Grocery prices comparable around Athens

by Rob Chalifoux
FOR THE POST

In addition to room and board, tuition and books, Ohio University students are faced with another expense - groceries.

Students living off-campus, and those who tire of the dining hall cuisine, must look elsewhere for food. With several grocery stores in Athens, deciding where to shop and figuring out where a dollar will stretch the farthest can be a difficult process.

The grocery stores in Athens tend to be the most crowded in the afternoon when people are coming home from work and when students are finishing classes, said Nick Rees spokesman of Kroger, 919 E. State St.

"We're most crowded between 4:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.," Rees said.

The stores tend to be the least busy in the mornings.

"Our lightest period is from 8 a.m. until about 10:30 a.m. or 11 a.m.," said Scott Mitchell, assistant manager of Bob's IGA, 22 Kern St.

Most of the grocers tend to get a mix of OU students and Athens residents in their stores.

"We get a wide variety of people," Rees said. "Just about everyone in the market."

Penny Seaman, owner and manager of Seaman's Cardinal Super Market, 305 W. Union St., shares those sentiments.

"We get a good mix (of students and residents)," she said. "It's about equal here."

But Seaman does notice a drop in shoppers when classes are not in session. "We're definitely slower in the summer," she said.

To determine where a dollar will get the most, several items were priced at four area stores: Kroger, Big Bear, 1008 E. State St., Seaman's, and Bob's IGA. Common items were chosen for pricing, including toothpaste, milk and Hot Pockets.

The stores' prices were in the same range, the only exception being special sale prices.

Some students said they do not think these prices are higher than normal.

"I usually shop at Kroger, and they're usually pretty good," OU junior Christy Thamburaj said.

But students do differ on shopping strategies.

"I never spend over $3 on any one item," Thamburaj said.

Other students, such as OU junior Anne Kombrinck, have a more relaxed attitude.

"I don't really penny-pinch - if I want it, I buy it," she said.