Costco, Trader Joe’s get backlash for similar reason | Official Website of Louis Velazquez, entrepreneur, finance guy and tech innovator

If you were to take a survey of people and ask them to rank their favorite grocery stores, there’s a good chance that both Costco and Trader Joe’s would top a lot of consumers’ list.

Both Costco and Trader Joe’s are famous for having loyal fan followings. And there’s a reason for that.

For one thing, both stores pride themselves on everyday low prices. Costco’s prices may be more competitive because members are buying in bulk. But Trader Joe’s makes a point to keep its prices as low as possible.

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Another nice thing both stores do is offer their low prices to shoppers without forcing them to clip coupons or load deals onto a store card. It’s just another means of making the process of shopping for groceries less of a hassle.

Costco and Trader Joe’s also do an excellent job of offering outstanding customer service. Both stores are quick to offer refunds on purchases that do not meet expectations. This extends to food products that are partially eaten, which is more than reasonable.

Costco, Trader Joe’s get backlash for similar reason

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Costco and Trader Joe’s have faced criticism in the past

Although there are plenty of people who love Costco and Trader Joe’s, neither store is perfect.

There are plenty of people who downright refuse to shop at Costco because they don’t believe in having to pay a membership fee to get in the door. And some people don’t like the Costco shopping experience because stores can get extremely crowded, especially on weekends.

Members have long implored Costco to change its warehouse club hours. And while the company did recently expand its gas station hours, many customers would also like to see their local stores open a bit earlier in the day and close a bit later.

Trader Joe’s, meanwhile, has gotten backlash for some of its poorly conceived product labeling.

The company was no doubt trying to be cute when it slapped a “Trader Jose’s” label on its Mexican food products. But a lot of people didn’t appreciate it and went so far as to call the practice racist.

Trader Joe’s also tends to get criticized for having a somewhat limited selection of food products.

Many shoppers simply cannot fulfill all of their weekly grocery needs at Trader Joe’s alone, necessitating a second supermarket trip. That can be a frustrating thing for folks with busy schedules.

Costco and Trader Joe’s get blasted for similar reason

One nice thing about Costco is that it frequently mixes up its inventory and puts new and exciting products on its shelves. So does Trader Joe’s.

In fact, shopping at Costco has long been compared to going on a treasure hunt. And while there’s not as much square footage to cover at Trader Joe’s, there’s a similar sentiment in that unearthing new products can be a thrill for foodies.

Costco members were initially thrilled to see Green & Sunny Thai Mango on Sticky Rice pop up in the frozen dessert section. The product is described as, “Thai mango on top of sweet coconut infused sticky rice, drizzled with coconut milk sauces and crispy mung beans.”

But once they actually tried it, they felt differently.

“It was awful,” one customer said. Another called it “gross.”

Costco, however, isn’t the only retail giant to get called out this summer for a frozen dessert that falls flat.

Trader Joe’s recently got blasted over the fact that its Italian Pistachio & Fior Di Latte Gelato Style Frozen Dessert is loaded with artificial ingredients.

One customer who was less than pleased with their purchase called it “a chemical box with pistachio flavor.” Another said it was just plain “horrible.”

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Of course, not every new product that hits the shelves at a supermarket is going to be a big win. But at a time when consumers are trying to spend their money more mindfully, bringing home subpar desserts is a huge disappointment.

That said, because Costco and Trader Joe’s have such generous return policies, the people who bought these desserts and didn’t like them don’t necessarily have to lose out on money. That’s at least one silver lining.

However, given these recent product failures, consumers may be less likely to take a chance on frozen dessert items from either store in the near term.

Maurie Backman owns shares of Costco.