Trader Joe’s is a privately held grocery chain, ranked 27th in America, with 353 stores, in 27 States, and Washington, D.C.
History
In 1958, founder Joe Coulombe managed the new Pronto Markets chain in California, which later becomes Trader Joe’s. Joe Coulombe developed the idea of the Trader Joe South Seas motif while on vacation in the Caribbean. He liked the idea of bringing home new and unique items that were not available in the local markets, at that time. In the beginning, some of the stores offered meats provided by butchers who leased space in the stores, as well as other fresh picked fruits and vegetables from local producers.
The first Trader Joe’s store debuted in South Pasadena, California in 1967. 12 years later, it was bought out by the Albrecht family. Joe Coulombe remained active within the company as a counselor until 1988, until he was succeeded by longtime friend and colleague John V. Shields.
Trader Joe’s starts to really take off at this time, and reaches about $150 million in sales in 1989. Steady growth compels the executives at Trader Joe’s to expand beyond California, into Arizona, pushing their number of stores to 59 in 1989.
By 1994, Trader Joe’s is consistently reaching $600 million in US sales annually, and opens stores in Seattle and Oregon. With the addition of the Trader Joe’s web site in 1996, they also open up more stores on the East Coast, in Boston, Washington, D.C., and New York. Along with this move, they also expand their nonfood specialty business.
Having outgrown their present location, Trader Joe’s decides to move the company headquarters to Monrovia, California. They also made the move away from genetically modified ingredients from its private-label products; and decided to exclude products from China amidst claims that organic food from this country contained less than true organic ingredients.
By 2009, Trader Joe’s had grown to a total of 353 stores, in 27 States, including Washington, D.C., with sales of over $8 billion US.
Stats
Headquarters: Monrovia, California
No. of Stores: 353 (2010)
No. of Employees: 7,488 (2001)
Geography: 353 stores, in 27 States, including Washington, D.C.
Special Services: gourmet foods, organic foods, vegetarian food, unusual frozen foods, imported foods, domestic and imported wine and beer, and staples like bread, cereal, eggs, dairy, coffee and produce. Non-food items include personal hygiene products, household cleaners, vitamins, pet food, plants, and flowers.
Trader Joe’s promises that anything with a “Trader Joe’s” logo contains no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives, no MSG or trans fats, and is sourced from non-genetically modified ingredients.
Banners
Trader Jose’s (Mexican food), Trader Ming’s (Chinese food), and Baker Josef’s (flour and bagels).
Brands
By selling almost all of its products under its own label, Trader Joe’s “skips the middle man” and buys directly from both local and international small-time vendors.
Do you carry Triple Ginger Snaps? They are the best I have ever tasted!!
do you have pistachio jam
We are looking for oysters in a jar. Do you carry them.
Thank you for answering
Any stores in the Hampton area of Suffolk County, NY?
please bring back the Italian Turkey Meatloaf, my family and I love it. I shop at the Monterey store (93940) and the Pacific Grove store (93950). I always recommend this product to all trader joes shoppers
I love the reusable TJ’s shopping bags. In particular the blue ones with the surfboards and the ocean. However I haven’t seen any with that pattern since I began looking to buy a new one. They have since been replaced with these horrible HOT (not in a good way) RED Arizona bags. Living in Phoenix in the summer and looking at the red bag makes me feel psychologically hotter. (Also not in a good way)
Recently I was shopping in your store and spotted a surfboard bag in a customers cart. I offered to buy it from him. I was prepared to offer him much more than he paid for it. He refused stating he had to look for that bag high and low and obviously felt the same way about the bag as I do.
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE Bring back the surfboard bags Arizona
Trader Joe Management – Recently we relocated from California to Colorado and for the past thirty years or so we have always shopped at one of your stores.Trader Joe stores are becoming very popular in Colorado and you may want to check out the new development called the ‘ Promenade ‘ located in Castle Rock, CO off of Meadows Parkway and the I25. The developer has just started construction of this multi million dollar project.
