'll have to cross a picket line to save those pennies. Bottom Dollar refuses to entertain union bids for construction of their stores, even if that bid potentially comes in below what they end up paying, so I personally don't care how low their food prices purport to be. For the record, that's exactly how fucking high my horse is.

[1000words]

40. I got your point, and it's valid.

I have vast marketing and advertising experience, btw.

[LanternWaste]

52. If people shop there, it's likely not poor marketing...

If people shop there, it's likely not poor marketing... regardless of whether you believe that people who take exception to a poorly thought out premise are judgmental or not.

[JohnnyRingo]

14. My Mom was very frugal when I was young...

...but at least she shopped at Valu King to cut corners on the budget. It too was a low priced off brand grocery store, but like Aldis today they didn't put it in the name. "Bottom Dollar Food" sounds like they stock the shelves from the Giant Eagle dumpster.

This post isn't about demeaning the needy, it's about simple marketing and I'm sorry you missed that point. I refer you to the fictional "Good 'Nuff" Brake Shop I mentioned. Do you really think people would go there hoping to save a few bucks? I don't, even if they use the same parts as Monroe.

[djean111]

18. "Good 'Nuff" Brake Shop implies, to me, dangerous cost-cutting.

Bottom Dollar just seems to be front and center about price.
"Past its Due Date But Hey! You're Poor, So You Can't Be Choosy" might be something to avoid, though. :-O

I would rather go somewhere like that (Bottom Dollar) and look around than buy overpriced and pretentious food at Whole Foods.

Oh, and to someone else - I think organic vegetable grown without pesticides and herbicides are better for my body.
And the difference between an organic tomato from a local farmer and a pasty chalky tasteless tomato that was bred to just last longer in transit and look pretty and stack more uniformly is amazing.

As far as calling people pretending and being pretentious - my dad used to say "mind you own damned plate" when we talked about other people in any sort of gossipy or jeering way. Great advice.

And as I got older I realized, too, that caring about what other people thought so much that it would change the way I shop or whatever is just plain ridiculous.

[Warpy]

15. And how. I'd shop there

I've shopped at the Dollar Store for food, Bottom Dollar could hardly be worse in terms of overstock near its expiration date.

There's also nothing wrong with slightly limp vegetables that cooking won't improve.

Hunger is a pain in your midsection that never goes away. It can drive you completely crazy.

This place will probably thrive a lot better than yuppie stores if the current economic trend toward debt peonage continues.

[RebelOne]

32. Living on Social Security also.

I am lucky that my local Kroger has some fantastic prices and 5% off on Wednesdays for senior. I would also check that store out if there was one in my area, but I have never heard of one here in Georgia. Think I will Google it.

[shanti]

7. Really no different

than the well-known 99 cent/dollar tree stores.

[panader0]

8. A local construction company (I forget their name)

has a slogan "Quality is not an option."

[hatrack]

51. Wow, that could have been phrased better . . .

[lonestarnot]

9. Who owns that deal?

[NightWatcher]

10. At Least It's Not Catfood wouldn't fit on the sign out front?

[Liberal_in_LA]

41. good catfood is expensive

[leveymg]

12. Avoid the discount Sushi.

[MineralMan]

16. Aldi's has pretty much the same concept here.

Low prices, generic store brands, and weekly specials. Very popular.

[RebelOne]

33. There are two Aldi stores with a 5-mile radius of my house.

I shopped at one of them once, but was very wary of their off brands, and all the vegetables looked wilted.

[MineralMan]

34. I've not shopped at Aldi's. I did do a walk through of the

store nearest me, but wasn't impressed. As you said, I'm not convinced of the quality of their store brands.

[lynne]

42. Bottom Dollar is different from Aldi -

- I've shopped at both. Aldi sells mostly their own brand. Very rarely can I find a national brand at Aldi and if I do it's only there as a limited one-time deal. Bottom Dollar sells mostly national brands as well as their store brand, which is the same as Food Lion and Bloom.

[kentuck]

21. Second hand food...

Because, by golly, you deserve it...

[Marrah_G]

23. I'd shop there

I used to be able to stretch my budget and buy really healthy food, I was really proud of that. Now I have another mouth to food and only one income so shopping is often potatoes, carrots, onions, spagetti, hot dogs, mac n cheese and ramen. It's depressing.

[Freddie]

24. I shop there pretty regularly

It's not much different than a "regular" supermarket. Smaller, less variety, no deli or in-store bakery. Store brand and national brands. Some things are cheaper than the regular store (dairy, bread, canned veggies) and some are not. I find I still have to go to the regular store for many items Bottom Dollar dosen't have so I only go in there once a month to stock up on the truly cheaper things.

[JVS]

25. My neighborhood got a bottom dollar after 10 years of the closest one being vacant.

It's great. It's not low-quality, it's just limited selection. For example, if you're looking for the full lineup of every detergent on the market, you won't get that. They have Tide, All, and a generic. The produce is good if you're not looking for anything exotic. The biggest change from what the grocery store used to be 10 years ago is that they don't have an in-store bakery.

[msanthrope]

26. The one in the neighborhood next to mine is the same. I'll run in there for milk

and an onion....things I've run out of. The seniors love it.

