Fresh & Easy Is Coming to Town

Fresh & Easy Buzz is a blog with a wide readership: Fresh & Easy execs, Tesco execs in the U.K., Fresh & Easy store workers, people in the food and grocery industry globally, and consumers in general all over. Pacifica Riptide has been trading comments and news with Fresh & Easy Buzz about Pacifica's new Fresh & Easy store now under construction in Pedro Point shopping center. We would like to hear from you. Just click Comments at the bottom of this post. CROSS-POLLINATION: PACIFICA RIPTIDE AND FRESH & EASY BUZZ

Comments

[John Maybury]

I just heard back from Howard Beerford of the Fresh & Easy blog. He is happy to put his name on his posts and is interested in having an open dialog with other Riptide readers about Tesco and Fresh & Easy. Howard says he is an independent blogger with no ties to Tesco or Fresh & Easy. I encouraged him to continue updating Riptide with any news or new developments in the Fresh & Easy saga in Pacifica. Please contact him if you are interested. His blogsite is listed farther down this thread.

[Peter Loeb]

Who are these guys? What's their purpose? Why should we care what they say? Why should we tell them anything?

[todd bray]

To Fresh and Easy Buzz,

How about verifying who you are for all of us by publishing your identity here on Riptide? Where do you live, who funds your blog/publication, how many employees/volunteers do you have?

[freshneasybuzz]

Todd Bray: A question, please. You saw a sign just recently on the Fresh & Easy building that it is for lease or sublease?

We have found a couple of locations they've backed out of in the Bay Area so far. One is in San Jose, another in Palo Alto. So it would be important if you could verify that the Pacifica location is now for lease/sublease.

You also can email us anytime: freshneasybuzz@yahoo.com

Thanks!

[freshneasybuzz]

To Dan B. Underhill:

As it says on our blog, we are an independent publication. Fresh & Easy Buzz is not affiliated with Tesco, Tesco's Fresh & Easy, or any other food or grocery retailer. Hope that helps.

www.freshneasybuzz.blogspot.com

To John Maybury:

Thanks for the warm welcome! We will be doing a piece on the collaboration soon on our blog.

Note:

Our reason for the earlier post was/is merely to find out what you all think about the Pacifica Fresh & Easy store not opening.

We hear regularly from people in Pacifica and throughout the Bay Area, where numerous sites sit empty. They all ask what's up. We always do our best to answer.

Thanks.

[John Maybury]

also, don't forget farmer joe murillo's farmers market in manor shopping center

[John Maybury]

amy, thanks for your comment...i like trader joe's too, but to save gas and hassle, i shop at oceana market in eureka square and sun valley market in park mall...both have a lot of specialty foods, organic items, local butchers, and friendly staff...give them a shot

[Amy Parkko]

I would really love to see a Trader Joe's in Pacifica so I wouldn't have to travel so far to do the bulk of my grocery shopping.

If it were a franchise, I would buy one!

The building over by Extreme Pizza is empty and a prime spot for a Trader Joe's!

[jim alex]

Trader Joe's is always packed. Even the little store by Costco in SSF is a zoo trying to get in and out of. Westlake is always mobbed. Millbrae is always busy.

[Mark Stechbart]

all this chat is pure speculation...warmest new year's best to all.....

[todd bray]

Dan,

Fresh & Easy is the U.S. name for the U.K. company Tesco, a food retailer in Britain and Ireland. It also runs gas stations there, with prepared foods such as sausage rolls, chips (french fries), and roasted chickens. In Ireland, this is a great convenience because Tesco stocks food, especially produce from around the world, that gives locals a chance to eat a broader, fuller diet.

A couple of years ago it was reported in the Business Journal that F&E's U.S. expansion wasn't going so well and the corporation was going to stop opening new stores to allow for existing stores to generate profit to justify further expansion.

In the U.S. and certainly in California, we have access to a variety of fresh foods already, and I think Tesco is beginning to learn that it doesn't have a niche to offer consumers already used to Safeway, Green Leaf, Trader Joe's, and independent farmers markets, unlike Tesco's U.K. customer base.

[todd bray]

There's a sign offering to sub-lease the space. Sounds like Fresh and Easy is not coming.

[Dan B. Underhill]

Who is (are?) the "Fresh & Easy Buzz"? Are they associated in some real way with the store? It sounds as if a new Fresh & Easy store might have something unique to offer but I never saw a Fresh & Easy store as yet. How are we supposed to generate an opinion?

[Steve Sinai]

Wow, amazingly enough I was looking at Fresh & Easy Buzz a few days ago to see if there was any info on it.

Given the way the store front was remodeled, which has a Fresh & Easy look to it, it's obvious the owner thought they'd be moving in. Whenever I pass by the empty storefront, I wonder how much money the owners are losing by not having any leasing income, and whether they've started looking for another tenant for the space. I'd love to see them open up, but I don't think anyone's holding their breath.

If they do open up, I hope they carry Iowa pork tenderloin sandwiches.

[Fresh & Easy Buzz]

Its been about 15 months since the "CROSS-POLLINATION: PACIFICA RIPTIDE AND FRESH & EASY BUZZ" post and still no Tesco Fresh & Easy open in Pacifica, despite the store being completed.

