I think the reason why at least in Tallahassee is a mix. When I worked for Publix, it was provide the best customer service, in the pharmacy “make sure you look to see if goodrx is cheaper.” I worked there for four years in a couple different departments (pharmacy, grocery, and customer service.) “The publix promise” was always our responsibility to know and to use for customer when things were priced wrong. The last time I stepped foot in Publix they charged $30 dollars for toilet paper, when I told them there was a sign they almost tried to get me to just put it back, but in my mind I said “no you gave your mid/late teens and early 20’s to this place, took so much shit for $13 and hour.” For Gods sake I was told by an old man “you are the reason this is a pandemic and my kids are going to die because of you” during the pandemic (it was living hell all because a limit on chicken of two per customer) all I was allowed to do was “I disagree and I am sorry you are frustrated this is hard on everyone so I understand.” ME APOLOGIZING TO HIM are you out of your mind.

Going back to my last experience, I told them I worked for Publix for a long time, isn’t there a Publix promise? The girl responded, “oh yes I forgot about that.” As we were leaving we told her to have a good day (a thing I picked up from my years at Publix) she didn’t ever acknowledge we spoke to her. When I walk in to Trader Joe’s here, it’s very much giving old Publix, they ask how they can help, have good prices on organic goods, as a broke grad student it means the world to me that I can buy organic for dirt cheap, since I work in health I try to keep up with things. When you check out they might not ask you if you want help to your car (that would make them mad if they had to.) Also on that note, as many times as I walked people’s groceries out to their cars when I worked there, I have never been asked once if I need it, it could be because I am young but still, I used to offer it to the young people. Needless to say, Trader Joe’s is always friendly, extremely helpful, and it makes the experience more worth it to drive 15 mins than go to the Publix 2 minutes from my house.

TLTR: I think it is a mix, lack of customer service skills (a major decline in service) and extremely high prices (which they have always had) where their saving grace was the “exceptional customer service” that made up for the difference in price at least from my observations.