York Minis Unwrapped Mini Dark Chocolate Covered Peppermint Patties (in the small pouch size you can get at the check out counter) Great Idea. Kroger's You Really Have To Work On Your Pricing Problems, Another Complimentary Item I Received.

Well folks, I write about a positive and a negative experience today. Let's start off with the negative so we can get it out of the way first and then conclude with the positive so we can end on a happy note. I went to a Kroger store the other day and guess what happened? If you have read my blog recently you can surely guess it had to do with getting a free item from them. This was due to lack of poor pricing in their system. I only had a few items and I checked my receipt before I left the store. Sure enough, wrong price charged to the customer. I cannot stress it strongly enough for you to really watch when you are at the check out counter that you are being charged correctly. Down an aisle there was a sale sign showing 4/$5.00 so what does that mean? Each item is at $1.25. Sure enough it rang up on my receipt and I paid that amount also, $1.49. Thank goodness a manager just happened to be there and I showed him the error. We walked to the area where the item was located. He brought me to the register and refunded the total amount of money. I think I verbally said to him does not the store lose money with the refunds they give to people. I must commend them on this, they do not give the customer a hassle when this occurs and they are courteous also. I cannot say this strong enough, people today work very hard for the money they earn and may live on fixed incomes also. Why are there stores out there that do not have their pricing correct in their systems and we, as the consumer, get overcharged. This is obviously becoming a problem if I am experiencing it more frequent than not. This needs to be looked into and corrected. Have you noticed the price of buying groceries keeps going up and up, I know the economy plays a part in this but did you consider the miss marked items being refunded to us are also playing a hand in all of this? Just a thought of mine, I may be way off base but then again it may have a bit of truth behind this thought.
Let's go onto happy thoughts OK. I think it is very clever what The Hershey Company created. They are called King Size which is written on the pouch but in reality the term is misleading. They remind me of a travel version size pouch one can eat a few pieces of candy and not over consume candy. I like this idea. Another thing I really like is there is an "actual size" picture of the item on the packaging. This allows one to not be surprised when they open the package, for you already know the size just by looking at it. A taste of candy but not being tempted to eat a lot of it. I think the first time I saw this it was at a Wal-Mart store. They are the unwrapped version of the candy but in mini size. I like this concept. I have purchased the mini Reese Peanut Butter Cups for baking and they worked out really well when I baked mini brownies. Just the right size when taking them out of the oven, you place one of the minis on each brownie and they look so cute too. See, there really are companies out there trying to create products for the consumer and not making them purchase big size/jumbo bags of product. Is $1.25 a steep amount to pay for a 2.5 ounce bag? Some may say yes, it depends on what you will be using them for. Paying $1.49 for this product, probably way too steep. Kroger I do believe that Wal-Mart sells them at the lower price point not $1.49. Consider taking down your price and not just giving a sale price to it for it has been out there in the market being sold prior to your store selling it. The consumer really does shop around for the best value especially in the economy we live in right now. Not everyone out there wants jumbo size this and that when purchasing items. Please keep that in mind.

Publix I Think You Are Slipping A Bit When It Comes To Offering New Products On The Market. Great Job Ingles For Offering New Products. Be Cautious That You Are Being Charged The Correct Amount At The Checkout Counter.

