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  • Post #61 - October 14th, 2018, 5:45 am
    Post #61 - October 14th, 2018, 5:45 am Post #61 - October 14th, 2018, 5:45 am
    stevez wrote:Blaming Whole Foods is a canard. It had little, if anything, to do with the demise of TI. Read the rest of the thread for details.

    I've been reading the thread, along with the linked articles, and while I concede I may have missed something, I'm not seeing anything that says the problem (at root) was anything other than too few customers coming in the door. The other problems stemmed from that. No?

    I'm not seeing anything that says that revenues were robust as ever.
    Pithy quote here.
  • Post #62 - October 14th, 2018, 12:07 pm
    Post #62 - October 14th, 2018, 12:07 pm Post #62 - October 14th, 2018, 12:07 pm
    I am not saying that Amazon did them in, but 20 years ago there was a lot less competition. There was WF and Sunset and that was it. Now you also have Fresh Market, Heinens, and Mariano's, plus all of the home cooking plans such as Plated and Blue Apron. They also changed their format from being European focused to being a clone of Mariano's. It sounds like when the Son took over the day to day operations of the store, they lost their European focus, where you could get lots of stuff that the other stores did not carry. Their prices on staples were in general crazy high too, and so for most people it was not a one stop shopping store.
  • Post #63 - October 14th, 2018, 1:22 pm
    Post #63 - October 14th, 2018, 1:22 pm Post #63 - October 14th, 2018, 1:22 pm
    A classic business problem: Do you thrive by A) trying what seems to be "working" for everyone else, or B) doing even better the one thing you do better than anyone else?

    To a bystander, the answer is always B. I imagine the correct choice is not always so obvious when it's your business that's in crisis. But A didn't work. B might not have either, but we won't know.
    Pithy quote here.
  • Post #64 - October 14th, 2018, 1:43 pm
    Post #64 - October 14th, 2018, 1:43 pm Post #64 - October 14th, 2018, 1:43 pm
    T I's been sleeping on plastic sheets for years.

    I am now guilty of . . .

    Horse DeadHorseBeat1.jpg .
    Hold my beer . . .

    Low & Slow
  • Post #65 - October 14th, 2018, 8:48 pm
    Post #65 - October 14th, 2018, 8:48 pm Post #65 - October 14th, 2018, 8:48 pm
    Valli Produce must be doing something right. I was in there this afternoon, and the store had lots of customers. I remember when they first opened there didn't have nearly this many customers, unless they had a really good sale. Every couple of months they have a really good one day sale, and they are crazy busy then. I only spent $10 there today, but I saw lots of customers with a full cart.
  • Post #66 - October 23rd, 2018, 8:34 am
    Post #66 - October 23rd, 2018, 8:34 am Post #66 - October 23rd, 2018, 8:34 am
    Hi all -- I'm a reporter at Crain's Chicago Business writing an in-depth story about Treasure Island's demise. I'm hoping to chat today with customers who have shopped there for decades and can describe what it was like back in the '60s through '80s. I'm also interested in people's more recent impressions. Feel free to call my cell any time: 708.204.4813. My deadline is tonight.

    Thanks!
    Brigid Sweeney
  • Post #67 - October 28th, 2018, 2:50 pm
    Post #67 - October 28th, 2018, 2:50 pm Post #67 - October 28th, 2018, 2:50 pm
    BrigidSweeney's article in the October 29 Crain's Chicago Business What went wrong at Treasure Island. She quotes LTHer Cynthia.
  • Post #68 - October 28th, 2018, 6:12 pm
    Post #68 - October 28th, 2018, 6:12 pm Post #68 - October 28th, 2018, 6:12 pm
    It is just amazing that the chain stayed in business as long as it did. It sounds like all of the partners of the store had their hands in the till. It did mention that the meat cutters still belonged to a union. I assume that the empty stores are going to be put up for sale. It would be interesting to see who ends up buying them if anybody. The article also mentions that there are four different trusts that the stores are under, and that the creditors do not have access to the business records of the trusts.

