Trader Joe’s to Come to Kansas City

113792056_1e44ac026c_mEveryone, stop what you are doing because

Trader Joe’s Is Coming to Kansas City

According to KansasCity.com, Trader Joe’s has decided to open two locations in the Kansas City area, one on either side of the state line.

The first location will be at

4201 W. 119th St.
Leawood, KS

which puts it near Dean and Deluca, Pottery Barn, Williams Sonoma, Harry and David, and other stores where food aficionados enjoy shopping.

The other location will be at

8600 Ward Parkway
Kansas City, MO

It will be near Ward Parkway in the old Staples building.  An interesting location since it’s not necessarily a hot bed of culinary interest, but Trader Joe’s doesn’t make many bad choices.

So, Kansas City, this is a time to rejoice.

Why Am I So Happy?

Trader Joe’s is just a grocery store…right?  What’s the big deal?

Yes, Trader Joe’s is a grocery store.   Yes, it’s kind of fancy, but it’s not like other high end grocery stores for a couple of reasons, the biggest one being cost.

The prices at Whole Foods are legendary.  It’s not called Whole Funds (or Whole Paycheck) for nothing.  Not so with Trader Joe’s.  You can go there and expect to find hip brands, crazy sauces, fresh produce, etc.  However, through a series of intelligent business decisions including keeping SKUs limited, buying in bulk, and negotiating with venders, Trader Joe’s is able to keep prices down.  They’re not exactly a discount grocery chain, but the prices are more in line with other grocery stores.

So to recap:

High quality ingredients + low prices = lots of excitement

Oh, and the Trader Joe’s crew wear Hawaiian shirts all day during work.  That’s pretty cool.  So, add that in the equation.

High quality ingredients + low prices + Hawaiian shirts = lots of excitement

So, all I can say is c’mon 2011 I want some Joe’s.

Photo courtesy of Barbara L. Hanson from Flickr.

3 Comments

  1. I love TJs! When we moved 10 years ago, I was so bummed because there were no Trader Joe’s where we were moving. But from the time we put the offer on one house, sold our other one, one opened up about 20 minutes from our house – score!

    I’ll be jealous of your Dean & Deluca – I’ve never been to one but it looks so cool!

    Found you through the Foodbuzz Project Food Blog 😀

    • Yeah, I’ve watched on Twitter as everyone talks about the great stuff they get at Trader Joe’s. I am ridiculously stoken.

      As for Dean and Deluca, they are great stores and really great at parting you from your wallet.

      Glad to meet you! 🙂

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