And to wrap up this set, here's a view from the back of the parking lot. It's almost impossible to get a distant view of this store with those big trees, and it was even worse on my visit due to all of the waiting cars -- and I'm pretty sure many of those drivers were watching intently, hoping I would get in a car and open up a parking spot for them!
Next week -- going back to the Bon Marche, for the last time... ☹️
Huh, that's an Indiana license plate on that Honda Civic! That's a long trip to Oregon. Maybe the person from Indiana was longing for a taste of Meijer and Fred Meyer is the closest thing to Meijer in Oregon, I don't know, lol.
ReplyDeleteIt's hard for me to say if I'd prefer shopping at Fred Meyer or Meijer since I have not been to either, but from the few photos I've seen of Meijers, I think they might have a bit of an edge at least in modern times. It's hard to say. Here's a random Indiana Meijer just for reference: https://goo.gl/maps/k95zy8y1Y8YaDAG89
Just for reference, here is the nearby Kroger. I really can't quite tell what the story is with that Kroger. It was either a regular Kroger that was torn down and replaced with a Kroger Marketplace store or, what actually seems more plausible, is that it was a regular Kroger that was expanded into a Kroger Marketplace. I don't know how common conversions like that are if that is indeed what happened. Link: https://goo.gl/maps/qfM1kntnadGm3uxA9
Is that farm banner in the produce department standard Banner decor? I can't say I've seen it before. Link: https://goo.gl/maps/aiKkaV6suwdyzpTQ7
I can't really compare Meijer versus Fred Meyer either, but I'm sure Meijer is better these days since Kroger just can't seem to figure out what to do with Fred Meyer. Meijer is very much on my list of places to see if I eventually make it out to that part of the country! I do find it rather amusing that two of the earliest hypermarket chains were started by guys named Fred Meyer/Meijer!
DeleteBoth of those scenarios are fairly common with Kroger Marketplaces, but looking back at historic imagery in Google Earth, I'm pretty sure this one was an expansion, taking over a strip mall that used to be on the store's left side. That produce thing is new to me too, but it's not entirely surprising to see something like that, since Kroger experimented a lot with Banner over the years!