An elderly "greeter" is the first to meet shoppers in American stores
Even after many years of emigrant life in the US, I sometimes recall "Soviet-style shopping." True, back then "going to the store" immediately evoked feelings of hatred and disgust in most people: again hour-long lines, again not enough pairs of shoes, again enduring rudeness at the counters... In those distant 60s and 70s, the idea of American shopping was synonymous with the concept of a "shopper's paradise," where all shelves are bursting with goods, happy customers casually throw shiny packages into overflowing carts, and then loaded and happy they drive home in polished Mercedes.
A little later, when the "Iron Curtain" opened and the wave of emigrants began to flood America, one could often hear variations of the same shopping "tragedy": how Aunt Sonya (or Grandma Klava) first entered an American supermarket and fainted at the sight of shelves overflowing with products. I'm not sure if there is any truth to these tales. But I personally came close to "consumer shock" when I was first taken to a giant hardware store in New York. I had brought with me a pair of pliers and screwdrivers that I had managed to "procure" (basically stolen) at my former home factory.
Since those distant times, much has changed on both sides of the ocean. Queues in domestic stores have disappeared. The veil of mystery and almost otherworldly inaccessibility has fallen from American shopping. Many Russian shoppers have firmly occupied Moscow boutiques and London supermarkets. But for most Russians, American shopping probably still remains a somewhat mysterious concept of "over there." Well, let me try to tell you more about shopping "over here," in America.
American Supermarket
The closest equivalent to the concept of a "gastronom" in the US is called a "grocery," so buying food is "grocery shopping."
In principle, we have two types of grocery shops: huge stores with food, household goods, sometimes clothing and electronics; and specialized small shops – for example, vegetable, bread, meat, liquor, etc.
Giant groceries usually belong to national chains. They are built according to a single plan, in every large and medium city, and all look the same. It's a giant "box" the size of two football fields, with a parking lot of corresponding size, often open around the clock. An example is the Kroger chain, operating since 1883 with more than 2,000 stores in 31 states. Their headquarters is in my city of Cincinnati; one of dozens of their stores can be found on every corner of the city. Let's go into a Kroger in my neighborhood?
Parking among more than 400 marked spots can always be found, if not right by the door, then a bit further. The first to meet shoppers in the store is an elderly "greeter," or welcomer. Large stores try to attract customers with a "homey atmosphere," long inherent in small family shops. They hire retirees who stand at the entrance and smile, saying "Welcome!" and "Thank you for shopping at Kroger!" to every shopper. Sometimes they can help with a small matter or call a store employee. That's all their workload: a trifle, but pleasant.
Upon entering the store, we grab a cart on wheels and off we go! The entire area is divided into aisles with shelves or refrigerators on the sides. Of course, the selection is American. For a laugh, I once counted more than 120 varieties of bread. By the way, about bread: it is mostly sold not fresh, but specially sliced for toasters; such bread is not tasty untoasted. A package costs $1 to $3. Fresh bread is more expensive: $3-6.
Vegetables and fruits are displayed on special shelves, nicely trimmed and packaged. Above the shelves are pipes with little sprinkler showers. Every few minutes on a timer they spray the vegetables to keep them looking fresh. There are many exotic fruits from South America and the Caribbean, but mostly local produce. A kilo of potatoes is a dollar, apples two dollars, likewise tomatoes and cucumbers roughly.
Dairy products are in refrigerators and have expiration dates: for example, milk has about two weeks. A liter of milk costs half a dollar, a yogurt cup also 50-60 cents.
Meat and fish are sold chilled. And the price of meat depends on its type and cut. The most expensive is beef: a good steak cut is $10-15 per kilogram, a simpler cut $5-6. Pork is even cheaper. Chickens are sold cut up and packaged in parts: $2-4 per kilo. Fish is also cut and cleaned, from $4 to $10 and up.
Sausage products are sliced to order. The seller always offers a sample piece and asks how thin to slice. Pieces of cheese are separated with thin paper when sliced to prevent sticking. You can buy cooked sausage for $4-5, smoked for $10-12, accordingly various hams and boiled pork are more expensive.
Pastries are inexpensive: a good pie costs $2-3, a cake is more expensive – $8-10. A chocolate bar is $1. A kilogram of coffee beans is $10-15.
A huge amount of frozen foods, from meat, prepared breakfasts and dinners, to vegetables and fruits. They also can everything. On every box or can you will certainly read the ingredients and calorie count.
Expecting guests? Let's grab a bottle of wine; usually 0.75 L, huge selection, both local Californian, and French, Italian, Chilean, and all others. Average price $5-10. Vodka, gin, tequila, whiskey cost from $10 and up. Beer – $1 a bottle.
