Sunflower Market

Hi there. I've been a long time lurker and finally decided to register. Love the site and use it all the time for restaurant and recipe suggestions!

What prompted this first post is something I saw in today's Tribune. It is on page 8 and it's a small job ad for Sunflower Market. Apparently it is a grocery store that focuses on "organic and natural products available at a refreshingly great price."

They are having a job fair at 1910 N. Clybourn. Realizing that might not be the actual address of the new store, but assuming it will be in that area, I'm wondering if anyone has heard anything about where it is actually going to be. I am also wondering how they're going to set themselves apart from all the other groceries in the area and whether the neighborhood can sustain another one with Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, and Treasure Island all within a few blocks.

I did visit their website and Sunflower Market is a subsidiary of Supervalu, one of the big grocery conglomerates. They have one store open in Indy with others slated for Chicago & Columbus. It will be interesting to see how they do here...

Sunflower seem like good folks. We in Logan Square tried to coax them to the neighborhood, but their market analysis didn't LS as a good fit at this point. But they were kind enough to meet with members of our community to discuss a possible location down the road.

As I understand it, their prices are kept low (relatively speaking, at least) by a variety of cost-cutting overhead measures, and they make room for local purveyors whenever possible.

I believe the Clybourn address is indeed the location where they'll be breaking ground. They like to go to places with established like businesses, at least as the first site in a new location. I think the theory is to capture spillover business and acquire new customers by offering some variations on familiar themes (the local angle, for example).

I only grocery shop within walking distance of my house and highly recommend the Tony's Certisaver on W. Fullerton to any folks in Logan Square. Hopefully someone will post their impressions of Sunflower once it opens.

It will be even more interesting to see how Sunflower Market interacts with Jewel, which was recently acquired by Supervalu.

There are major supply issues for organic produce coming up under the current United States organic standards. I wonder how much of the stuff labeled organic will be imported from areas with looser standards.

Give Supervalu some credit. They are trying a lot of different concepts (like Sunflower / Deals, etc.) to develop new concepts. Had Albertson's done the same, they would probably still be independent.

Hello from the Sunflower Market team! My name is John Sturm. I am the Vice President of Sunflower and founder of our first store (Indianapolis). We have quite a foodie group here so let me just tell you that I love this forum! Anyway, we are thrilled to be coming to Lincoln Park. We have a very unique store. The produce, in particular, is special. I could go on and on, but I know this is not the place for advertising our store! I do want the forum to know that we are opening our doors on August 30. The address is 1910 N. Clybourne Avenue. I hope you give us a try. I'd be happy to answer any and all questions about this new grocery store.

The _Chicago Journal_ is reporting that Sunflower has signed a lease for a new development at the NW corner of Grand, Halsted, and Milwaukee (where the grey buildings are now). Nice to see something west of the river, even if just barely, and convenient for us Blue Line riders.

Said development was just approved by the Plan Commission last week, so I'd expect a 2008 opening at the earliest.

FWIW (@ jlawrence), Albertson's owned the Bristol Farms gourmet chain in Southern California. They seemed to be rather hands-off managers, though, since it's grown slowly and didn't otherwise feel like part of Albertson's (no Sav-On private label, for instance).

Stopped by Sunflower on my way home from work tonight to check it out. Didnt really need much, just picked up a package of sliced Jarlsberg and a few other things, but was impressed by the prices. The produce selection is small, but pretty comprehensive and everything looked pretty pristine. I don't think it will replace Whole Foods for me, as WF's butcher/fishmonger and prepared foods are far more extensive than Sunflower's, but Sunflower's prices on produce, deli stuff, frozen stuff and pantry items are much better.

So, now I have Dominick's, Whole Foods, Sunflowers and Trader Joe's in my grocery rotation...so much for simplifying! Oh well.

I think it's interesting, and probably not coincidental, that Dominick's is running a fairly high profile campaign about the wonderful freshness and deliciousness of their produce right now. I wouldn't be surprised if the fact of their main competitor's parent company going into the organic/quality produce business had something to do with that.

In any case, as a campaign it violates Mike G's first rule of advertising, "Don't build your campaign on what everybody knows to be the exact, 180-degree opposite of the truth."

Mrs. Johnny and I visited Sunflower this afternoon.
Very impressive, I must say.
Mrs. Johnny particularly liked the giant, walk-in "crisper" room for produce items like lettuce, carrots, peppers, etc.
I would compare the selection to that of Whole Foods.
A couple of interesting features took a few minutes to adapt to:
Many produce and bulk items can be weighed and priced using self-serve scales in each department. Supposedly, this reduces the check-out time. Unfortunately, it increases your shopping time.
At checkout, you have the option of paying using a fingerprint scan.
"I'm not sure I am comfortable with my fingerprints being stored on a database somewhere to be used for various marketing and/or research purposes.", I say.
"Oh, you're not being fingerprinted. We take a digital image of your finger.", exclaimed the chirpy representative.
Whatever.
The good news is - these procedures are optional.
I'm not sure their rather small parking lot within an already congested area will be adequate for the business they will surely do during evening and weekend hours.
Overall, a nice alternative to Whole Foods and such. We picked up some frozen crab legs for significantly less than what they sell the same item for. I'm sure we'll return.

bananasandwiches wrote:...was impressed by the prices.