    It was amazing when the article mentioned that the wife would lay all of the checks on her desk, and decide which ones she was going to send. There was an employee there who was supposed to have child support deducted from his check every week. The money did get deducted, but then it never got sent to the state like it was supposed to. Just google the title of the article to get past the paywall. Thanks, Nancy
  • Post #69 - May 14th, 2019, 5:35 am
    Post #69 - May 14th, 2019, 5:35 am Post #69 - May 14th, 2019, 5:35 am
    Trader Joe’s to Open in Former Treasure Island Building
    A Trader Joe’s will open in the building that was formerly occupied by shuttered grocer Treasure Island at Lake Park Avenue and 54th Place, the University of Chicago and Trader Joe’s announced on Monday. Trader Joe’s plans to open the store this coming fall.

    This will be the first Trader Joe’s on the South Side of Chicago, and the chain’s sixth location in the city. Currently, its southernmost store in Chicago is in South Loop.
  • Post #70 - December 16th, 2020, 7:23 pm
    Post #70 - December 16th, 2020, 7:23 pm Post #70 - December 16th, 2020, 7:23 pm
    A massive storefront at Montrose and Clarendon avenues has sat vacant for two years after the Treasure Island grocery chain that was supposed to move in went out of business.

    But a new grocery is set to take Treasure Island’s spot. It will open its first Chicago outpost in the process.

    The store, Peter Rubi, will open next year at 811 W. Montrose Ave.
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/12/16 ... re-island/
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #71 - September 15th, 2021, 12:53 pm
    Post #71 - September 15th, 2021, 12:53 pm Post #71 - September 15th, 2021, 12:53 pm
    Dave148 wrote:A massive storefront at Montrose and Clarendon avenues has sat vacant for two years after the Treasure Island grocery chain that was supposed to move in went out of business.

    But a new grocery is set to take Treasure Island’s spot. It will open its first Chicago outpost in the process.

    The store, Peter Rubi, will open next year at 811 W. Montrose Ave.
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/12/16 ... re-island/

    Healthy Grocery Store Peter Rubi Opens In Uptown: ‘Our Main Mission Is To Change Lives’
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/09/14 ... nge-lives/
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #72 - September 16th, 2021, 5:58 am
    Post #72 - September 16th, 2021, 5:58 am Post #72 - September 16th, 2021, 5:58 am
    Has anybody been to Peter Rubi yet at either their Uptown store or their Plainfield one? I am curious how expensive they are and what they carry. I just found out that they carry some cheese, but the rest of their products are vegan.
    Last edited by NFriday on September 16th, 2021, 6:21 am, edited 1 time in total.
  • Post #73 - September 16th, 2021, 6:17 am
    Post #73 - September 16th, 2021, 6:17 am Post #73 - September 16th, 2021, 6:17 am
    NFriday wrote:Has anybody been to Peter Rubi yet at either their Uptown store or their Plainfield one? I am curious how expensive they are and what they carry. Are they all vegan?

    https://peterrubi.com/
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard
  • Post #74 - September 16th, 2021, 2:45 pm
    Post #74 - September 16th, 2021, 2:45 pm Post #74 - September 16th, 2021, 2:45 pm
    NFriday wrote:Has anybody been to Peter Rubi yet at either their Uptown store or their Plainfield one? I am curious how expensive they are and what they carry. I just found out that they carry some cheese, but the rest of their products are vegan.