You discontued the low fat ginger “Catscookies for people”
Wow thank god that was an easy math question. Anyway I LOVE YOU TRADER JOES! However you have recently broken my heart. You have discontinued the divine shrimp louie salad that was my favorite. Please, please, please, consider bringing it back. I have eaten that salad every night with an avocado, soy sauce, and that fabulous pomegranate vinegar as a dressing…wait I’m not done…for the past 6 years!!! Except of course when I was in Peru, Bali, and Virginia which amounts to about 30 days which is also easy math. For 5 years and 11 months I have NEVER tired of my beloved shrimp salad. There are very few things I can eat with my diet restrictions and that was the perfect meal. You must thing I am a nut but I am actually a pretty cool woman who dances and teaches school and rescues animals and fights for humanity. If you could bring my salad back I will go on a campaign to get more people to buy it. I will give you my first born chinchilla. I will volunteer to work at your store for free once a month. Perhaps you could just have it at the Hollywood store or the Studio City location. I love everything about your store; the Caribbean vibe, the unique and friendly Hawaiian shirted employees the, the murals, the plethora of flowers, the assortment of exotic foods and the new items that show up daily. If you could only just bring back one glimpse of the past, the old, the memories, MY SHRIMP LOUIE SALAD, I would be forever most eternally grateful to you. Thanks you for making the world a better place. Ineluctably Yours, Danny Page Pulley
Are you ever going to open store in the villages, fl. 120000 people and growing like crazy. It is located in Sumter county. The fastest growing county in the US.
My wife is addicted to Trader Joe’s. Why won’t you come to Capitol Hill? Great store!
Can Trader Joe’s gift cards be used at any JTs in US?
Are you ever going to open a store in Coral Springs? Boca is too far for us to go!
Looking for a sweeten milk substitute called Mimic crème. Do you carry it
Why do you no longer carry the chocolate cake mix in the California stores in the San Francisco Bay area? They were the best cake mix I had found. Better than I could make.
I started going to Trader Joe’s in Montery Cal. My daughter lived there for one and a half years. I live in Utah County and would love to shop at your store but I will not drive to S.L.C. Please bring one of your stores to my area ( south utah county), I have talked to many people here and they all say they love your store but driving 40-50 miles is just to far to go.
I just found out today that you have discontinued the biscotti with the choc bottom because of supposedly slow sale. I am really upset about that.
Could you please tell me if there is somewhere I could buy them.
Thank you
Melinda
What are the posibilities of bringing tho old sweet tea back? The new one just isn’t the same as the one that we all love!
I really LOVE Trader Joe’s (it’s my favorite food store) – my ONLY issue is that toooo many foods are loaded with salt.
You don’t need salt to have tasty food and salt isn’t good for you. There are too many things I would like to buy, but can’t because of the excessive amounts of salt.
HELP! PLEASE reduce the salt!!! Then I can buy MORE!
Yea McKinney! Can’t wait! Grew up in SOUTH PASADENA!
I can afford to eat again!
Cookies, Oreo orange
How about a store in Payson, Arizona, I would be your biggest customer as I miss the store and have to drive all the way to Phoenix/Scottsdale to purchase my products.
Do you have Epsom Salt in your Store on 20th and Camelback??? Thanks, B.
I would like to know if you have considered a third store in Albuquerque- the recently vacated Albertson’s on Central at Tramway would have great parking and would be very desirable for the many residents of NE Albq and those of us in the east mountains!!
I’d like to ask about your Virgin Olive Oil because of this report. Whole Foods is guilty of selling bad olive oil.
Why the big secret of where the stores are and what is for sale?
Love your powder Chai tea but been having a hard time finding it in my local store,can you tell my why? Can I order it on line?
Thank you
Can you order the Lundberg Rice Chips into the Store in Bend, Oregon? I feel these would be a asset to the other fine foods you carry and they are wheat and Gluten free.
Hello Trader joes, We are wondering if you have tried this great ice cream named *Macapuno Ube* this is a coconut Sweet Purple Yam ice cream. here is the website . (www.magnoliaicecream.com) would you try some and think about bringing it in to your store.? Great Bright Purple color. Thank you.
What salt free or low salt products do carry?
looking to see if you carry meat marinate sauces