I have noticed a few times now that I find a new product that is out there in the market at Ingles. When I go in search for that very product if I am at Publix  they do not carry it. This has happened on a few items, that is not good. If one tries something and one wants to purchase it again what an inconvenience it is to the customer that is at a store ready to buy and you do not carry it. That just happened to me the other day, in search of the Wheat Thins Dill Pickle snack crackers. I went to the snack cracker aisle and did not see it. I then got a manager and inquired about it. As I was talking with him it dawned on me that Publix didn't even carry that and I got it at Ingles. I also mentioned about the great competition out there with the new Sprouts Farmers Market that has joined the grocery store competition in the area. Why would I purchase fresh cherries for $1.99 per pound when Sprouts offers them for $0.98 a pound in their weekly advertisement. The manager response to me was"Were they as large in size as ours?"
I was told once that competition is good, it is good for you and it is also good for your competition out there. Competition keeps the grocery stores out there on their toes so to speak. When they realize that their revenue dollars are down they will adjust pricing, etc. to bring back or bring in that business that may have started branching out and shopping else where. Ingles, I have found is very good in the market when it comes to introducing the latest in products that are out there for the consumer to try.
The other day I was able to get two items at no charge from two different grocery stores (Ingles & Kroger.) Do you want to know why/how that happened? At each store the store policy is, the item is given to you free (there are parameters of the dollar amount at each store, you need to check with the store in regard to their policy.) if it is scanned and the wrong price shows. In one instance I had the check out clerk go to the aisle where the product is located and verify that the sign read correctly and sure enough it did. I then reminded them of the store policy and free item to me. Sometimes you have to be on your toes to catch it. They may not always say the item is free. Do not feel bad reminding them of their store policy. In the end it will make them stronger as an organization. I would trust they are keeping track of these free items given to customers. I would  hope this will help them either get them into the system correct or if signs should be taken down they should not be displayed if the sale is over. I do not know what the circumstance was in this instance. The other item was at another store. Self checkout was used and I keyed in the proper item number on the sticker on the item from produce. On the screen came up a different dollar amount, not what they were on sale for. Right away the clerk was most helpful and agreed that the item came up under the item number listed on the item I was purchasing. When advertised 4 for $5.00 is a big difference compared to the other similar item they sell at the other price point.
In one day I was given two free items from two different stores. Imagine how much this happens (and if it occurs frequently) that has to be costing the store money. What happens then? I would imagine that that free item is either written off for the year or it is tucked into price increases the consumer then absorbs. I might be wrong but then again I just might be right. Someone, somewhere, somehow has to absorb this cost. Moral to this story, always check as they are checking out your items at the register to make sure the right dollar amount is charged to you. Also, grocery store chains make sure the price amounts are properly entered into your system to ring up the right amount along with checking that sale signs are tagged correctly. Remove the sale signs when the item is no longer on sale for the sale amount advertised on the shelf by that particular item.
One more moral to the story...there is definitely a grocery store tug-of-war going on out there. With more and more options out there for the consumer, offer to them the latest and greatest new items out there. It is frustrating to the consumer that wants to purchase an item and they are already at a store, to find that they have to leave that store and go elsewhere. I actually had cherries in my hand and would have paid $1.99 a pound since I was there, but I left with nothing to purchase and went elsewhere. People work too hard for the money they earn and they are cautious on how they spend it also. I hope this insight helps you today. If so, it can become a win-win for all of us right?
One more thing and then I will be done with this today. A lot of grocery stores are now changing their weekly advertisement to a week day as opposed to a weekend day. I must commend Publix and Aldi on this one, they still continue to place their weekly advertisement in the Sunday newspaper. Kroger and Ingles please go back to placing your advertisement in the Sunday newspaper. Not everyone wants to go online to view the advertisement. Some like to have a hard copy in their possession to view it and circle what they need from that store.

Worship Song, "You Are Awesome In This Place" By David Billington & "Eileen Fisher: Are You Ready to Graduate to a New Level of Glory?

Eileen Fisher: Are You Ready to Graduate to a New Level of Glory?

God Will Use A Total Stranger To Get A Message To You...This Is What Happened To Me.

