There's A Reason Parking At Trader Joe's Is Such A Pain

When you want a favorite frozen meal with a bottle of wine for a cozy night in, making a quick stop at Trader Joe's is the move. But sometimes, it's not always possible to make a "quick stop" — and this is due to the grocer's notoriously small parking lots. There are conspiracy theories to why finding a parking spot at TJ's can take longer than grocery shopping itself, but the reasoning isn't so complicated or intentional.

Snagging a parking spot at Trader Joe's can feel like a competitive sport at times — but the retailer doesn't design the lots like this on purpose. Irked shoppers theorize that the grocer wants to make the store look busier than it is, or this design helps cut costs. In fact, the grocery chain doesn't actually have much of a say when it comes to how many spaces they have, or how large the lot is. According to the Trader Joe's podcast, commercial parking is allotted for each store by the city. The number of spots available or size of the lot is determined by the square footage of each store.

Frustrating parking lots are one of the mildly annoying things about Trader Joe's — but know that the grocer is not trying to manipulate its shoppers in any way. Yes, their stores are generally smaller, and this is intentional to fit the grocer's brand and business model. Therefore, the parking lots correlate; for example, in the Trader Joe's podcast, the hosts explain that the average TJ store is about 10,000 square feet, while many other grocery stores range from around 40,000 70,000 square feet, with some mega stores over 100,000 square feet!

Tiny parking lots have been a part of the Trader Joe's experience since its inception. That's right — even at the first Trader Joe's location, you'll need good luck to snag a spot. The original location has never been expanded, the store or lot, and this is the case for many locations throughout the country. Once a small lot, always a small lot, so don't get your hopes up that they'll ever be increased.

If the grocer had more of a say about the size of the lots, it would likely listen to endless customer complaints and do something about it. Parking may be a consideration when Trader Joe's chooses new locations, and some of the more recent stores may boast easier parking. This is true for stores based in shopping centers or those away from city centers that have the opportunity to be larger; if your closest store is based in a busy downtown, there might not even be a parking lot!

If you do want to attempt to make a "quick stop" at the cult-favorite grocery store, increase your chances of finding parking by shopping outside of peak hours. The best time to stop at TJ's is at 8 a.m., right when it opens, and just before your local store closes; this is 9 p.m. at most locations.