This recent Salon.com/Grist article (written by an organic farmer) has some interesting things to say about price pressures in the organic food markets. The article starts from the reports that stronger border controls are leading to a shortage of labor for harvesting organic crops, and then gets into discussion about Wal-mart's stated intention to become the world's largest organic retailer. At the heart is the question as to whether organic food retains its most important traits if it becomes commodified. Worth checking out. (You may need to click through the Salon.com "day pass" advertisement to read the whole thing.)

I was ecstatic when I read that Sunflower had come to Chicago. When I lived in Denver for a year, my wife and I *loved* the Sunflower Market there - it was a great combination of the low prices of Trader Joe's with more name-brand items, great produce, a solid bakery and a swell meat case.

However!

This Sunflower Market is *not* the same. The Sunflower I knew in Denver is now officially Sunflower Farmer's Market. And the web address for Sunflower Market is what Sunflower Farmer's Market used to have (now, instead, the lame sfmarkets.com.)

Really unfortunate, although it sounds like they're similar in what they offer. Totally confused me at first.

paytonc wrote:FWIW (@ jlawrence), Albertson's owned the Bristol Farms gourmet chain in Southern California. They seemed to be rather hands-off managers, though, since it's grown slowly and didn't otherwise feel like part of Albertson's (no Sav-On private label, for instance).

Bristol Farms was ACQUIRED by Albertsons about four years ago, NOT a developed concept. Albertsons did not change BF much (other than to saddle them with union contracts) because they did not want the loyal BF customers to leave en masse.

LTH,

Stopped by Sunflower Market on Sunday, ~shrug~. Maybe it was the fact I was fresh from the vibrancy of Maxwell Street, but I found the store somewhat stark, prices verging on high and selection, if not limited, not types/brands I prefer.

My mental comparison was to Peoples Market in Evanston, which I find a number of steps behind Whole Foods. I'll certainly give Sunflower another go, but as someone who has (basically) shifted from Jewel/WF to independent markets such as Marketplace on Oakton, Tony's, Lincolnwood Produce, Viet Hoa, Thai Grocery and Carnicerias Guanajuanto I may be slightly skewed in my opinion.

Enjoy,
Gary

My impression of Sunflower was the same. I thought the selection of greens in the cooler was good, but there was nothing about the market that stood out to me. My first impression of Trader Joe's, for instance, was that its prices were much lower than Whole Paycheck for certain organic items (of course, their prices have steadily inched up over the years). Even their standard grocery items were competitively priced -- couscous for .93 a box, aged balsamic vinegar for less than $2 a bottle -- try finding those at even Dominick's for those prices.

I don't see that Sunflower Market is offering a price or stock advantage over any other stores.

I was similarly underwhelmed by Sunflower and even slightly put off by the dumbed-down, patronizing tone of the descriptive cards in the produce and cheese section. Maybe some really don't know what leeks are but how many epiphanies will result from the suggestion that Reggiano is "great sprinkled over spaghetti"? This is nearly as annoying to me as the cultish cheerfulness programmed into the staff at Trader Joe's.

G Wiv wrote:Stopped by Sunflower Market on Sunday, ~shrug~. Maybe it was the fact I was fresh from the vibrancy of Maxwell Street, but I found the store somewhat stark, prices verging on high and selection, if not limited, not types/brands I prefer.

I stopped by the store yesterday and had a similar opinion. If I lived in that area, I think I might shop there over Whole Foods, as the store is brighter and better laid out, with better looking produce and bigger emphasis on organics (and anyway, I've given up on Whole Foods since I disapprove of their corporate blackmail policies). But it certainly isn't anywhere I'd make a special trip to.

Sunflower Market
773/348-4667
www.sunflowermarkets.com
1910 N. Clybourn Ave.
Chicago

Yesterday, a friend and I swung past Sunflower on the way home from the Lincoln Park Zoo. (It's not close to the zoo, but it is between the zoo and the highway.) While I agree with those who say it's not worth a special trip -- especially not coming from Wheeling -- I do think it's the kind of place where, when I am in the city, I'll plan a little extra time so I can swing by. As LAZ said, it's bright and well laid out. I liked the range of organic foods, and they had some really interesting heirloom stuff, including apples the color of mahogany.

I also was charmed by the fact that they clearly make an effort to buy locally grown and/or produced stuff, with little signs telling you how many miles it is from the store to the local manufacturer or grower.