[JVS]

28. Yeah, this place does a lot of business with seniors.

I think the typical supermarket has gotten larger than their mobility. The building was a Kroger in the 1970s. Now it's only big enough to be a Bottom Dollar.

[Freddie]

31. True, the small size is an advantage

My town's Bottom Dollar seems small but it's in a building that was built for a "brand-new all modern" A & P in 1972.

[msanthrope]

36. I think that's a great point. Bottom Dollar isn't fancy, but it's got the essentials at a decent

price, in a smaller footprint.

[Freddie]

29. And they don't bag your groceries

Which is a bit of a pain if you're buying a lot. I keep bags from the regular store on my car in case I stop there.
Contrary to what some are saying here, Bottom Dollar does not carry overstock or near-expired food. It's just a limited selection, either store brand ("My Essentials&quot or national brand.

[Bigmack]

30. This is NOT one of those...

.."pull yourself up by your bootstraps" posts.

It's meant as a helpful suggestion from somebody who learned how to cut a corner or two.

Check the Craigslist "free" section. Lots of firewood (Wa. state), chickens (yes, free chickens), "please come and pick the apples off my tree".....

You would be amazed at the stuff people are giving away. Lotta crap, but there's diamonds buried in that crap.

Scrounging... it's not just a sport, it's a lifestyle.

[pipi_k]

49. A proud scrounger...

Some years back I knew a couple of guys (one I lived with, the other I did not) who thought that it was important to spend as much as possible on stuff. Which wasn't the main problem. The main problem was that they insisted on people knowing about their "discerning" tastes.

Annoying as hell.

I get a charge out of knowing how little I pay for stuff. And if I can get it for free, all the better.

So in the past couple of weeks I've bought a few nice fall/winter sweaters on eBay. I got three for what I would have paid from a catalog. And they were all new...good quality, too.

I'm not above getting hand-me-downs (although it's hard now since I don't know anyone who wears the same size I do). But yeah...I'm not too proud.

[RebelOne]

35. Googled for store location and they are only in three northern states,

so my state of Georgia was not one of them.

[JohnnyRingo]

38. The Bottom Dollar here was built on the other side of a picket line.

That may not be a factor in the South, but it means a lot here in NE Ohio.

Bottom Dollar Foods refuses to entertain union bids, even if that bid could potentially comes in as the winning bid. It's their corporate model that they contract only non-union construction companies and deal exclusively with independant truckers.

Though my point in the OP is only that I thought the name was a poor marketing choice, I'll cut out cable and phone before I have to cross a picket line to save a few pennies on food. I'm a 2nd generation GM retiree , and some things are more important than shopping at stores that openly shun union labor.

[lynne]

39. Bottom Dollar, Food Lion, Bloom = All same company -

- operating under different names for different demographics of shoppers. Our one store has switched from Food Lion to Bloom then back to Food Lion. Our Bottom Dollar then switched to Food Lion. You'll find many of the same brands at Bottom Dollar, including all the name brands, but the Bottom Dollar store may have less selection, no "specialty" departments such as deli, bakery, etc.

I've shopped there before and managed to find the same quality items at a few cents less.

[REP]

43. "Bottom Dollar" means to be absolutely sure of something - bet your bottom dollar

So while this phrase does indeed sound awkward, it was no doubt meant to suggest quality food at low prices.

[Myrina]

44. "Bottom Dollar: because pretty soon the shit Aldi sells is gonna seem gourmet" ...

Sigh.

[KurtNYC]

45. what's wrong with Aldi? It is the same food as Trader Joe's

[Yo_Mama]

46. I disagree. I think many people have a better value system

than to be worried about what other people think of them for shopping at a store or feel like they are too stupid to figure out whether they are getting decent food for what they are paying. If they walk in and don't think it's a good deal they'll walk back out.

It's the people who shop at Whole Foods because of the "aura" that have pride management defects, not the ones who go to Dollar General, the Dollar Store, or yes, a store named "Bottom Dollar Food".

The name alone conveys to the prospective customers what the marketing aim of the store is, and it makes more sense to use your name to tell your customers what you are all about than to spend a lot of money advertising little bouncing yellow signs.

Your error is in presuming that a store like that would automatically have inferior food. Often it's just food that doesn't carry the marketing costs. Expensive food isn't automatically better, and cheaper food isn't automatically worse.

I am not criticizing Whole Foods and I am not endorsing Bottom Dollar Food, but I think your concern here is odd. A lot of genuinely rich people shop at "economy" stores because they know the value of a buck. There's a reason why Warren Buffet is still living in his old ranch house!

[Demo_Chris]

47. I like it. Some of us (me, for one) can afford neither pride nor quality. I hope I make the winter.

[MadrasT]

48. Are you unfamiliar with the phrase "Bet your bottom dollar"?

It means to be absolutely certain of something.

I don't get a negative image upon hearing "bottom dollar food" at all. To me, the implication is that you can put your trust in them.

[pipi_k]

50. I guess it remains

to be seen whether or not it's a bad business decision to name a store "Bottom Dollar".

Although I wouldn't have a problem with it.

Hell...I'd even shop at "Cheap Fuckers Food Market" if the prices and quality were fairly decent enough.