The Sneaky Secret about Why You Love Trader Joe’s Food So Much

And it's actually not what you think.

By Karly Wood July 20, 2018

There really is a secret about why we love Trader Joe’s so much and it’s actually quite simple. Yes, we adore the unique selection of international foods, one of a kind TJ products—and don’t even get us started on the amazing prices.

But the actual secret is that Trader’s has us figured out from start to finish, and that includes providing us an optimal shopping experience––even in the frozen food aisles. Those open-top, doorless freezers? Yeah, they make you want to buy all the things.

Photo: Daveynin by Flickr

Trader Joe’s freezer setup differs in almost every way to traditional grocery stores. While “regular” supermarkets tend to isolate their frozen foods from the rest of the store and hide them in oversized freezers with tight closing doors, TJ’s uses coffin cases that are open, keep the aisle chilly (but not freezing), and mixes frozen food with tempting suggestions like chocolate-covered raspberry sticks and JoJo’s.

As it turns out, peering through the tall glass doors of conventional freezers creates a barrier-like feeling that causes consumers to want to just get in and get out. On the contrary, Trader Joe’s frozen food aisle is warm (literally) and welcoming. The pairing of frozen and non-frozen goods gives shoppers that “treasure hunt” feeling, where we actually want to linger and find new products.

And it appears that Trader Joe’s is on to something. In a comment to NPR, a company spokesperson stated that frozen food sales are performing well. Judging by our recent shopping carts, we can see why.

––Karly Wood