The celebration of unique and fresh foods continues in St. Petersburg with the addition of a Trader Joe’s on Fourth Street.
Trader Joe’s is a neighborhood grocery store, offering a wide selection of both domestic and imported foods and beverages known for their distinctive flavors and killer prices. The store also offers standards for people just making a quick milk-and-bread run.
Some of the store’s staple items include 100 percent juice, vitamins and fresh crop nuts. Trader Joe’s also boasts a colorful array of salad basics and ingredients, and a unique range of international frozen entrees.
Regular shopper favorites can be found online if you need some direction, with the Speculoos Cookie Butter spread and Mandarin Orange Chicken meal appearing on many lists.
Unlike other stores, Trader Joe’s doesn’t have flash sales, and only adjusts prices when production costs change. Don’t let the absence of sales drive you away as a college student – their prices are fair and honest. You don’t have to worry about missing a deal, because the deal is consistent.
This is because Trader Joe’s offers more than 4,000 of their items under a private Trader Joe’s label; for instance, selling fried rice under “Trader Ming’s” or salsa under “Trader Jose’s” to incorporate the culture of the food into the name. Eighty percent of the store’s merchandise is privately owned by Trader Joe’s.
The store also doesn’t make purchases from big-name distributors. They aim to remove preservatives, synthetic colors and other artificial ingredients to ensure a lower cost and higher value to each and every product.
With every month, around 12 new products are introduced to Trader Joe’s shelves. According to the Trader Joe’s website, thousands of items are sifted through in order to “find products that both appeal to the culinary adventurer and the microwave aficionado.”
IF YOU GO: Trader Joe’s is located at 2742 Fourth St. N in St. Petersburg.