Well, when you least expect it God will get a message of encouragement to you. In my case, I received the message where one would not necessarily expect to hear the bible being read out loud. I was at a government facility and the person reading the bible was not there when I entered the building. I was leaving the building and a heard a man talking out loud and the closer I got to the person speaking I then recognize exactly what he was reading. He was reading scripture by a tree and the people leaving the facility were able to hear him as they walked by. I recognized the scripture and ever so naturally as I approached him to walk past I completed the rest of the scripture to him as I walked by. We were actually saying the scripture together. I kept on walking and got to my car. As I was in my car heading away from the facility I thought to myself was that an angel for I could not hear or see him anywhere in the vicinity of where he was as I was leaving.
I pulled out and then I think I recognized him and motioned to him in his car as we were at a stop sign. He rolled down his window and I briefly shared that was the scripture I needed to hear today and I thanked him and asked him what scripture verse he read. He told me and then he said God Bless you and off I was on the rest of my journey. The portion I spoke out as I walked by was, "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you."
Mind you that I did not shout this I simply spoke it for it leaped within me. I did not stop to chit chat or talk, it just so naturally came forth from me. Maybe I was to experience this today to share it with you so you can be encouraged also. Do not give up and hang in there for God is faithful and He will fulfill your dreams, mainly the dreams He gave to you. So as to not lose hope but encourage you that His divine will will be completed in your life. Look up for He will bring it to pass even if it does not look like it in the natural today, Remember, He is God and all it takes is a moment in His presence that will change everything. So, do not toil and worry about it and rest in His presence and let Him bring it to fruition. He is God and He knows what is best and the timing to fulfill it. Remember, seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and let Him add all other things unto you.

Found Another Hidden Treasure Of A Product Today, Nabisco's Limited Edition Dill Pickle Wheat Thins.

Well, I went to the store today and as I was heading down an aisle this Limited Edition product caught my attention. Now, what exactly caught my attention and caused me to inquire and pick up the product? The snack cracker aisle is like looking into a sea of products so if one is clever in regard to marketing they will use things that catch the attention of the shopper. What caught my attention was the green background on the upper portion of the package and then the big picture of the dill pickle cut in half. I also liked the fact that they showed a broken piece of a cracker that you would find inside the box. Great eye catching appeal. It caused me to pick up the box and said to myself OK I will try it. Part of the deciding factor was that it was at a great price point also. Another deciding factor for me was on the list of ingredients there was no yeast used to make this product. So, I purchased it and enjoyed sampling it with co-jack cheese and sharp white cheddar cheese tidbits and a few tomato chunks also. You know you just have to take a chance here and there to see if the new product is a hit or miss. How will one know if they do not try it. Sometimes trying a  new item lets you know that you just do not like it and you may even feel like you wasted time, money or even calories with the trying of the item. That is OK at least you were adventurous and when you see it in the future you will know to not get it again.
Marketing truly interests me for their job is to do exactly what I experienced today. Catch my attention, pick up the product and then take personal ownership of the product when I choose to place it in my shopping cart and purchase it.

Well, I Must Tell You That I Found 2 Products I Like Better Than Other Items I Use To Enjoy. I Stumbled Upon These Products And I Am Glad That I Did.

I have enjoyed Smucker's Apricot Preserves for many years. I have tried other brands of apricot preserves and I would say there is no comparison, until I recently tried Laura Lynn Apricot Preserves. Laura Lynn brand is at Ingles Markets. The reason I never cared for other brands is because they always had such a sweet taste to them, too sweet and I do not like that when it comes to apricot preserves. I found this one had like qualities to the Smucker's brand without being sugary sweet in taste.

My second discovery is the Cinnamon Waffle. I thought I liked Kroger's brand of Cinnamon waffles better than Eggo Limited Edition, Pumpkin Spice waffle until I tried Great Value which you can get at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. The difference being,  believe it or not, the Wal-Mart waffle was much more fluffy than the Kroger waffle which was more flat if that makes sense. I guess the lesson learned in all of this is one must be willing to try new things for it is in the trying that one just may discover a hidden prize out there at a better price point then one is accustomed to paying for the items one enjoys.

Happy product testing and tasting to you. You just may surprise yourself and find a gem. The other plus may be that in the testing it may cause you to stick with what you already like for no one can possibly make it better or improve on making it better out there. You will no ever know if you do not get adventurous and at least try.

Coca-Cola I Was Able To View Your Billboard Ads And I Like Them. Of Course, They Put A Smile On My Face, Thank You.