ArchiMarket:  Designing the experiential revival of the traditional suburban grocery store.  

Publishing venue:
CityLab

Thesis:
The historically stagnant suburban-style grocery store design should be re-imagined to maximize the consumer experience.

Abstract:
The first grocery store opened its doors in 1940’s Florida, a move responsive to the growing population of consumers settling in pockets within driving distance of the city.  The suburban grocery store found success in the function of a hub that developed within the large hangar-sized store along the highway.  It was a place to see and be seen by neighbors, and where impromptu socializing took place in an area that was saturated with single-family homes.  Since then, suburban dwellers continue to weave in and out of conveniently-close grocery stores in continuous twenty-four hour cycles.  However, the suburbs of the 21st century are a more dynamic place than they were in the 1940’s. Both men and women are pushing the shopping cart and the grocery store has evolved from a social destination to a painful, necessary stop on the way home from work.

Even though the audience and function has changed, consumers are still under the influence of a design that has remained constant for the 80 year life of the traditional grocery.  Produce is up front, meat and seafood are beyond that, and dairy is in the back-most corner.  Consumers are well aware of the psychology of the layout, but as psychologist Paco Underhill writes, “upward of 50 percent of what we buy (in a grocery store) we had no intention of buying when we walked in the door.”  Since the lights are always on inside, grocery stores have operated on the basis of maximizing their potential capital rather than creating an inviting an interesting space for food shopping.

However, there has been a shift in consumerism that has the potential to jeopardize the traditional grocery store.  Websites like amazon provide a virtual market where you can combine your trip to the grocery store with the bookstore, mall, electronics store, and toy store and have it all delivered in 48 hours.  Similarly, apps from retailers like Target and Walgreens put the control back in the customers hands.  The hand-held simplicity allows customers to compile grocery lists without bouncing through aisles and outdoes traditional grocery store convenience by delivering the goods to a central location in the store or right to your front door.  Tech-savvy consumers no longer have to battle in the parking lots, navigate down tight aisles in harsh fluorescent lighting, or fall victim to shelf-placement psychology amongst the 64,000 items that are found in the average store.

The integration of advancements in technology within the grocery industry is the catalyst for  the change suburban grocery stores need to make.  The 21st century suburban resident is frequently on the move, so the need for a quick grocery store visit stems from the desire to spend the maximum amount of time in one place with their families.  The return back to the inherent function of the original grocery, a social hub with a neighborhood identity, hybridized with the needs of a modern consumer would provide a central location for socialization while allowing for efficient access to essential items all in a place where suburban consumers want to shop.

Bibliography:
Baker, Brian and Jeanne Banyas, John Mitchell, Shawn Sheehan. “The Urban Grocery Store.” University of Cincinnatti Community Design Center. 2004.

Boswell, Brannon. “No More Miles of Aisles.” Shopping Center World 29, no. 12 (11, 2000): 28.

“Consumer-driven trends center on convenience, health, and smaller stores in 2015.” Supermarket News, 13 December 2014.

Freeman, Mark and Alison Freeman. “Online Grocery Systems Design through Task Analysis.” Journal of Enterprise Information Management 24, no. 5 (2011): 440-454.

Park, Michael. “How to Buy Food: The Psychology of the Supermarket.” Bon Appétit.  (2014).

Praskey, Sally. “The 3 Rs: REFORMAT, REMODEL, REDESIGN.”Canadian Grocer 120, no. 8 (10, 2006): 28-29,31-34.

Salomon, David. “Fluorescent Architecture, Or, Dan Flavin at the Supermarket.” Journal of Architecture 19, no. 6 (2014): 949-974.

Photo: Dahmer for Reddit Pics