End Caps

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Clarissa

March 25, 2018

End caps are basically goldmines because they’re built to attract eyes. They’re loaded with the products that are most likely to prompt an impulse buy—or products from manufacturers with money. Yes, companies essentially pay supermarkets to display products in these end caps, and the tactic makes sense. Item sales often see 33 percent increases when they’re featured in an end cap.

This is so weird. I never buy anything from end caps, don’t even look at them because it feels like there must be something wrong with them if they are expelled from the actual aisle. Why would I want these marginalized, singled out pariahs, I always think.

I think about these things a lot because I go to grocery stores like other people go to church. Google some images for Soviet grocery stores if you don’t get it.

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6 responses to “End Caps”

cliff arroyo

March 25, 2018

“Google some images for Soviet grocery stores”

Welcome to the bounty of socialism! (butcher shop in communist Poland)

But if you liked (plain white) vinegar you were in luck!

Stories about stores with only vinegar on the shelves were a staple of communist Poland. I would sometimes joke that people didn’t get it, they needed to find who was in charge of vinegar (and doing such a great job) and put him in charge of something else. Hilarity never ensued…..

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Shakti

March 25, 2018

End caps should only trigger that reaction if there are holes in the shelves. Those pictures remind me of stores when they’re going out of business and selling all of the inventory down to the shelves and the bolts. I’m sure there’s lots of dust too.

I’m guessing sparsely laid out high end stores and pop up stores in the middle of the mall would elicit the same response from you?

I don’t actually buy stuff from supermarket endcaps because it’s usually processed stuff I’d never buy.

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1. Clarissa
  
  March 25, 2018
  
  Yeah, that too. It’s not the kind of stuff I want to buy anyway.
  
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Jonathan

March 25, 2018

I never knew the term before. I would have called it the candy rack

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1. Clarissa
  
  March 25, 2018
  
  The candy rack is the thing you have near the cash register, though, isn’t it? These are the stands that are at the end of the aisles and they have discounted canned goods, boxed pasta, boxed cookies, etc.
  
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Jonathan

March 25, 2018

Ok. Then I guess those have escaped my attention until now. I never thought of them as a thing with a name.

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