Inside Trader Joe's

Imagine a small town in western Italy, home to a family-owned company that got its start canning fresh fruits and veggies more than 80 years ago. Now imagine that company in 2025, still owned by the same family, and still preserving the flavors of the local produce – not just in canned fruits and veggies, but in supremely satisfying sauces, too. And now imagine you're listening to a podcast… oh, wait, here's where reality and imagination intersect. In this episode of Inside Trader Joe's, we're up close and personal with the supplier of a number of Trader Joe's sauces – including Lemon Pesto, recently returned to our grocery shelves for a limited time. It's a captivating conversation that covers topics as wide-ranging as tradition and innovation, and definitely left us hungry for more. Pass the pesto, please!

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In this episode of Inside Trader Joe's, we're taking you inside our customers' shopping carts to find out what keeps them coming back to Trader Joe's again and again. For this edition of our Customer Cart Conversations, we go to Trader Joe's number 691 in Chicago's iconic Lincoln Park neighborhood. Captain Ken, a Chicago native – who may or may not have a favorite Chicago baseball team – gets up close and personal with the contents of customers' carts, with questions about favorites. Along the way, we get some insights into how Trader Joe's brings a little joy and deliciousness into their busy lives. We even talk to some Crew Members who share their go-to product recommendations for customers (and podcast listeners!). What's in YOUR cart?

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Welcome to another episode of the Trader Joe's Wine Club, brought to you by Inside Trader Joe's. This sip-sized segment has us blushing a bit. Because, of course, we're talking about Rosé. Contrary to the opinions of some, Rosé is a serious wine, and we sat down for a serious conversation about three of our favorite Rosé options in the wine section at your neighborhood Trader Joe's. While all three share similar (yet different) pink-ish hues, each has its own story to tell and its own flavor profile to enjoy. What they all have most in common is the incredible value they represent – whether you choose La Ferme Julien Rosé, Emma Reichart Rosé of Pinot Noir, or Maison Barboulot Cinsault Rosé, you'll enjoy superior quality wine at a great price. Every day.

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There are certain foods that are synonymous with their place names. Parmigianno Reggiano. Kalamata Olives. And the focus of this episode, Balsamic Vinegar of Modena. A world-renowned product with a long and fascinating history, Balsamic Vinegar of Modena is produced exclusively in the Modena region of Italy. In this episode we sit down (and do a bunch of walking!) with one of Modena's largest and most respected producers of this vigorous vinegar – they've been supplying Trader Joe's for decades – where we learn some history and get a behind-the-scenes look at how it's made. Listen in for a sneak peak at a new TJ's product coming soon to your neighborhood Trader Joe's.

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We get a lot of questions at Trader Joe's. And we see things in the news that make us ask questions, too. Recently, we've seen a bunch of stories about so-called "Retail Media." So what the heck is Retail Media, and does Trader Joe's do it? In a nutshell, Retail Media is all about using screens and media and technology in retail stores, ostensibly to replace humans. That doesn't make sense to us – instead of investing in technology and media resources to tell our stories, in our stores, we invest in our people and our products, so every experience you have with Trader Joe's is a great one. Tune in to the latest in our series of bite-sized episodes, ITJ ICYMI, to get our take on Retail Media.

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It's nearly spring. And at Trader Joe's, that means new products popping up like flower buds after an early thaw. In this episode of Inside Trader Joe's, we're getting up close and personal with a baker's dozen of our favorite new (and returning) things for spring. Looking for Easter candy and treats? You'll find them here, and you'll be impressed not only with how they look, but how they taste. A new Mini Sheet Cake that happens to be gluten free? Oh. Yes. Potato chips made with Irish potatoes and butter? Aye. A new blend of greens to elevate your salad game and a pasta sauce that's simple, elegant, and extraordinarily delicious? Well… yes. Would you believe a wine made with oranges? You should believe, and you should try it. One last thing… no bunnies were harmed in the making of this episode.

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Welcome to another episode of the Trader Joe's Wine Club, brought to you by Inside Trader Joe's. In this sip-sized segment, we're going grass-roots – or at the very least, grass-noted – with a conversation about New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. More specifically, we're highlighting Raorao Sauvignon Blanc from the Marlborough region, an area on the South Island renowned for this varietal (among others). This wine is an excellent expression of Marlborough Sauv Blanc – a quick listen here will reveal what makes this wine so special, some delicious pairing ideas, and what a tremendous value it is at Trader Joe's.

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We often talk about traveling the world to find the most delicious products we can offer, so we can bring them to our customers at a great value. Decades ago, when we began our search for truly excellent frozen pizza, it occurred to us that maybe the best place to go was the birthplace of the stuff… Italy. Turns out we were right, and our frozen pizzas became the stuff of lore – they're just that good. Our frozen pizza selection has evolved since those early days, yet some of our favorites still come from Italy. And perhaps even more striking, some of our favorites still come from the same supplier we serendipitously stumbled upon all those years ago. In this episode, we take you on a journey of pizza-rific proportions, visting this same Italian pizza producer and getting the inside scoop on how it all started, how they manage to make such delicious pies, and what the future may hold. Spoiler alert: the future is round, cheesy, and well-sauced.

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The votes are in, and the time has come to reveal the winners of the 16th Annual Trader Joe's Customer Choice Awards! Sixteen years of celebrating our customers' favorite products, as voted by you, our customers. It's just as exciting to us this year as it was in year one.

This year, we've added a New category. That's right, a New category – Favorite New Product! There are so many possibilities… can you guess what it might be? We're also welcoming another product to our Hall of Fame, that rarefied space populated by products you've named as favorites a total of five times. With awards season well-underway, we're happy to present awards that eschew glitz and glamour to bring you the only awards where the winners are (almost) all edible!

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As listeners of this podcast know, the Trader Joe's mothership is located in Monrovia, CA. Monrovia is really close to one of the wildfires that's devastated Southern California recently. We have a lot of Crew Members and customers who've been impacted by these fires, and we wanted to take a minute to send our best wishes to them and everyone who's dealing with the aftermath of these events. We recorded this episode not too long ago in our other mothership, in Boston. It's a little silly, and, we hope, fun. We could all use a little fun and silly right about now.

Winter is jam-packed with snacking opportunities, and if updating your snack routine is on your 2025 agenda, listening to this episode of Inside Trader Joe's should be atop your to-do list. Whether it's a big game or a fashion-forward awards show, when people pop by, you need snacks! We sat down with some Crew Members in our other mothership in Boston to discuss their favorite "snacktivities" using Trader Joe's products. They shared spicy hacks and savory hacks, simple hacks and slightly more involved hacks. What every snack hack has in common? Great taste and a near-100% guarantee of good times. Have a listen, then pay us a visit to pick up what you need to enjoy some snacktivities of your own.

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