When it comes to grocery shopping, everyone has a favorite store. The never-ending suburban battle of Whole Foods versus Trader Joe’s is a testament to this. Of course, in addition to product preferences, proximity and regionality are major considerations in choosing where to pick up your produce — we all know how Floridians feel about their Pub Subs.
As it turns out, the year you were born can factor into your shopping habits, too. So when it comes to grocery stores, where do millennials, Gen X, and baby boomers stand? Market research and analytics firm YouGov recently aggregated data on the most popular grocery stores in the U.S. — divided by generation. For this research, the popularity is stated as the percent of people who have a positive opinion on that particular shop.
When looking at the results across all generations, the most popular grocery store in the U.S. is actually 7-Eleven with a 65 percent popularity rating. This might be a bit surprising as the convenience store is better known for its Slurpees and hot dogs than bananas and broccoli. Just behind 7-Eleven in second place is Trader Joe’s at 64 percent popularity. Whole Foods comes in third at 61 percent (so we know where America stands on that rivalry). Fourth and fifth go to value shops Aldi and Kroger, which both score 60 percent on the popularity meter.
Breaking it down by generation, it’s clear where the lines are drawn. Apparently millennials are big on convenience, as 7-Eleven is the most popular pick among those born between 1981 and 1996. 7-Eleven is again followed by Trader Joe’s — after all, where would millennials be without frozen gnocchi and hauls of obscure snacks?
Trader Joe’s is also a favorite among Gen X, tied for first place in popularity with Aldi at 64 percent. (We’d love to know how much Two Buck Chuck factors into this favorable score.) Baby boomers might be the most responsible of us all, as the sensible, value-driven Kroger is far and away the most popular grocery store for their generation with a popularity score of 68 percent.
Is it possible that the young millennials will eventually grow into their love for larger value stores as opposed to picking up groceries at a gas station shop? Only time will tell.
*Image retrieved from Kwangmoozaa via stock.adobe.com