And the prices were lower than most other purveyors of organic foods. Makes it possible to have a few more organic goodies in the larder.

So yeah, it's not like Fox & Obel or Super H Mart, where you might plan an outing around the store, but it was worth the stop while in transit elsewhere.

I am kind of surprised at the reaction here, so im going to give sunflower a little love because it's actually a pretty damn good place for Lincoln Park grocery shopping. I have been therein the double digit times now and I have enjoyed the sushi (pretty good for a grocer) and found their skirt steak to be some of the best of its type anywhere and at slightly less than $5/lb, its a much better deal than most high end stores. I also enjoy their organic produce and high selection of drinks from Dr. Browns to Honest Tea, they have many top notch selections. So if you live in LP or are coming thru the area Sunflower is a much better option than Trader Joe's if your looking for items that usually cant be found at your local Dominicks.

Having been to Sunflower now several times, I have to reiterate that I just don't get it. It seems like a concept that has no concept. Is it simply organic health foods? Is it competing with Trader Joe's? Because for either healthy or organic products, you'd do better at Whole Foods for selection and, yes, even price. For basic grocery items, Sunflower is much more expensive than Trader Joe's and even Whole Foods. As such, I have little incentive to continue going there, even when I want to avoid the parking derby at TJ's and WF.

Each time I've been to Sunflower, it's been to shop for basics from a simple ingredient list. However, it's practically impossible to pick up basic items there without having sticker shock. You want mushrooms? You have to buy organic mushrooms at $3.99-5.99 per 8 oz. pack just for domestics. The domestics were gone and the overpriced criminis were left. TJ's has criminis for $1.99. Ground round is in a vacuum pack packaged who knows when and sells for $4.49 per pound. It's cheaper and fresher at Whole Foods. The cheese section looks like it is on par with Dominick's offerings. These are all basic items that should be priced more competitively.

All the times I've been there, even during prime shopping hours, the place is empty. It appears whatever niche Sunflower thought it would carve in this market has not caught on. I don't think that I'll continue to try to shop there, even if it's easy in and easy out, if I can't get basic items for a reasonable price.
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You can get some basic stuff at decent prices.

Organic Milk is $5.19 a gallon vs. $4.49 a half gallon at Jewel (I don't know about whole foods)

Dozen Eggs are the same price as TJs

I also think their butter is pretty cheap but I don't remember the exact price.

I agree with that they leave a lot to be desired. I like shopping where there is an actual butcher (or an appearance of an actual butcher) as opposed to everything just be vacuum packed. I think the store has actually improved the longer they have been open.

Just my two cents

louisdog wrote:Organic Milk is $5.19 a gallon vs. $4.49 a half gallon at Jewel

Well, I guess you hit on something - maybe that's what they're going for. If you live in a place where your only source of organic or specialty items is a megamart like Jewel or Dominick's, then you may do better @ Sunflower. But if you have additional choices, such as TJ's or Whole Foods, I think you'd do better at the latter two.

Yes, I think that's what Sunflower is going for - everything organic but cheaper than Whole foods. Trader Joe's is *cheaper* but not everything there is organic.
I too prefer a butcher vs. everything shrink wrapped, but the prices keep me coming back.
I bought a TON of food last saturday and it was 180$. This included 4 ribeyes and stuff for a dinner party. All of that easily would have been 300+ at Whole Foods.
It's very easy to park there - also compared to WF or TJ's which consistently seem a mess and difficult to maneuver around in. (I'm referring to WF on Ashland & Evanston and the TJ's near Sam's & the one on Lincoln).

I'm pro Sunflower

SuperValu to close all Sunflower Market stores the week of Feb 18th.

I'm so disappointed! Since my last post (a year ago) - it's been my go-to store....Too bad.

although i am not surprised. time to go stock up one some things, esp. my oatmeal & other various items. guess i'll be forced back to trader joe's (in addition to my other rotation of shops), but i just cannot stand the indoor parking lot on clyborne!

thanks for the news, though it is too bad.

miss ellen

Yep. I never went to the Chicago locations, but it seemed a good fit here in Broad Ripple in Indianapolis. Except there was never anyone in there and I must admit we weren't the most regular patrons, either. It was a grab bag of obviously, Aldi-esque(meaning: good deal for the company) "ethnic" bottled sauces, vitamins a la WF, and vino that you could get cheaper elsewhere. Unfortunately, it's best feature was it's convenience whereas you have to drive a ways to either of the two TJ's in Indy. I also liked our Sunflower's carrying of local bakery, Scholar House Inn's, breads and the Trader's Point Creamery cheeses. I'm not sure if it says more about Indianapolis or corporate planning that it's closing. I figure mid-market schemes fit Sunflower best...no surprise it failed in Chicago.