U. students starting to bargain shop

With the opening of The Freshgrocer on 40th Street, students have been scouting out the new supermarket and comparing it to other, better-established stores around campus. A big factor in deciding where to shop for students -- often on tight budgets -- is price. Armed with a typical college student shopping list, The Daily Pennsylvanian compared prices at The Freshgrocer, Brown's Thriftway and Campus Market. In general, Thriftway had the lowest prices, narrowly beating The Freshgrocer. The total from Campus Market was several dollars more than the other two Walnut Street stores. For a list of eight items, including staples like macaroni and cheese, potato chips and soda, the Thriftway register rings in at $13.08. At The Freshgrocer, the total was $13.52, and Campus Market rounded out at $16.23. Students said that of the three, The Freshgrocer has become their market of choice, characterizing Campus Market as too pricey and Thriftway as too far away. "I think it's expensive here," College senior Pam Kuklinsky said of Campus Market. "I wanted something to eat quick, so I stopped in, but normally I wouldn't shop here." "The prices are very high [at Campus Market]," Engineering sophomore Ian Beckles said. "They're higher than Freshgrocer and they don't have much selection." College sophomore Annette Salinas agreed. "Campus Market is very expensive," she said. "Freshgrocer is pretty convenient and I think the prices are comparable to Thriftway." But Campus Market Manager Kwang Suh Park said comparing the three stores is unfair, since his establishment is smaller and thus cannot buy as much food at one time. He said Campus Market pays higher prices for its goods, which it must then pass on to the customer. "We're not a supermarket," Park said. "[Supermarkets] buy in bulk." Park also said the items priced by the DP are always on sale at supermarkets, which his store cannot afford to do. But for snacks and quick purchases, some say Campus Market remains the most convenient, as The Freshgrocer has faced long lines since it opened last month. But some students felt that other benefits of The Freshgrocer overshadowed Thriftway's lower prices. "Although Thriftway could be a little cheaper, Freshgrocer has better food with more variety," Nursing sophomore Meaghan Canton said. "It's a lot closer and cleaner. And since I have a car, the conveyor belt is really handy. I've already used it twice." Thriftway owner Steven Brown said that he plans to make several changes over the coming months to make his store more competitive. "This month we're going to start a remodel," he said. "We're just making some changes throughout the store to try and get a little more variety. We're renovating, updating some departments." "We do that every seven years, regardless," Brown added. "We took [The Freshgrocer] into consideration, but it didn't really sway us either way." Brown also said The Freshgrocer's low prices could be due to their recent opening. "A lot of times, you open with cheaper prices than your everyday prices," he said. "We're cheap now but we're going to be even cheaper. We haven't adjusted any prices yet because [The Freshgrocer] is so new." College sophomore Maggie Brier said she expects to pay more for some of The Freshgrocer's goods. "[The Freshgrocer] is really clean and they have a good selection of organic foods, which will be expensive anywhere you go," Brier said. Wharton sophomore Jason Miyashita said he will use Freshgrocer in place of a meal plan next year, in the face of the new and costly dining restrictions the University is placing on its students. "The prices are very reasonable," he said. "I'm going to shop here as frequently as possible. I'm just going to forgo [a meal plan] and shop here instead." Freshgrocer operator Pat Burns said that the results of the price comparison were just what he expected. "I'm not surprised," Burns said. "We did price studies and we tried to be very price conscious in everything we did." "People think that because [the market] is so nice, it has to be expensive," he added. "We want to have people shop here every day and every week. We're not out for the one-time sale. We want everyone in Philadelphia to be able to enjoy our prices and our atmosphere." Daily Pennsylvanian staff writer Maite Amorebieta contributed to this article.

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