Having shopped, we approach the checkouts. There are usually 15-20 in a row, many are now switching to self-service. Customers scan the barcode or find the item on the cash register screen. We put everything into free plastic bags. Most pay with credit cards, sometimes cash or check.
Having said goodbye to the greeter grandma, we exit the store with the cart straight to the car. Bags in the trunk, cart in a special corral (they are later brought back to the store by part-time teenage students), and home! On the way we'll fill up with gas at 50 cents per liter.
Of course, in small towns and villages the stores are smaller. They are often combined with a gas station. Somewhere in the mountains of West Virginia, such a gas station, one per 5-10 kilometers, is the only place to shop quickly. Well, these highlanders are used to it...
Food markets are not particularly common: small farmers find it hard to compete with giant corporations, and food safety and hygiene requirements are very strict.
American jeans: made in China
Americans dress practically, sometimes even too much, to the point of tastelessness.
Again, I recall the home factory or design bureau from the times of Comrade Brezhnev. We went to work in shirts with ties, a suit or a decent sweater. Women made dresses, suits, wore high heels, as is proper. In winter, a coat, fur coat, fur hats: a familiar picture.
In America it is completely different. Perhaps because the country is young, or the climate is much warmer, but clothing is much lighter, more revealing and subdued. We buy everything ready-made, there is almost no custom tailoring: in all these long years I have never heard of anyone having clothes made in a tailor shop.
Clothes are bought in supermarkets or in specialized boutiques. Discount stores like Wal-Mart are aimed at undiscriminating customers. Better companies like Kohls, Macys, Sears offer medium quality goods. Expensive stores are aimed at the top of the population.
The average American loves T-shirts, tank tops, Polo shirts, jeans and simple cotton slacks. On their feet are most often sneakers, moccasins, soft slip-on shoes or sandals. In summer, everyone wears shorts. Young people wear beach flip-flops everywhere: in the city, at work, in the store. To us this seems almost indecent, but that's the style: comfortable, and they don't care about fashion or others' opinions. In general, Americans don't 'show off' in clothing like many Europeans and Russians.
It was interesting to observe in New York how businesswomen commute to work in Manhattan. In the morning, all the buses and subways are packed with business people, many heading to America's financial center, nicely dressed, hairstyled and made up. And on their feet... white sneakers, and a bag dangling with shoes inside. It's more convenient to the subway; and when they arrive at work, they change into 'heels'.
In cities, people shop at so-called 'malls': large shopping centers with several anchor stores of well-known brands and hundreds of different boutiques. Often malls are built under one roof, 2-3 stories, with built-in cinemas, playgrounds, a food court, and even a gym. They are colorfully decorated, air-conditioned in summer, with good store and merchandise layouts. Families or groups of teenagers often go there to hang out for half a day. They usually operate from 9 to 9 without days off.
Quality and prices – for every taste and budget. The same Levi Strauss jeans cost $30-40. T-shirts $8-10, shirts $15-20, sweaters from $30 and up. An average dress can cost $100, a men's suit $200. Shoes in the range of $50-150. Children's clothing is very expensive, especially for very young ones. And almost everything – all made in China.
Electronics have become very cheap in the last few years, and most of it also comes from China. A 100 cm plasma TV costs $2,000. A home computer $500-1,000, a consumer camera $150-300.
Furniture in America is quite expensive. A decent dining table with chairs can cost $2,000-3,000, a set of leather sofas $3,000-5,000.
Sale! Sale! Sale!
We all love sales, or discounts. They happen constantly, in all stores, on various goods. Information about the current sale is printed in local newspapers, announced in ads, distributed in mailboxes. Sometimes the discount is expressed as a percentage of the price. Sometimes 'Buy one, second half price.' Sometimes you have to buy a certain amount, and they give you a free coupon.
Some stores invite you to their 'club.' Then they can give additional discounts. Sometimes they keep a running tally, and when you reach a certain total amount, they give a coupon, say $20, or a discount on gas.
But nothing can compare to the crazy pre-Christmas rush! Giving gifts at Christmas (December 25) is not just a tradition, it's a way of life. Officially, the gift-buying season starts right after Thanksgiving (the last Thursday of November). That Friday is even called 'Black Friday' because the official sales and buyer rush begin. The flow of advertising reaches unprecedented levels, in stores it's the only time when lines appear and parking lots are often full. According to statistics, in the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas, stores sell a third of the annual volume.
What do they give at Christmas? Common gifts are ties and scarves, gloves and socks. A man might get a new razor, a woman a cosmetics set. Children – a toy car, doll or electronic game. Often these are almost useless gifts. They are either returned right after Christmas or sit in dust for years in closets and garages.
