8 Steps to Get a Neighborhood Trader Joe’s

Jenna Buehler
Nov 1 · 9 min read

What’s the deal with the national chain of neighborhood grocery stores, Trader Joe’s?

Well, everyone wants one. The prices are the lowest, the quality of their products is the highest and the people that work there aren’t just happy — they’re lifers. Turnover is 10% — a whopping 50% lower than the rest of the grocery store industry.

This is why our team of local changemakers at Trench Media couldn’t refuse when Jimmy and Jacie Stivers of Melbourne, Florida invited us to help them court Trader Joe’s to their commercial property in a non-traditional, grassroots way.

That, and, my carpool crew would reduce their Trader Joe’s commute from 1.5 hours driving to 10 minutes (!)

Jacie: Have you listened to the Trader Joe’s podcast?

Me: No.

Jacie: You have to listen to it. It’s totally EGAD.

Jacie and her husband moved to the Eau Gallie Arts District (EGAD) back in 1987. Years before their arrival, the space program had moved from top-shelf priority to bottom-shelf bust. There was an economic lull that made it a great time for pioneers like the Stivers to invest in the potential of the Sunshine State 2.0.

Since that time, weekly space launches on the horizon for the Space Coast have generated a lot of talk in town. For the Stivers, it has triggered a sense of urgency to attract a best-fit retailer to the district.

It All Started With A Top Secret Meeting at Standard Collective

“We turned down the [insert 10+ major gas stations & retailers]. But, my wife won’t let anything go in there that’s not the right fit for this community.” — Jimmy Stivers

Jimmy isn’t smoking a cigar, but he may as well be. He wears a Hawaiian shirt because he believes in the law of attraction and stands in front of a few dozen artists in the back room of a local leather boutique called Standard Collective. A.E. Soland, the shop owner, allowed us to host our first of many Top Secret Trader Joe’s gatherings here. Artist-creatives in the room have either heard of the Stivers or have received some kind of financial sponsorship from the Stivers in their early career.

With his arm outstretched over the shoulder of Derek Gores, an internationally acclaimed collage artist who started in EGAD, Jimmy shares why it is he and Jacie need help to show how this community is a perfect match for Trader Joe’s. And why it is we ought to do this by rallying 20,000 votes for @egadtraderjoes as an extension of the Space Coast Music Festival, which is expected to bring 70 bands and thousands of people.

Jacie’s grin is subtle, almost hidden behind her reflective shades as Jimmy reminds the small team of organizers — for the third time today — that Jacie is the brains behind this operation. It’s no secret the two of them are homegrown (just like Trader Joe’s ) they met years ago at the Blueberry Muffin down the road. For 35 years, Jimmy led commercial construction efforts while Jacie managed the development negotiations relevant to every deal.

“At the end of the day, the real estate package is the steak,” Jacie said. “You are all the sizzle.”

8 Steps to Get a Neighborhood Trader Joe’s

#1 we went to a Trader Joe’s and spent a lot of money in Winter Park, FL. It’s a solid 80 miles away, so, we had plenty of time to listen to the first five Trader Joe’s podcasts (check out this episode where they share what it takes to get a Trader Joe’s in your town).

#2 we stocked up on Pumpkin Joe Joe Cookies, Pumpkin Spice Coffee, Honey Roasted Pumpkin Ravioli, Maple Streusel Bread, Maple Ginger Cookie Swirl Ice Cream, Organic Bourbon Barrel Maple Syrup (served in a giant wine bottle, which made my Canadian fiance oh so happy). Yummy!

#3 talked to the staff at the store, eavesdropped. Picked up the language. Asked them why they’re so happy and why it is they know so much about the food — where it’s from, what farm it came from, its distinctly unique qualities.

#4 we went to the drawing board. Sketch paper, sticky notes, flip boards, and smeary whiteboards. Sometimes when you want to manifest something, we find it’s best to draw it out — like when a coach watches the plays and then sketches the plan that wins the game.

#5 we made a list of all the unique people who were personally building a new experience in EGAD. We also made a list of radical collisions that make EGAD a place where you can always discover something new.

To Name A Few: a makeshift stage here & there & everywhere, the neighborhood astronaut who plays the trumpet, the crowded weekend flea market “Fleagad”, a coffee shop patio with weekly storytimes, the three guys who quit their jobs to make 100+ kinds of beer each year, the florist that’s deeply committed to growing her husband’s local legacy, the mural made by that international artist that raised all the controversy, A surf-skate-music leather boutique, the 12-year-old pianist who makes the paper crane earrings, the Irish snug, improv for introverts & ladies night out, Mr. Bear on wheels, that producer from Adult Swim who impersonates local dramas, that blockchain-AI company no one knows anything about, the Veteran with the pizza shop, Mr. Typewriter Man, that guy who glues pieces of magazines together and sells them to NASA, Adidas, The Loew’s Hotel, etc.

