By Clark Jessop

Smith's has a Fresh Values Card, Lee's advertises "spectacular savings" and Wal-Mart promises to have the lowest price always. So with everyone claiming to have great prices, where can you get the most bang for your grocery buck?

The answer: It depends on what kind of bang you are looking for. I looked at prices and the overall shopping experience at Lee's, Smith's, and Wal-Mart. Grocery shoppers can also go to Albertson's, Macey's, and Fred Meyer. I tested Lee's, Smith's, and Wal-Mart because they seem to be the most popular with Utah State students.

First, I examined the prices of 15 common items at the three different stores. The same brands and sizes were used so that a fair comparison could be made. There were two exceptions to this, where the brand being tested wasn't available. In these cases I used a comparable brand with the same size. This is noted in the chart:

	Lee's	Smith's	Wal-Mart
Gallon milk	$1.67	$2.22	$2.14
Box of Cherrios	$4.89	$3.28	$3.26
Half-gallon Breyer's ice cream	$5.29 (Dreyers)	$3.78	$2.98
Small tub, "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter"	$1.89	$1.99	$1.38
Two pounds bananas	$1.18	$1.18	$0.96
Pound of Golden Delicious apples	$1.39	$0.89	$0.97
Loaf of Wonder Bread	$2.49	$2.59	$2.50
Crest toothpaste (8.2 ounces)	$3.29	$2.43	$1.97
Sixpack of Slim-Fast shakes	$6.99	$4.80	$4.74
Bottle of Ragu sauce	$2.29	$2.39	$1.38
Box of Hamburger Helper	$2.39	$1.25	$1.33
One pound lean ground beef	$1.79	$1.99	$1.89
Four Yoplait yogurts	$2.68	$2.00	$2.16
Bag of Doritos (13.5 ounces)	$3.29	$3.29	$2.00
Ten Nissan Ramen Noodle packs	$1.00	$2.50	$1.40 (Maruchan)
TOTALS	$42.52	$36.58	$31.06

As the chart shows, Wal-Mart is the clear-cut price winner. On more than half of the items, Wal-Mart had the cheapest price. Wal-Mart never had the worst price on any item. Lee's had the best price in four instances, and the worst price seven times. Smith's (a Kroger grocery store) only had the best price on only three items, but finished nearly $6 better than Lee's on the overall price. Wal-Mart's price advantage mirrored other similar studies from around the country. The price difference came as a surprise to some Utah State students.

"I didn't know there would be such a big difference," USU student Mark Stocking said. "Wal-Mart has good prices, but it's got some bad things about it too."

This leads us into our next area, where Wal-Mart didn't fare so well. I looked at parking, lighting, customer service, and cleanliness to measure the overall shopping experience. The chart below shows how each store fared:

	Lee's	Smith's	Wal-Mart
Parking	A. Plenty of parking was available close to the store.	B. Parking was good but not great. Smith's also provided parking for seniors close to the store.	D. Wal-Mart is a zoo. They need a traffic cop there. Also, turning onto 200 East on your way to Wal-Mart takes a lot of time.
Appearance/ cleanliness/lighting	A. Very clean and well lighted. The shelves were stocked and the store was clean. A very friendly feel.	B. Most shelves were stocked. The floor was dirty in places, but there was still an overal good feel about shopping there.	C-minus. Had the feel of a communist warehouse. Things were piled all over the place. There was poor lighting, and many of the shelves weren't stocked.
Customer service	A. Employees were very helpful in answering my questions. Cashiers were waiting in front of registers to help me when I was ready to go.	C-minus. I had trouble finding anyone to help me find certain items. The woman who did help me was rude. Finally, when I was ready, I waited in line for a long time.	B-plus. Considering the volume of sales, I felt that Wal-Mart did an excellent job. Employees were very friendly in answering my questions and I did not have to wait in ine very long.
OVERALL GRADE	A	B-MINUS	C

As you can see from the two charts, there are going to be good and bad elements to wherever you shop. At Lee's, the shopping experience is excellent, but that comes out of your wallet. For some students, that is a price they are willing to pay.

"I just love Lee's," USU student Candace Mullen said. "Everyone is so friendly there, I just think it's a lot better than having to go to Wal-Mart or Smith's."

Others prefer the middle road. In this case, the middle road is Smith's. Smith's has competitive prices and a fairly good shopping experience. You're not paying a fortune, and you don't have to put up with the chaos that you experience shopping at Wal-Mart.

"It doesn't surprise me that Smith's prices are somewhere in the middle," Smith's shopper and USU student Lisa Houtz said after seeing our study. "But for me, the proximity of the store is more important than saving a dollar or two."

Finally, those who want to save the most money shop at Wal-Mart. "Price is number one with me when it comes to grocery shopping," USU student Angalee Jackson said. "At Wal-Mart, I can find everything that I want, all in one store. Even if it isn't grocery."

Wal-Mart is able to to offer such low prices because of its size. The American Antitrust Institute says that Wal-Mart has revolutionized the grocery business, showing that to survive, you have to be big, efficient and cheap. In a separate article, the Institute found that Safeway, Albertson's, Kroger, Ahold and Wal-Mart control one third of grocery sales in the country. However, Wal-Mart is not well liked by some because they are so big. One study performed by Carnegie Mellon University found that big stores such as Wal-Mart don't allow smaller companies to survive.

So if you're looking for a beautiful place with great parking, excellent customer service, and the best prices, good luck. I found that your buck can't pay for all of this. Where it goes? That's up to you.

NW
MS

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