Hy-Vee

[djc311]

https://www.ketv.com/article/hy-vee-wes ... t/42995480

I found it interesting the story mentions how they've made several changes recently, including letting several employees go. I also didn't realize they were Iowa's largest private employer... although if they keep laying off staff that may not stay that way.

I'm shocked at how they can't turn a better profit - regardless of how everyone on here feels, I tend to shop there somewhat regularly. And I will certainly agree with the fact their prices suck. I bought a bag of tater tots (I think Ore-Ida brand) last weekend and they were almost $6! I swear they would be on sale for $3 a bag within the past 12-18 months. Covid screwed stuff up that much??? The whole 7-10% inflation is nowhere close to accurate considering how much everything has gone off the charts. But that's probably a discussion for another post.

[Louie]

https://www.ketv.com/article/hy-vee-wes ... t/42995480

I found it interesting the story mentions how they've made several changes recently, including letting several employees go. I also didn't realize they were Iowa's largest private employer... although if they keep laying off staff that may not stay that way.

I'm shocked at how they can't turn a better profit - regardless of how everyone on here feels, I tend to shop there somewhat regularly. And I will certainly agree with the fact their prices suck. I bought a bag of tater tots (I think Ore-Ida brand) last weekend and they were almost $6! I swear they would be on sale for $3 a bag within the past 12-18 months. Covid screwed stuff up that much??? The whole 7-10% inflation is nowhere close to accurate considering how much everything has gone off the charts. But that's probably a discussion for another post.

I'm sure a lot of the problems financially can be traced to their curious attempts at diversifying their stores with the Market Grilles, Wahlburgers, etc.

[skinzfan23]

I used to shop at Hy-Vee occasionally, but not anymore. It’s gotten out of control unless something is on sale. There are numerous items that I can get at Bakers or Aldi for much less. Although Aldi has gotten much more expensive as well. There are a lot of items I can get cheaper at Walmart.

Hyvee just doesn’t offer much for competitive pricing. Milk is $1.75 at Bakers, Aldi or Walmart yet Hyvee is close to $3. Not to mention eggs and bread among other staples.

Factor in all the |expletive| they have done to their stores, (removing the dining area for Walburgers, putting in bath soaps and selling other crazy items) I just don’t desire to go there anymore.

[Cermak]

I shop at HyVee sometimes, but more often Bakers, Target and Traders Joes. The Trader Joe's in Omaha almost always seems crowded, especially on weekends.

[Coyote]

Hy-Vee abruptly suspends employee discount program, alleging abuse
Iowa grocery giant says updated perks program will roll out by mid-April




Employees at Hy-Vee were informed Monday that they will no longer get a 10% discount on store purchases; but the company says it’s working on “revamping the program.”

Acknowledging the abrupt end of the employee discount on Monday, a senior Hy-Vee official said in an email that the program was halted because some employees were abusing the benefit. The grocery store chain is Iowa’s largest private employer, with 93,000 employees across eight states. The discount in place at Hy-Vee, based in West Des Moines, since 2019 allowed employees — plus one member of their household — to get a 10% employee discount at the grocery chain. “Over the past several months, a significant uptick in the amount of users utilizing the employee discount who were not living in the same household or living in other cities was identified, in addition to other fraudulent practices and loopholes that were occurring within the program,” Tina Potthoff, senior vice president of communications for Hy-Vee said in the email. “The discrepancies found were significant enough to signal a much broader issue that needed to be addressed immediately.”

Company officials said the updated employee perks program would roll out by mid-April. In the meantime, employees are not without benefits, the spokesperson said. According to the email, the regional grocery chain prides itself on offering its employees “one of the most competitive and comprehensive benefit packages in the retail industry,” including:

- Free Hy-Vee Plus premium membership, which includes perks like free delivery, exclusive discounts, and freebies.
- Worker benefits that include a 401(k) plan with a matching contribution, expedited paycheck services, holiday pay, and health insurance for eligible part-time employees that includes an employer contribution as well as free telehealth visits on some plans.
- Discounts on RedBoxRx.com pharmacy orders, access to Care.com to connect with service providers, and other benefits through PerkSpot.com, including discounts on childcare, electronics, cell phone plans, and entertainment.
- Career development opportunities include up to $10,500 in annual tuition assistance with Bellevue University. Additionally, immediate family members of Hy-Vee employees can get up to $2,500 annually for tuition assistance.

[Louie]

I shop at HyVee sometimes, but more often Bakers, Target and Traders Joes. The Trader Joe's in Omaha almost always seems crowded, especially on weekends.

