I visited a Waitrose store near Milton Keynes, a large town that's around 1.5 hours from Central London. This location opened in 2013. Disclaimer: I am a Brit, and this was not the first time that I had shopped at a Waitrose store.
It's around 30,000 square feet in size, which is about a third of the size of a typical Walmart and just smaller than the average Whole Foods store in the US.
Passing through the double doors, the first thing I noticed is that the store was modern and bright.
The entrance area was enticing — fresh fruit and vegetables were front and center, and there was a coffee station to the left.
Grab-and-go items such as sandwiches and salads were located close to the front of the store to make it easy for lunchtime customers to get in and out easily.
Then there were the eye-catching seasonal offers, which were put in prime places to lure in the bargain hunters.
In the survey, Waitrose scored highly for its ease of finding items. On first impression, this held true — the layout was logical, and each aisle was clearly labeled.
Waitrose is considered to be a more pricey option for groceries in the UK. However, as bargain chains such as Aldi and Lidl have expanded and grown in popularity, it has been forced to become more competitive on price.
There was an impressive selection of private-label items, which offered cheaper alternatives to national brands in most categories.
I also came across recipe suggestions. This is a sneaky way for the store to direct customers to buy more items.
There was an impressive selection of fresh bread on offer. There was also a meat and cheese counter.
The chain also ranked highly for its availability of items. When I visited, it was just two days after Christmas and one day after a UK national holiday. Despite this, the shelves were well-stocked.
One of the main reasons the surveyed customers said they enjoy shopping at Waitrose is that it has a speedy checkout process.
It has a mix of self-service options and checkout lines with sales assistants.
Its scan-and-go option, which allows you to purchase items without going near the checkout, is the speediest of all.
Customers scan an item's barcode as they pass through the store, and their card is automatically charged at the end.
As I headed out of the store, I noticed an adjoining cafe. This is a smart way to drive traffic to the store and give customers another reason to visit.
David Gordon, research director at PlanetRetail RNG, told Business Insider earlier this year that retailers are increasingly devoting more space to areas where people can come in, have a coffee, and interact with each other. Target and Walmart have similar strategies.
The verdict: The shopping experience was great – the store was easy to navigate, and there was a ton of options. I would definitely come back.