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Observation presentation

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Taryn Mead
Taryn Mead

The El Portal Market is the only store for 20 miles in Yosemite National Park, California. As a result, it serves both tourists visiting the park and local residents who shop there out of necessity. Though prices are generally high, the market functions as a community hub where people can socialize, find information on local events, and get last-minute grocery items. As a store located on federal land, design choices like the building colors were likely mandated by the government. The market caters to a diverse customer base but has limited selection and signage due to its remote location in the national park.

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A little homework complication….I live here, in Yosemite National Park, CA. And living in a national park means that development is very restricted. There is only 1 store within 20 miles of my house so doing the homework assignment meant that I had to do a lot of driving or just limit my observations to one store….
The El Portal Market is my small town market where we buy the things that we forgot to buy when we went to town. Given its rural location, its prices are generally too high to do all of our shopping there, but it does help us to get by in a pinch. We even have an account there, like store offered 50 years ago. And since it is the only store for miles, I get to see a lot of the community members and get to know the staff who work there on a personal level.
On the side of the store near the parking lot, there is a sign that displays some of their goods. You may also notice that the building is somewhat dirty. The exterior of the building is beige with brown trim and green awnings. While talking to the staff person inside, they told me that it was likely that the government picked out those colors since the store is on federal administrative site for the park. An interesting driver of marketing decisions.
Location, location, location. That’s what the El Portal Market really has going for it. It is the only place to stop for food or gas for at least 20 miles in either direction and 4 million tourists a year come to the Park. It also has a steady base of shoppers from the local community of park and non-profit staff who don’t always get out of the area to buy other groceries on a regular basis, making this the place to go when you need a last minute item.
Since it is such a community hub, it features several things that most stores don’t have. Here is a community board where people post events and services offered.
Area maps for lost tourists.
And a place to hang out and have coffee since there is no where else to go to besides a few restaurants at hotels nearby.
The shelves are organized categorically, like any other grocery store and they are rarely ever completely stocked. The flooring is also brown, green and beige like the exterior of the building, but I don’t know if the Park Service enforced that as well. In general, the place is tidy and spacious with little signage or other things to encourage purchasing.
The prices are not especially well-displayed and they don’t seem to mind too much if people don’t notice that things are on sale.
When I started asking about product placement, the gentleman who works there said that they mostly try to keep things together categorically and that is really the only criteria they use to get people’s attention. They do have a few items on the counter for impulse purchases, but that was the extent of their thoughts into product placement. I noticed right away that the kids cereals aren’t strategically placed at kid eye level. They also cater to a rather well-informed marketplace with the locals so they carry things like gluten-free flour despite their rather limited selection of most things.
Produce is pretty well-displayed. In general, the lighting was just so-so and it was a bit cold in there for my taste.
Most people seem to come in on a mission. Given that I was there at 4pm, that mission generally led them to the beer cooler first and then on to some snacks. As you can see, there is money hanging on the wall behind the counter from all over the world since so many people come to the Park from other countries. It’s an interesting place in that it brings so many cultures together in this po-dunk, quaint little market. As I was walking out the door, I couldn’t help but notice that the guy behind the counter was also wearing a shirt the same color as the floors and the awnings. Coincidence? Maybe…

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Observation presentation

  • 1. A little homework complication….I live here, in Yosemite National Park, CA. And living in a national park means that development is very restricted. There is only 1 store within 20 miles of my house so doing the homework assignment meant that I had to do a lot of driving or just limit my observations to one store….
  • 2. The El Portal Market is my small town market where we buy the things that we forgot to buy when we went to town. Given its rural location, its prices are generally too high to do all of our shopping there, but it does help us to get by in a pinch. We even have an account there, like store offered 50 years ago. And since it is the only store for miles, I get to see a lot of the community members and get to know the staff who work there on a personal level.
  • 3. On the side of the store near the parking lot, there is a sign that displays some of their goods. You may also notice that the building is somewhat dirty. The exterior of the building is beige with brown trim and green awnings. While talking to the staff person inside, they told me that it was likely that the government picked out those colors since the store is on federal administrative site for the park. An interesting driver of marketing decisions.
  • 4. Location, location, location. That’s what the El Portal Market really has going for it. It is the only place to stop for food or gas for at least 20 miles in either direction and 4 million tourists a year come to the Park. It also has a steady base of shoppers from the local community of park and non-profit staff who don’t always get out of the area to buy other groceries on a regular basis, making this the place to go when you need a last minute item.
  • 5. Since it is such a community hub, it features several things that most stores don’t have. Here is a community board where people post events and services offered.
  • 6. Area maps for lost tourists.
  • 7. And a place to hang out and have coffee since there is no where else to go to besides a few restaurants at hotels nearby.
  • 8. The shelves are organized categorically, like any other grocery store and they are rarely ever completely stocked. The flooring is also brown, green and beige like the exterior of the building, but I don’t know if the Park Service enforced that as well. In general, the place is tidy and spacious with little signage or other things to encourage purchasing.
  • 9. The prices are not especially well-displayed and they don’t seem to mind too much if people don’t notice that things are on sale.
  • 10. When I started asking about product placement, the gentleman who works there said that they mostly try to keep things together categorically and that is really the only criteria they use to get people’s attention. They do have a few items on the counter for impulse purchases, but that was the extent of their thoughts into product placement. I noticed right away that the kids cereals aren’t strategically placed at kid eye level. They also cater to a rather well-informed marketplace with the locals so they carry things like gluten-free flour despite their rather limited selection of most things.
  • 11. Produce is pretty well-displayed. In general, the lighting was just so-so and it was a bit cold in there for my taste.
  • 12. Most people seem to come in on a mission. Given that I was there at 4pm, that mission generally led them to the beer cooler first and then on to some snacks. As you can see, there is money hanging on the wall behind the counter from all over the world since so many people come to the Park from other countries. It’s an interesting place in that it brings so many cultures together in this po-dunk, quaint little market. As I was walking out the door, I couldn’t help but notice that the guy behind the counter was also wearing a shirt the same color as the floors and the awnings. Coincidence? Maybe…