Curious if they are considering a second TJ's for the metro.

[HskrFanMike]

Even with a 10% discount, west Omaha Hy-Vee employees were still spending more on groceries than if they went to Hy-Vee's competition.

[buildomaha]

I shop at HyVee sometimes, but more often Bakers, Target and Traders Joes. The Trader Joe's in Omaha almost always seems crowded, especially on weekends.

Yeah I frequent TJ’s, Whole Foods, and Super Saver in Lincoln. For my required gluten-free diet these places ended up being cheaper on almot everything, including gluten free versions of gluten containing items.

[Garrett]

When I worked at Hy-Vee 10 years ago now they didn't even give us an employee discount except for like once or twice per year. Meanwhile I think my family kept our Bakers discount for a solid 5 years after my sister stopped working there.

[Greg S]

I have really reduced my spending at Hy Vee. I primarily shop Baker's and Super Target, and now with Fareway I hardly ever go to Hy Vee.

Greg

[djc311]

I'd much rather shop at Super Target... I actually took on a part time role with them so I even get a little discount. Hitting them up for milk, bread, etc is probably decent. I've bought some produce from them before, too. But I tried to pick up manicotti shells from there this weekend for a meal we're making and they don't sell them. Their grocery section is quite a bit more limited when compared to WalMart or HyVee... I honestly hate going to WalMart, especially ever since they jacked up the store out here on 180th and Center. They took about 10,000-15,000 sq.ft. of their retail space away to allocate to pickup storage or something... I'm not even sure. But the "new and improved" layout sucks balls. Their automotive and seasonal sections are both extremely narrow and long... like the Green Mile or something. Super depressing to me.

Anyway, I wish Target would build another larger store out SW... maybe somewhere around 370 and 192nd, similar to where HyVee is going. Im' sure that new HyVee is significantly scaled back from the original plans (although I don't know that they made the physical building any smaller). Originally they were calling for a hair salon, nail salon, I think maybe that Wahlburger's place, I'm sure a huge liquor section and probably their joke of a classy clothing store and makeup dept. Do what you do well... don't try to reinvent the wheel. Target and WalMart added the grocery later, not the other way around. I can't see a store like HyVee expanding into furniture, electronics, etc. I think the test of the clothing sections should teach them it's not a good idea.

[Jins123]

I have really reduced my spending at Hy Vee. I primarily shop Baker's and Super Target, and now with Fareway I hardly ever go to Hy Vee.

Greg

The Fareway really made me pull away completely from Hyvee. Produce and groceries at Bakers & Target. Better quality meat at Fareway. I haven’t stepped into a Hyvee yet, in this early year.

[skinzfan23]

I have never seen cheap food items at Target, and like you mentioned the selection is pretty limited compared to a full grocery store. I will stick with Bakers/Walmart/Aldi.

[ChadJK]

The megastores (Walmart, Target...) trying to run groceries also always seem to come up short in the meat counter, deli, bakery, and produce. They're great for dry goods and whatever you need out of a cooler, but everything else is usually subpar.

[TheSeventhBrat]

When I worked at Hy-Vee 10 years ago now they didn't even give us an employee discount except for like once or twice per year. Meanwhile I think my family kept our Bakers discount for a solid 5 years after my sister stopped working there.

Baker's had a 10% discount for employees for decades without much of a problem. Everything was easily traced to the Plus card. Kroger started phasing it out a year or two before I left in 2018 - current employees were grandfathered in and kept their discount, but they stopped giving it to new hires. I have no idea what they have for discount now or if they even still offer it.

[nebugeater]

HyVee is growing into Indiana with the Acquisition with the adding of 22 stores that are currently Strack & Van Til Food Market

https://www.hy-vee.com/corporate/news-e ... ket-chain/

“As Northwest Indiana’s No. 1 grocery store, we know Hy-Vee is the perfect partner,” said Jeff Strack, Strack & Van Til’s CEO and president. “With our combined focus on providing excellent customer service, taking care of our employees and giving back to our local communities, we believe this acquisition is a win-win for both our associates and our company.”

[skinzfan23]

As I have mentioned before, I don't go to Hyvee anymore, wonder if this is a good thing for them. They just seem to get their hands into too many things as once.

[TheSeventhBrat]

When I worked at Hy-Vee 10 years ago now they didn't even give us an employee discount except for like once or twice per year. Meanwhile I think my family kept our Bakers discount for a solid 5 years after my sister stopped working there.