#6 we made a list of the seven values that Trader Joe’s cares about. We fused the unique qualities of EGAD and its unique people with the unique qualities championed by Trader Joe’s neighborhood grocery stores…

  1. Integrity: This value nicely complimented the community’s pursuit to put men on the moon and work together because the stakes are high and it’s the right thing to do. We’d reach out to local astronauts, Captain Winston Scott to see if there were similarities between EGAD & getting to space.
  2. Product-driven company: This value nicely complimented the many craftsmen and women in town. It also reminded us of the local urban farm school that’s fostering attachment to place at a young age — hosting classes in the garden, in the art gallery, the museum, etc.
  3. Wow customer service: This reminded us of the 360-degree experiences that are popping up all over town as vendors begin to invite their customers to participate in their creative process or engage with their business in an unexpected way.
  4. No bureaucracy: Became the core ingredient driving the campaign. Our ambassadors knew we would experience some level of friction when getting their idea to the masses & out to market. There were many unnecessary political elements to navigate.
  5. Kaizen: Also known as improving each day (it’s Japanese), this one reminded us of artists who started out small and ended up international in EGAD. It was also reminiscent of the persistence and determination that made the space program possible.
  6. The store is the brand: EGAD is the brand, or, at least that was our hypothesis that we would test with each interviewee over three days filming. Overwhelmingly, people felt that EGAD was a lifestyle. Each shop was a different flavor of that lifestyle in practice.
  7. We’re a national chain of neighborhood grocery stores: This became key to getting advocacy from all our neighbors — some of which had been there for more than 40 years building back before there were tools to mobilize 20,000 on social media.

#7 we designed a storyboard that would fuse our values with Trader Joe’s in the form of a final cohesive story to be submitted to the commercial real estate team at Trader Joe’s. We met with vendors and individuals that added color — a sense of smell, taste, touch, hear, fun visuals — to help decision-makers experience EGAD in a very authentic, raw way.

#8 We launched a 10-day Vote for Trader Joe’s campaign & kicked it off with a live band & celebration in the old Walgreens parking lot and released one featured video per day to help spread the word & stoke the buzz. Our crew certainly did not anticipate that we’d receive hundreds of comments on every post or that locals would begin to submit their own story back!

The Hard Part

We can’t tell the whole story — not in 3-minutes and not when a commercial real estate developer is likely numb with disinterest, having had thousands of people around the world send demographic studies, heartfelt letters, poems, etc. to something like nine Trader Joe’s representatives. We only told the story of a few community neighbors. No stats, no metrics. Just heart.

Is it fair? No.

Is it grassroots? Absolutely.

Bottom > up storytelling, baby!

A Sneak Peek: The Big Sell

Our community has the highest population of engineering talent per capita in the United States. We’re hiring thousands of people each year. We’re launching weekly rockets soon. A majority of the county’s population can get to our Trader Joe’s location at 1333 Harbor City in 15-minutes. It’s an increasingly young, smart town that’s filled with people who put Trader Joe’s values into practice each day.

Will This Effort Succeed? Well, we broke the record!

Germantown, TN achieved 13,000 likes on Facebook and received a Trader Joe’s. Six other communities attempted the same approach but only mobilized a few hundred people at the most. Many communities do not have a distribution center close enough to be considered. Ours is close by in Daytona.

In less than one week, we raised 20,000 likes on Facebook and 3,500 followers on Instagram. It’s official: This is a record number of votes (FB likes) for any community that has ever tried to romance Trader Joe’s!

What’s Next

What’s next is a lot of Trader Joe’s Trade Secrets. It’s the nature of the real estate biz. But the EGAD buzz raw & authentic — it’s still the talk of the town — and we certainly hope Trader Joe’s will respond with as much enthusiasm when our project leads visit Trader Joe’s HQ in Boston in the next few weeks.

In the words of fellow collaborator, Derek Gores, “…this isn’t the cookie-cutter stuff. People here get out there and do their own thing.”

And Jacie Stivers, “people are not afraid to build things together here in EGAD.”

And Jimmy Stivers, “it’s a perfect match!”

Cheers to EGAD, all the countless organizations and caring people that made this effort possible & all that’s next for the future of what we can build together. Special thanks to the Space Coast Music Festival & Fleagad for giving us permission to co-create with you from the very beginning. May this weekend be a success.

Story #1 INTRACOASTAL BREWING COMPANY

Three friends quit their day jobs to follow their passion.

https://www.facebook.com/egadtraderjoes/videos/1239003169624990/Produced by Neon Asteroid Studios

Story #2 CAPTAIN WINSTON SCOTT

When a community has no lines of division, it’s a powerful thing.

https://www.facebook.com/egadtraderjoes/videos/462030961077632/ … Produced by Neon Asteroid Studios

Story #3 DEREK GORES GALLERY

Art isn’t about decorating the walls anymore, EGAD lives & breathes it.

https://www.facebook.com/egadtraderjoes/videos/451660225475096/ … Produced by Neon Asteroid Studios.

Story #4 TONY SOLAND, STANDARD COLLECTIVE

Do what you never thought was possible & improve each day here.

https://www.facebook.com/egadtraderjoes/videos/1239003169624990/ … produced by Neon Asteroid Studios.

Story #5 AYANA VERDI, VERDI ECOSCHOOL

Is an urban farm school radical? Not in this town!

https://www.facebook.com/egadtraderjoes/videos/723777534787511/

*** TO BE CONTINUED **

Jenna Buehler

Written by

CCO + Founder of Trench Media @gettrenched

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