We will soon be writing about Fresh & Easy and Northern California again and are curious how the residents of Pacifica (you readers) feel about the long delay in the Fresh & Easy store opening?

We will check back and hopefully be able to read what some of you think about the situation.

Happy New Year!

(Editor's Note: We always welcome The Buzz to our space. We only wish we had some good news or any news to report about Fresh & Easy. Riptide readers, please do submit questions and comments here for The Buzz.)

[jjadco]

I dislike Safeway as much as everyone else. But the employees all live in Pacifica—at least 90% of the ones I know all do.

Sun Valley Market in Park Mall is great.

I also like Food Town in Eureka Square.

[Fresh & Easy Buzz]

March 6, 2009

Greetings. Is the Pacifica Fresh & Easy completed? Does it look done? We heard construction was stopped and are trying to verify if that is the case.

Would appreciate any info, observations, comments.

Thanks!

www.freshneasybuzz.blogspot.com

[Karen Rosenstein]

I agree with John! Support a local business or four, by shopping at Foodtown, Farmers market in Manor, Sun Valley in Park Mall and the new organic store on Palmetto. All are businesses that are great places with lots of neat items to try if you explore the aisles a bit. And they support Pacifica too!

[John Maybury]

try foodtown at eureka square, a full supermarket, locally owned and operated, good quality and selection and price

[ihatesafeway]

If you think selling heirloom tomatoes for $1.50/lb is bad, the price for the same at Safeway is $3.99/lb. Talk about a rip-off. Not even the most expensive Farmers Market at the Ferry Building sell them for that much! I am so tired of being ripped off by Safeway and look forward to Fresh and Easy as alternate place to buy groceries without having to go over the hill. I try and avoid Safeway by shopping while I am at work, I also shop Sun Valley in Park Mall but they don't carry a big inventory. The only good thing about Safeway is that I get airline miles for shopping there.

[Lionel Emde]

The living wage in San Mateo County is approximately $28 per hour.
Draw your own conclusions.

[Jessica]

Does anybody know what the other business are that will be going in next to Fresh and Easy? Looks like there is space for more retail?

[Fresh & Easy Buzz]

We received a few emails. Here are the answers to the questions we received. We aren't going to mention the name of each person who emailed. We will just answer the questions we received collectively below:

>Fresh & Easy doesn't use foam to package its prepared foods. They come pre-packaged: cardboard, some plastic and plastic wrap. Nearly all of the fresh produce is pre-packaged in plastic tubs or bags. Meat is cello-wrapped. Comes that way to the store. No in-store meat department.

>Fresh & Easy stores only offer free plastic grocery bags -- no paper option. They sell various types of reusable shopping bags like all supermarkets of a certain size now must do by law in California.

>Fresh & Easy stores have self-checkout and self-bagging. If a customer wants assistance a store clerk will help if asked.

>Fresh & Easy stores do not accept paper checks. They also don't cash payroll checks. They accept debit cards amd most major credit cards only -- and of course cash. The stores except food stamps (because they are now in credit card form) but do not accept paper WIC vouchers from poor mothers. This is the U.S. government Woman Infants and Children's program vouchers for infant formula, fresh produce, whole milk, juices and fresh produce.

>Fresh & Easy store employee salaries start at $10 an hour for store workers. There is no set raise. Union clerks such as Safeway, Lucky, Lunardi's, ect. recieve about $20 an hour after one year's worth of full-time work. They get bumps about every three months until they reach this level. They start at far more than $10 hour. There are some union store classifications -- baggers and GM clerks --that make less than the checkers/stockers. They still make more than $10 hour. Frsh & Easy says it pays about 75% of a store employees health insurance if they work a minimum of 20 hours a week. All the store employees accept the mananger work part time. About 20-25 employees per store.

>Wal-Mart, Trader Joe's, Costco and Whole Foods are non-union in the Bay Area. However, all three chains start workers out at over $10 hour.

>Fresh & Easy stores do carry some frozen foods.

>Most of the grocery items (about 60-65%) are under the Fresh & Easy store brand.

>Some Fresh & Easy stores carry hard liquor. They all carry wine and beer except two in Southern CA that were unable to obtain wine and beer sales permits.

That about covers it.

Regards.
Fresh & Easy Buzz.

[John Maybury]

Foodtown in Eureka Square is a little bit like a Trader Joe's, and is trying hard to do more organic, specialty, and deli, plus it is smaller, friendlier, and more hometown than Safecorp. I also like little Sun Valley at Park Mall, for the same reasons. and of course, we have indoor and outdoor farmers markets. One thing this town does not suffer from is lack of choice for food shopping. So say I, clinging ever tighter to my Weight Watchers book of points.

[Mo]

I expect to transfer our household's shopping from Trader Joe's over the hill to Fresh & Easy. I'll enjoy getting the good food we want and at the prices we have in our budget.

By the way, we also support Safeway off and on. While their products and pricing is not as good as TJ's, it is good to have them there when we need them (i.e., due to often hectic work schedules). Also, I know locals who work there and wish to support them as well. Even if we don't like all of the practices of a particular company, the fact is our neighbors depend on their livelihoods from these local stores - be they chain or mom & pop.