Baker's had a 10% discount for employees for decades without much of a problem. Everything was easily traced to the Plus card. Kroger started phasing it out a year or two before I left in 2018 - current employees were grandfathered in and kept their discount, but they stopped giving it to new hires. I have no idea what they have for discount now or if they even still offer it.

5+ years after I left and my 10% discount returned. lol.

[FishFighter92]

US retail grocery chain Hy-Vee leases 54,000 square feet office space for 10 years in Bengaluru

https://www.hindustantimes.com/real-est ... 45562.html

Hy-Vee's move to a new space is part of its plan to leverage India's talent pool for a wide range of technical and non-technical roles, allowing the company to work on projects on a 24/7 basis

[NEDodger]

Well, that’s unfortunate.

[nebugeater]

I know I have seen evidence of this at a number of Hy-Vee's in this area.


Hy-Vee eliminating or limiting self checkout at some stores.

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story ... wCY9IGNFiA

[djc311]

I know I have seen evidence of this at a number of Hy-Vee's in this area.


Hy-Vee eliminating or limiting self checkout at some stores.

https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story ... wCY9IGNFiA

I know they basically turned off half of the self checkouts at 180th & Q, probably been over a year ago now. However, those lanes are still taking up space, just sitting there.

The gigantor HyVee on HWY 370 has about 20 self checks and I'd say less than 1/2 are ever functional. Not sure who/how/when they figured out these weren't a good idea, but it seems like something WalMart would do, not a smaller company like HyVee. Also, the giant HyVee has about 20-25 regular checkouts and I don't think I've been there when they've had more than about 5 open. I imagine during peak weekend hours that changes, but I've stopped in plenty of times after 5pm rush hour to grab something and at best they have 3 ppl checking and the self checkout always gets backed up.

I'd like to know where all of these new problems came from in retail because I'd bet about $1 million that the concept behind self checkout was to decrease staffing costs while speeding up the customer-experience in the store. IMO, it's added very little convenience and if anything, it's more frustrating than before.

[Busguy2010]

I like self check because I'm usually only buying less than a dozen items at a time. Only having the option to wait in line behind a bunch of people doing their weekly Sunday grocery trip would suck. Not to mention, and no offense, but lots of time the cashier is an elderly individual that moves at a snails pace.

[djc311]

I like self check because I'm usually only buying less than a dozen items at a time. Only having the option to wait in line behind a bunch of people doing their weekly Sunday grocery trip would suck. Not to mention, and no offense, but lots of time the cashier is an elderly individual that moves at a snails pace.

I agree - I prefer to self check... often times it doesn't end up moving very quickly. Although if I'm buying wine or any other alcohol it sometimes is better to suck it up and go through the manned cashier lanes.

[Busguy2010]

I never knew it... Well, I still never understood the rules of HyVee perks. I just scan it every time and sometimes I get some and sometimes I dont. But I learned a funny one today. I always tell the cashier "I don't know if it'll do me any good, but scan my perks card", and the cashier replied, "your magic number today is 44".

So apparently, I guess the Sunday after a Husker win, you spend in this case, $44 or whatever the winning score was and I guess you'd get 44 cents off per gallon? I still don't keep track of that, but I thought it was funny.

We shared a laugh about it. I said something like "Well, of all things I'd sacrifice for the Huskers to win, I suppose this is the least of them", as I barely missed the $44 mark. har har.

Now, my dubious question as I was walking out the door was "Iowa is next week, if the Skers win, do we still get the perks?"

[nebugeater]

I never knew it... Well, I still never understood the rules of HyVee perks. I just scan it every time and sometimes I get some and sometimes I dont. But I learned a funny one today. I always tell the cashier "I don't know if it'll do me any good, but scan my perks card", and the cashier replied, "your magic number today is 44".

So apparently, I guess the Sunday after a Husker win, you spend in this case, $44 or whatever the winning score was and I guess you'd get 44 cents off per gallon? I still don't keep track of that, but I thought it was funny.

We shared a laugh about it. I said something like "Well, of all things I'd sacrifice for the Huskers to win, I suppose this is the least of them", as I barely missed the $44 mark. har har.

Now, my dubious question as I was walking out the door was "Iowa is next week, if the Skers win, do we still get the perks?"

For quite a few years, they have been offering a fuel-saver discount tied to the points scored in Husker Football the day after the game.

[Busguy2010]

Yeah, I never knew that. I actually only got a perks card in the past year or so. I've been shopping there a lot more as over the years, grocery optuons in my area has dwindled quite a lot. I'm pretty much driving 10 minutes to any grocery store no matter how I split it. And if it still stands, the Fort street Hyvee is also set to go. As far as drive time goes, I'm pretty much smack dab in the middle of Cass, Fort, and 52nd and Center. If I'm going down Saddle Creek way, Family Fare, Walmart, and Baker's all are on the way, so I'd be spending my perks just to get there lol.

