When I was a kid our family shopped at Acme. This was fine because they had groceries and coupons, and it was close by. What else did you need?
But one day – a Giant Eagle was built – and everything changed.
This grocery store was bigger and to my little kid brain it had everything. Heck – it had a video store (kind of like a physical Netflix). It also a daycare called the Eagle’s Nest where I could play all the Sonic I wanted. In my mind it was this amazing super store and nothing was more exciting than the first time we went shopping there.
I had developed this thought in my head that there was some epic grocery store battle going on. I figured there could be only one (this is before I watched Highlander) and I assumed Acme’s time was limited. I thought of this every time we took a trip there and it made me happy that we were on the winning team.
Now it’s years later and both stores are still around. So much for a battle. Giant Eagle adapted with my age they still have everything I need: instead of a video store they have a liquor department and a bank.
It’s funny what kind of stuff we make up as kids and how we feel magic about certain things. It’s crazy how easy it is to lose that.
The excitement I had over a grocery store is silly in retrospect (and a marketer’s dream), but I kind of wish I could recapture that feeling about certain things. Now a trip to the store is just a way for me to spend more money and another opportunity for me to forget something off of my shopping list.
