Grand Rapids, Michigan

For those who don't know, one of the reasons I like Meijer so much is because they are based out of Grand Rapids, Michigan, which happens to be where I was born. Grand Rapids is known for its furniture manufacturing and love of the arts. The furniture thing I think started because of the abundance of wood on that side of the state and the fact that Detroit had taken all of the steel to make cars. The art thing doesn't make a lot of sense to me because G.R. (as us native to the region call it) is also a Republican's paradise.

Anyway, getting back to Meijer. Meijer has stores in only five states, Michigan, Kentucky, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. This is a shame, because millions of Wal-Mart shoppers nation wide have no idea how sad their shopping experience is. It is like never knowing that there is a such thing as Applebee's, and always going to McDonald's (this is of course assuming you like Applebee's, which my wife doesn't). Only Meijer isn't more expensive than Wal-Mart, just better.

They definitely need to bust into Pennsylvania. There are tons of Amish in PA, and the Amish around my area love Meijer. Meijer even built a thing for them to tie their horses up to. (really, you can see the little red thing on the right side of the parking lot in this picture). I am not sure if Pennsylvania Amish have the same food interests, but here the Amish love to stock up on the basics, like Mountain Dew and Nabisco cookies.

Let me know if you have any others ideas for States that need a Meijer store. I am not sure what I can do about it, but at least you can commiserate with other non-Meijer state people.

Greeters

The title of the previous post refers to a very special man at Meijer store 138 on Maysville Rd. in Fort Wayne. For whatever reason, a man in his mid to late seventies works the midnight shift as a greeter. Julie and I used to go shopping late at night for the sole purpose of seeing him. Not that we talked with him because to our knowledge he was only allowed to say 7 words. (probably a union regulation) These words were "hi", and "you can get help over there"
Whenever anyone over 2 feet tall walks by this man, he says "hi" in a kind of old man southernish kind of way. The best part is that if you walk past him, and then realize that you didn't grab a cart, he will say "hi" again as you walk past the second time. Turns out that no matter how many times in a minute you walk in his line of sight, you get another "hi", always as if he is seeing you for the first time.

The phrase, "you can get help over there" is a result of asking this man a question. Such as, "Will this exit close at midnight." Greeter says, "you can get help over there." and then points at the door bell below the sign saying, "ring for assistance".

Feel free to share your favorite greeter stories.

hi

Hi, and welcome to my new blog devoted to the wonders of Meijer grocery stores. This is just the beginning of what I hope to be a source of valuable information about what my wife and I deem to be the best store on earth. If you are a devoted Meijer fan, please come back often for stories, facts, and fun about Meijer stores. I am also shamelessly hoping that one of Fred Meyer's decedents will happen across this and offer me a job in marketing or at least pay advertising royalties.