Money back guaranteed!
It's interesting how customers are allowed to return almost everything to the store. Often we don't even try on clothes, or we don't really look closely at the product in the store. Everyone knows: if anything, you can bring the purchase back even after a month or more and get your money back, as long as you keep the receipt. They even return swimsuits and underwear! Some people abuse the generous store policies: they buy, say, a dress or a special handbag, wear it once, and bring it back to return. No one asks why, even though everyone understands.
I once bought an expensive table with chairs. They delivered it, set it up in the room, and my wife was horrified: it absolutely didn't match in style and color. We called the store, they came, picked up the furniture, and refunded every cent. And this happened more than once, even with expensive items, not to mention clothes, shoes, or dishes. Obviously, stores find it more profitable to lose on returns than to upset and lose a customer.
Nothing to do? Go to a garage sale
Remember those accumulated unwanted gifts over the years? And also nearly unworn children's clothes, useless bicycles, tools, an old iron, or an incomplete set of dishes? Mountains of such things clutter up homes. Practical Americans figured out how to get rid of such junk: garage sales.
From mid-spring, people start cleaning out garages, basements, and attics. On a nice warm weekend, any house or even an entire block can announce a garage sale: items are brought out and laid out right on the garage floor, near the house, on the grass. The owners sit nearby on chairs, sipping cola, listening to music. Kids run around, looking at "new" old toys. Neighbors or passing cars stop at the house, people look at the items, sometimes reminisce about the good old days, buy little things. Prices at garage sales are dirt cheap, often symbolic. Sometimes you can buy a rare book, an old tool, or sports equipment.
Such sales are often held if someone is moving to another city and doesn't want to take all their belongings. Sometimes churches and synagogues announce seasonal sales in which any parishioner can participate.
It's a nice tradition with a moral and practical aspect: you clean out the house, give items a second life, and earn a few dollars along the way. Sometimes we go out for a drive, cruise around garage sales, sort through old stuff, chat with people. It's a kind of low-key entertainment.
No need to carry an online shopping cart...
With the invention of the "World Wide Web" in 1990, our lives changed irreversibly. Today we don't ask if you have an email address; we ask about your Internet speed, as a matter of course. High-speed unlimited Internet costs $30 a month and is available to almost any family.
In the mid-90s, future giants of e-commerce began to appear: Amazon, eBay, Overstock. Now every self-respecting store and business sells products online. The annual volume of online shopping is 6%, or $1,000 per adult American.
We pay mostly with credit cards, but there are also special systems like PayPal. Often delivery is free or inexpensive, around $5-10. The seller always keeps the buyer updated on the order: when it was shipped, when to expect delivery. I've never had any issues with this. Any conflicts are resolved instantly; the buyer's bank is always on the customer's side. Problematic items can always be sent back.
In general, the consumer in the US is protected from all sides. In everyday life, we don't feel like insignificant little ants that nobody needs. At any moment, you can pick up the phone and reach the bank, store, or customer service of any company.
I really love online shopping. Before looking for any item, I find it online, compare the price, check customer reviews, which is extremely important. I've bought everything from small items like medicine or dishes to electronics, computers, and expensive furniture. People even buy cars! There are online grocery stores with immediate delivery of perishable food items.
"Average" Americans
Well, what really is the "weight" of the shopping basket of an average American family? First, the concept of an "average American" is quite vague. About 2/3 of the population can be conditionally classified as "middle class," where annual income ranges from about $25,000 to $250,000. The average salary is approximately $44,000.
For example, I'll try to briefly outline the budget of an "average" American family. Well, maybe not entirely average, since statistically Russian emigrants probably live above the overall average level.
So, a middle-aged family, both working, maybe one school-age child, or maybe two – typical? Probably the husband earns more, say $50,000 a year, the wife $30,000. What can you buy with this $80,000 a year (or $6,666 a month)?
First, that's gross. The average income tax is 25%, so $5,000 remains. Monthly mortgage payment might be $1,200, utilities another $300, plus property insurance $250. Two cars on loan will cost $600 with insurance. Contributions to pension and other insurances might cost another $700. Our average family might spend about $700 on food. Clothing, entertainment, leisure maybe another $400-500. That's already well over $4,000 total. And there's also education, vacation, and other unforeseen expenses...
So, hardly anything is left at the bottom of the "basket." And some even fall into unpayable debt, which partly contributed to the current credit crisis.
Alexander ROZUMOVICH,
Cincinnati, USA.
Specially for "Zagranitsa."