[Louie]

Yeah, I never knew that. I actually only got a perks card in the past year or so. I've been shopping there a lot more as over the years, grocery optuons in my area has dwindled quite a lot. I'm pretty much driving 10 minutes to any grocery store no matter how I split it. And if it still stands, the Fort street Hyvee is also set to go. As far as drive time goes, I'm pretty much smack dab in the middle of Cass, Fort, and 52nd and Center. If I'm going down Saddle Creek way, Family Fare, Walmart, and Baker's all are on the way, so I'd be spending my perks just to get there lol.

The Fort St HyVee is being considered for shuttering?

[Busguy2010]

^ years ago, someone here said their wife worked there and according to them, the Fort street location was getting the axe by some time later in the decade. I wanna say 2026 or 2028.

I do hope it's not true. But I do say, I believe of all their locations, this is the only one not to have been invested in for a gas station. I'd think they'd have done that by now, which leads me to believe it may be true. I wouldn't be surprised if they close this location in favor of a new one closer to Bennington, but that's just speculation.

[skinzfan23]

Surprised that the Wahlburgers lasted this long:

Hy-Vee to close 79 Wahlburgers locations

What great idea is HyVee going to try next?

[djc311]

Surprised that the Wahlburgers lasted this long:

Hy-Vee to close 79 Wahlburgers locations

What great idea is HyVee going to try next?

Clothing and makeup inside grocery stores... wait a minute

[Garrett]

Surprised that the Wahlburgers lasted this long:

Hy-Vee to close 79 Wahlburgers locations

What great idea is HyVee going to try next?

Clothing and makeup inside grocery stores... wait a minute

Your cashier will now offer free perfume samples!

[ChadJK]

Surprised that the Wahlburgers lasted this long:

Hy-Vee to close 79 Wahlburgers locations

It felt a little spendy for what feels like a fast food restaurant inside of a grocery store. They're good burgers, but it's not like there's a shortage of places to get a good burger. I feel like they survive mostly on the celebrity association.

Clothing and makeup inside grocery stores... wait a minute

Does the Hy-Vee at Stoneybrook in Millard still have that clothing boutique inside of it?

[Brad]

Some of them now have a ridiculous candy store inside them.

[djc311]

Some of them now have a ridiculous candy store inside them.

The Ginormous one on HWY 370 has a large candy area w/ bulk and other candy. They also have 2 full aisles of toys including LEGO, board games, HotWheels, etc. It's a great store if you want to pickup a little of everything, however I still can't find half of the things I want when I'm there.

I'm also still trying to figure out where all of their price cuts were applied. Per their commercial and their advertising throughout the store, they've lowered the prices on "thousands" of items. But I still see boxes of cereal, ice cream and a lot of other products that seem very expensive.

[ChadJK]

I'm also still trying to figure out where all of their price cuts were applied. Per their commercial and their advertising throughout the store, they've lowered the prices on "thousands" of items. But I still see boxes of cereal, ice cream and a lot of other products that seem very expensive.

At the Gretna Hy-Vee, I make fun of their "Compare & Save" signage in the store. They've chosen Fareway to be the place they compare prices to. How is that realistic or fair? They're just as close to the Gretna Walmart and more equally paired in size and selection to Walmart than to Fareway. However, they're going to use Fareway to show they're the cheaper option? I'm guessing that's because the comparison wouldn't be in Hy-Vee's favor if they had chosen Walmart.

[skinzfan23]

At the Gretna Hy-Vee, I make fun of their "Compare & Save" signage in the store. They've chosen Fareway to be the place they compare prices to. How is that realistic or fair? They're just as close to the Gretna Walmart and more equally paired in size and selection to Walmart than to Fareway. However, they're going to use Fareway to show they're the cheaper option? I'm guessing that's because the comparison wouldn't be in Hy-Vee's favor if they had chosen Walmart.

And thats saying something b/c Walmart isn't exactly the cheapest for a lot of things in grocery either.

[remline]

Hy-Vee to close 79 Wahlburgers locations

From the article: "The reimagined Market Grille will offer a wider variety of options at an affordable price."

Well, that will make for at least one thing at Hy-Vee that is affordable…

[skinzfan23]

Define affordable

[ChadJK]

Bear in mind that Hy-Vee, like Target, caters to the crowd this is willing to spend a little more to avoid the Walmart crowd.