h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Ever stand in the store isle and try and find Cream of Broccoli? Why don't they just alphabetize them? Make it simpler on us and simpler on them.

That would be too easy. Stores don't -want- you to be able to find things easier, because it would increase the possibility of dashing in, purchasing just what you want, and leaving. Stores want you to have to search for things, because they believe that in the searching, you'll discover some other morsel you never would have bought had you not stumbled into it while searching for something else.

Hope this helps.

Nonnie

This same reasoning explains why stores periodically rearrange all their shelves, forcing you to traipse up and down all the aisles looking for the stuff you need.

As well as put so many non-essentials in the middle of the aisles on display racks, stick things they're trying to push at eye-level and things you need most on the top or bottom shelves, among other tactics.

And then there's the cross referencing problem:
Cream of Broccoli
Broccoli, Cream of

And the sub-heading problem:
Vegetable Soup
Vegetable Soup (beef)
Vegetable Soup (vegetarian)
Vegetable Soup (alphabet)

And the demand question:
three shelves of Cream of Mushroom [Mushroom, Cream of] right in the middle, taking up all that high visibility space. When you know everyone is going to buy it anyway, why NOT put it down in the corner?

Oh! Well.. good point... and then there's the obvious.. Brand names..

Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Cambell's
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Libby's
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Store Brand, premium
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Store Brand, regular
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Store Brand, cheap
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Store Brand, really, really cheap
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Generic
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Imported known brand
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Imported Who-the-heck-heard-of-that brand
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Exported
Cream of Mushroom (Mushroom, Cream of) Deported


and so on.

~~~~~~

Ah, a Grocery store conspiracy. Do you suppose they [store management] meet in the wardroom and discuss strategies against us, [us, the potential enemy, if we went to a more organized store] ways to detain us from our daily lives? [The continual rearrangemnt, which seems to magically occur overnight, of everything in the store, appears to be a favorite strategy] All disguised as alluring enticements to purchase frequently useless items? As to the rows of Cream of Mushroom [Mushroom, Cream of], are they are assuming that we are not bright enough [or perhaps visibly challenged] to find it if they alphabetized them?
Then again, perhaps their strategy is correct. Hit the enemy when they are down, weakened after a long day of work, eyes blurred from staring at computer screens, car parts, the sundries they sell, the dogs they groom.....
As for myself, I might spend more time in a store that organized everthing, just out of appreciation.

> As for myself, I might spend more time in a store that organized > everthing, just out of appreciation.

Ah... But that would require assuming that the average shopper was a semi-intelligent, sentient being... How presumtuous!

Ah yes, I do concede, the problem of subheadings is a tricky one. And my daughter's fiance just brought out an point, especially for those of us who are vertically challenged. If they are going to put those items that I use frequently on high selves. Why don't they provide ladders like some of the nicer bookstores I've been in. There is nothing quite like trying to climb up the selves [yes, I am very vertically challenged] to retrieve those items. Especially if I've worn a short skirt [which in itself might pose the reason why].

True, Anonymouse, you have a point. I do beleive the Manual of Grocery Store Tactical Strategies describes the 'Average Shopper' as someone with the IQ lesser than his/her shoe size [European sizing include, but especially American sizing].

Hmmm.. perhaps you have a point (re: short skirt) ...

Being vertically challenged myself (how do you get much shorter than a mouse?) I've wondered the same. There's a Wal-Mart store here that often leaves ladders lying about (the shelf-stockers work all day) but they get rather annoyed when customers try to use them. Probably something about insurance. *Sigh* ... and their shelves are mostly higher than even the tallest shoppers could reach.

But that is why they make selves. Self climbing is an art. I do suppose if they[shop keepers] really thought about is [now that is an oxymoron] they would realize that we [the people who support thier ventures] would pose less of an insurance risk if we used the ladders than if we climbed the selves. However, things as they are, I find myself trying to find footing on selves than using a ladder.

But it's only when you move away from groceries, and look at rental
shops things start to get tricky. Can you imagine trying to keep,
say, the "new releases" section of a video shop alphabetised?
It would almost feel like living in a world of pain, frustratingly
speaking of course!

Actually, the new releases in a video store 'should' be fairly easy [assuming that the clerks can alphabetize]. However, you have a point, aphabetizing rental cars would be a bit of a problem. Now is that a fushia Yugo or a pink one?

Heh ... They have enough trouble keeping the cars organized by -makers-. The new ones mostly look the same anyway. *sigh*

Except for the new VW Beetle, that one looks like a bumper car with a roof. I supposed you would have to file that one under "Ridiculously expensive toy [Beetle, new 'improved', various colours [not to be confused with Beatle]]"

Oh, yea of little understanding. The soup is alphabetized by UPC bar code (in most reputable
stores). To find your favorite type of soup, just memorize all of the codes and you too can be
a wizard of the store shelves. This arrangement is of course done to facilitate the restocking
of the shelves. Why should they make things convenient for the customers when the
employees complain louder.

Well well, you learn something every day...

So why don't book stores stock their bookshelves by ISBN number?

Some of them do. I seem to remember entering a bookstore in London's Heathrow
Airport where the books were arranged by Publisher. Made it devilishly difficult to
find a specific book.

Perhaps a better question would be does anyone know how Blockbuster arranges
the videos they are trying to rent. The last time I went into one (approximately 5
years ago), they had the Superman movies in 4 different catagories. The employees
couldn't tell me where the film I was looking for was without checking the computer
to see how it was catagorized (wrongly) and then checking the store map to find out
where the catagory was.

You may laugh, but that is almost exactly how it is.