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Soriana


CSOKI

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I just got back from a quick shopping trip to Soriana´s and want to say that I agree with you. The store has never looked better. I arrived hungry so got some Chinese food at the front kiosk and ate half of it before shopping. It really cuts down on how much I spend in the store!

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I like Soriana for a number of reasons, not the least that they are a Mexican company, they retain their staff, and the cashiers have change all the time.

That being said, I see no value in their most recent switch-around. The drugstore is now the first department you see. Where in the world is the drugstore considered the "front draw" in a department store? Nope, electronics is always it and the Buen Fin proved it over at WalMart, where that department is up front. Soriana enlarged their electronics section and moved it off to the side. You are supposed to be "grabbed" when you walk in. Well, a row of fridges and stoves does not grab me. At the other entrance, by Copel, the customer service desk is now moved away... I didn't even see it my last two visits. Right now, one would expect Christmas decorations to be a major display, yet there it is to the side, puny as always. Deli is still the same; produce is still the same (and mostly poor). The kitchen goods area got swapped, but so what? Heck, the freezer section is now only one set of coolers with a hugely-reduced variety... mostly frozen veg and ice cream. I guess those are the big sellers, not the other packaged frozen dinner items that WalMart still has.

I cannot agree at all with youse guys about the new look. Movement for movement's sake, as far as I can tell.

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Soriana has continually revamped the Chapala store since it opened a few years ago. It is done in response to local buying habits, as well as their own marketing plan. When they first opened, the produce section was huge. Probably because they did not realize that the Monday tianguis and other sources, such as the Chapala mercado public cannot be beat for freshness or selection. Walmart had the same problem, if you remember. Growing pains never end and must be addressed continually if a business is to survive.

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Agreed, RV. Absolutely. That is the #1 rule in retail. I just fail to see, since they've opened, how almost any of their changes has benefited anyone. They must not understand, either, or there would be far fewer massive reorgs.

I think the first thing to be grasped is, if you have a fast-food restaurant, it needs to be up front. And any kiosks in the store should not be in competition with you, like Chinese Food, which is always a grabber. Soriana makes pizza, dogs, etc. That's what shoppers want. Make it visible. Second, the deli counter also has fast food, and like WalMarts across America, it should be right by the door, for the fried chicken, salads, etc. This is just common-sense practice, to me, and works just as well in Mexico as anywhere else.

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Department stores revamp their stores because they want you to browse through the store looking for whatever you want to buy. ....nothing to do with conveniece or logic. They want you to get inside the store and walk through.It is a common practice. The front door grabber is for people who had no intention to go in but will examine the front row. They usually stop the shopping right there but might buy if it cought their attention in the first place...

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Walmart seems to move things around all the time, too. Maybe not the big depts, but small items are often in different places depending on what the season is. Right now toys and Christmas decorations needed more space, so the hardware section got shrunk and moved about. Bought a special glue one day, next day glue section moved, downsized and no more of the glue I needed.

We are going to check out Sorianos tomorrow. Always liked it, but the music was too loud. Glad that holiday decorations not a focus. Love the more religious focus here. Plus some of the little stores in Joco sell amazing decorations.

Thanks for Chinese food tip, too.

Carol

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So glad this topic was posted. We went to Sorianos on Friday. Too early to enjoy Chinese, though it it did look good. We always liked this store when we lived in San Antonio Tlayacapan , but now that we're in San Juan Cosala, we hadn't returned. The biggest issue for us was the very loud music. Happy to report is has been turned down a lot. We could hear each other easily. Bathrooms clean and stocked. Lay out didn't bother us. Good selection of things, many that aren't at Walmart. The fruit and veggies were In good shape on that day. Again some items that aren't found in Walmart other than in prepackaged versions were available.

What really impressed me was how carefully the ladies bagged the items. Never had anyone work so hard to keep like items together. Made putting things away so much easier.

We will go back again, especially when we have a Chapala destination for lunch in mind.

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Thanks for the gentle correction. Guess it flows off the tongue more easily and then becomes habit. "I'm going to Soriano" feels like it is still looking for a sound. Where as "Walmarts" just feels wrong. I'll practice and fix my habit.

Carol

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The new look is great, they traded a few squares of space to make it less crowded, and no boxes in the ailes during shopping as is the case more and more in WM. We always shopped in both stores, fresh produce is definitely better at Soriana and so is the Bakery. Nobody is missing the Pharmacy there are so many all over Lakeshore, who cares. The manager I have known at the beginning when the store opened, he has progressed into todays position with honour and really likes his job. Nice to have good competition around our towns.

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Thanks for the gentle correction. Guess it flows off the tongue more easily and then becomes habit. "I'm going to Soriano" feels like it is still looking for a sound. Where as "Walmarts" just feels wrong. I'll practice and fix my habit.

Carol

Soriana, Carol. 'A' on the end, not 'o'.

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Well, that makes it easy to say without the incorrect 's'. I am always watching the weird entrance lanes when I go and not paying attention to the store' sign.

Thanks,

Carol

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Well, not getting into the weeds with language, I was in there a couple days ago and I'll give you this, the place is definitely upscale from it's former self - but then frankly, it had no place to go but "up". I've always been annoyed by their insentient need to move things around to cause me to walk - even though I'm not a "impulsive" shopper, but that's fine, it's what they train new managers to do and so they do it. Wally's is no different, it took them 3 years to get the trash bags and the sandwich bags on the same side of the store.

But, the one thing that has annoyed me most about Soriana is that they are not consistent in stocking some of the things I buy there, hopefully that will improve with this new "image".

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The major reorg, as I recall, happened just last month. I'm in there once a week, anyway. The Chinese food is privately owned, and agreed, not so good. The best customer service is from the aged men and women who do the bagging. I always overtip them.

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