Aww, You're Here to Read About Little Ol' Me?
Hi everyone! My name’s Zachary and I’ve had a passion for supermarkets for years. I began visiting different supermarkets every week in 2015, but it wasn’t until the spring of 2016 that I began photographing stores myself. I’d been an avid reader of the Acme Style blog, and when the newly-opened Acme in Kenilworth, NJ -- formerly my local supermarket -- was renovated, I grabbed photos of the new decor to send in to Acme Style.
And from then on, I began photographing every different supermarket I visited. At first, I posted my pictures on Flickr. But by November of 2016, inspired by Acme Style, Albertsons Florida Blog, and others, I began my own blog. The creatively-named Supermarket Fan had begun the creatively-named NJ Supermarkets blog!
By the spring of 2018, I thought the name NJ Supermarkets wasn’t necessarily accurate for the blog, given that I’d covered lots more than just New Jersey stores. Plus, I could go for something a little more exciting. That’s where The Market Report came in -- not only is it a play on words, it’s also closer to what I want the blog to represent.
March 1, 2019 marked the launch of The Market Report's sister blog, Grocery Archaeology. This blog focuses mainly on examining the history of supermarket buildings that are no longer in business. And on September 22, 2019, The Independent Edition was launched, profiling independent and small-chain stores.
Thanks for visiting! Happy reading and happy shopping...
And from then on, I began photographing every different supermarket I visited. At first, I posted my pictures on Flickr. But by November of 2016, inspired by Acme Style, Albertsons Florida Blog, and others, I began my own blog. The creatively-named Supermarket Fan had begun the creatively-named NJ Supermarkets blog!
By the spring of 2018, I thought the name NJ Supermarkets wasn’t necessarily accurate for the blog, given that I’d covered lots more than just New Jersey stores. Plus, I could go for something a little more exciting. That’s where The Market Report came in -- not only is it a play on words, it’s also closer to what I want the blog to represent.
March 1, 2019 marked the launch of The Market Report's sister blog, Grocery Archaeology. This blog focuses mainly on examining the history of supermarket buildings that are no longer in business. And on September 22, 2019, The Independent Edition was launched, profiling independent and small-chain stores.
Thanks for visiting! Happy reading and happy shopping...
Frequently Asked Questions
Needless to say, not everyone writes a supermarket blog. So when people find out that I do, the conversation almost always goes the same. Here we go...
So you write a blog...about supermarkets?
Yep.
Why supermarkets?
I don't know. I've always had some specific and unusual interest (some would call it an obsession), starting with trucks and construction vehicles since I was very young. I wasn't just going "vroom vroom" with my Matchbox trucks though; I could identify the make and model of a piece of construction equipment at a glance. Incidentally, in elementary school, I assumed everyone else saw the world the same way and was confused when my question of "What's your interest?" was met with the invariable "Uh, I guess I like to watch baseball..." Nowadays, I'm interested in corporate branding and graphic design, as well as marketing and architecture, to a lesser extent. Supermarkets happen to be a convenient union of those interests.
What's your favorite supermarket?
I don't know.
What do you mean?
Well, I evaluate supermarkets on different criteria. ShopRite is a solid store for pretty much everything you could need, but some operators are better than others. Most ShopRites really aren't that exciting either. I really like Food Bazaar, but their limited selection of nonfood items and high prices on some general grocery products makes it difficult to do large and varied shopping there. Wegmans is impressive to walk into, but I've never been wowed doing any actual shopping there.
[by this point, most people have lost interest]
[I keep talking nonetheless]
So you write a blog...about supermarkets?
Yep.
Why supermarkets?
I don't know. I've always had some specific and unusual interest (some would call it an obsession), starting with trucks and construction vehicles since I was very young. I wasn't just going "vroom vroom" with my Matchbox trucks though; I could identify the make and model of a piece of construction equipment at a glance. Incidentally, in elementary school, I assumed everyone else saw the world the same way and was confused when my question of "What's your interest?" was met with the invariable "Uh, I guess I like to watch baseball..." Nowadays, I'm interested in corporate branding and graphic design, as well as marketing and architecture, to a lesser extent. Supermarkets happen to be a convenient union of those interests.
What's your favorite supermarket?
I don't know.
What do you mean?
Well, I evaluate supermarkets on different criteria. ShopRite is a solid store for pretty much everything you could need, but some operators are better than others. Most ShopRites really aren't that exciting either. I really like Food Bazaar, but their limited selection of nonfood items and high prices on some general grocery products makes it difficult to do large and varied shopping there. Wegmans is impressive to walk into, but I've never been wowed doing any actual shopping there.
[by this point, most people have lost interest]
[I keep talking nonetheless]