It is the beginning of the end of neighborhood grocery stores as Trader Joe's announces its decision to shut down its stores by 2017 - or not.
Apparently, this story is nothing but an elaborate prank made by Yahoo to celebrate April Fool's Day. But what makes it so believable that it blew off the Internet? Many.
One, the article opened with a very impressive and professional lead that talks about how "surprising" the company press release is. It also listed down some of the reasons why all 457 stores are closing, including the massive popularity of online shopping, growth of organic food, and financial problems.
It specifically mentioned one of its strongest competitors Whole Foods, which, the story claims, pushes the company to keep on slashing its prices.
"At this point, there is not enough cookie butter in the world to pave the road ahead," the story quoted Dan Bane, the company's CEO.
Interestingly, the Yahoo story was published on the same day CNN Money International reports about a Deutsche bank study that reveals how Trader Joe's is significantly cheaper than Whole Foods even on its private-label brands.
But perhaps the best thing Yahoo did was to launch its fiction on the eve of prank day, making one of the first to, well, piss people off and make the fans cry. Model, host, and John Legend's wife Chrissy Teigen compares it to a "boring granola" while others say it is done in "bad form."
Yahoo, who once called the holiday a hell, has already clarified that this is just a joke, and it looks like it has no intention in making another one at least for this year. It is also unclear how Trader Joe's feels about it since the company does not have a strong social media presence and has not issued any official statement.
Indeed, the world can get all crazy during April Fool's Day, but if there is one thing we learn from this story, it is that perhaps a fool's joke doesn't have to be celebrated in April anymore. It may now happen at any time.
Photo: June Marie | Flickr