    I've been to their Plainfield location a couple of times. They have pretty good prices and their quality is good. They have little baskets of fruit and vegetables for a few bucks that is usually a pretty good deal.
  • Post #75 - September 16th, 2021, 10:06 pm
    Post #75 - September 16th, 2021, 10:06 pm Post #75 - September 16th, 2021, 10:06 pm
    I heard that they were seriously considering closing their Plainfield store, because they did not think the people in Plainfield were into super healthy eating. Apparently they were encouraged to keep the store open by their fan base.
  • Post #76 - September 16th, 2021, 10:26 pm
    Post #76 - September 16th, 2021, 10:26 pm Post #76 - September 16th, 2021, 10:26 pm
    The website's online ordering shows every item out of stock. Curbside ordering is kinda funny: You submit a shopping list and they call to discuss it. There's no sale flyer on the site. Not sure if that means there are no sale items ala Walmart or if it's just not much of a website.
  • Post #77 - September 16th, 2021, 10:47 pm
    Post #77 - September 16th, 2021, 10:47 pm Post #77 - September 16th, 2021, 10:47 pm
    It looks like the website is a work in progress. I am not sure if they even have sales. I just looked at their website, and it does not even mention that their Uptown store is now open. Apparently the husband was diagnosed with cancer back in2013, and given 8 months to live, and he radically changed his diet, along with medical intervention, and was able to go into remission. Eleven months after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, their house burnt down, and they lost everything, and so they have been through a lot.
  • Post #78 - September 17th, 2021, 3:37 pm
    Post #78 - September 17th, 2021, 3:37 pm Post #78 - September 17th, 2021, 3:37 pm
    NFriday wrote:I heard that they were seriously considering closing their Plainfield store, because they did not think the people in Plainfield were into super healthy eating. Apparently they were encouraged to keep the store open by their fan base.


    "In Plainfield, it seems like they all just want cheap strawberries and deals. That’s not our mission."

    I'm hoping that appealing to customers and maintaining profitability is part of the mission, otherwise there's a wake-up call not far down the road.
  • Post #79 - September 17th, 2021, 3:41 pm
    Post #79 - September 17th, 2021, 3:41 pm Post #79 - September 17th, 2021, 3:41 pm
    NFriday wrote:It looks like the website is a work in progress. I am not sure if they even have sales. I just looked at their website, and it does not even mention that their Uptown store is now open. Apparently the husband was diagnosed with cancer back in2013, and given 8 months to live, and he radically changed his diet, along with medical intervention, and was able to go into remission. Eleven months after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer, their house burnt down, and they lost everything, and so they have been through a lot.


    I'm all for healthy eating but let's not attribute too much of the healing to a radical change in diet. Steve Jobs changed his diet but decided to forego the "medical intervention" part and had a decidedly different outcome.
  • Post #80 - September 18th, 2021, 2:28 am
    Post #80 - September 18th, 2021, 2:28 am Post #80 - September 18th, 2021, 2:28 am
    The guy that started Whole Foods, John Mackey is vegan, and he originally wanted to make the store all vegan, but then he came to his senses, and realized he would be losing a lot of business if he did that. Whole Foods sells lots of humanely raised meat and sustainable seafood.
  • Post #81 - January 28th, 2022, 9:27 pm
    Post #81 - January 28th, 2022, 9:27 pm Post #81 - January 28th, 2022, 9:27 pm
    Dave148 wrote:
    Dave148 wrote:A massive storefront at Montrose and Clarendon avenues has sat vacant for two years after the Treasure Island grocery chain that was supposed to move in went out of business.

    But a new grocery is set to take Treasure Island’s spot. It will open its first Chicago outpost in the process.

    The store, Peter Rubi, will open next year at 811 W. Montrose Ave.
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/12/16 ... re-island/

    Healthy Grocery Store Peter Rubi Opens In Uptown: ‘Our Main Mission Is To Change Lives’
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2021/09/14 ... nge-lives/

    Uptown’s newest grocery store is rebranding to a vegan-only food market after being acquired by a Canadian health food company.

    Peter Rubi was sold to the vegan food startup PlantX and is being rebranded as XMarket Uptown, the company confirmed. The grocery store at 804 W. Montrose Ave. and its sister location in Plainfield were sold to PlantX in December and the rebranding at both locations is underway.
    https://blockclubchicago.org/2022/01/27 ... et-uptown/
    Never order barbecue in a place that also serves quiche - Lewis Grizzard

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