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Behind the Scenes

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By Zachary

 

Continuing the celebration of The Market Report's 10th year!

Each month of 2026, I'll be posting a different special feature to celebrate my 10th year of writing this blog. There's a lot to see already, so here's a summary of what we've done so far:
This month, I'm excited to talk a little bit more about the blog itself and give you an inside look at how it works! Here are some fun facts and questions I get periodically about The Market Report. (And come back tomorrow to preview the next group of Maine stores!)

Who am I?

Hi! I'm Zachary. I'm a food lover and food writer, and for almost 10 years, The Market Report has been my passion project, my hobby, and my favorite conversation starter. I have a background in food service management and journalism, so this is where my passion comes together with my skills. I'm a New Jersey native, though I've also lived in Massachusetts, and a lover of food shopping, cooking, and most importantly, eating.

How did I get started?

I started reading Acme Style well over 10 years ago, probably closer to 15 years ago, and was fascinated. But it wasn't until ACME actually came to my area through acquiring stores from A&P that I really got involved, and I started taking pictures to document the remodel at my A&P-turned-ACME. Eventually, I started posting pictures on my own Flickr page in May 2016, which I later morphed into a blog.

What's my favorite supermarket?

I'm always asked this question, and I never have a good answer for it. There are so many! And it depends on what I'm looking for. For a primer on some awesome supermarkets, check out this selection (in no particular order, and of course, there are many, many more exceptional supermarkets that I love including some that haven't made it to the blog yet)...

So, what do I look for in a good supermarket?

Here are some of the factors I judge practically immediately when I go into a supermarket:
  • Visible cleanliness. Obviously, I can't go poking around the backrooms, but if the shelves are neat and the floor is clean, that's usually a good sign for the rest of the store. (It's the same idea as seeing dirty menus in a restaurant -- that means the rest of the restaurant is probably also dirty.)
  • Smell. A good supermarket should smell like, well, really nothing. Strong smells like fish or ripe fruit can actually mean something's rotting, and unusually strong smells of cleaning products or bleach make me wonder what they're covering up. Of course, some cleaning products are fine and normal, and that makes me think the store is clean.
  • General care. A big turn-off for me is walking into a messy supermarket. Even if it's not actually dirty, I don't like the feeling that the management team and staff don't care for the store. It doesn't matter to me if the store is old, but there's a difference between old and neglected. Even a brand-new store can be neglected.
  • Is it actually serving the people who shop there? This is a big one: a supermarket needs to be a resource for the people who live in the area. Are there products that those people are looking for (whether that's international items, natural choices, specialty selections, or something else entirely)? What about the prices? A very high-priced store in a low-income area is poorly serving its shoppers, for instance. And just because they don't have the products I'm looking for, doesn't mean it's a bad store -- I might not be the average customer of the store. I can't, for instance, say a kosher market is a bad store if they don't carry the bacon I want, obviously. But I can say it's a bad store if in some way it's not offering what the people who shop there need.
  • What read can I get on the customers? Often, I'm only in a supermarket for a couple minutes while I do a tour. So I try to read between the lines with the other shoppers. Do they seem happy to be there? Or do they seem like they're shopping there because they have no other choice?

Where do I shop for groceries?

Everywhere! I have been known to travel... distances that I will not admit to, just to do regular grocery shopping. I find it helpful to keep tabs on what everyone in the industry is doing.

How do I know when stores open?

Bigger stores will make official announcements (and sometimes there's news coverage), but smaller and independent stores don't always get the same spotlight. So I regularly peruse the store locators of various chains and cooperatives to check for new locations, keep an eye on social media, and also look at real estate listings to find other intel that isn't being announced with much fanfare.

How do I find basic info on the stores?

Things like owner names, opening dates, and other company information often comes from either news coverage or aggregators like this or this. Public records, such as zoning applications or applications for public programs, sometimes contain important stats, too. I fill in the rest from whatever I can get from a series of Google searches.

How do I find history?

My key sources on history are Groceteria, JoshAustin610, and the all-important Newspapers.com.

Want to know something else?

Leave a comment or contact me and I'll answer your questions!
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