Before You Shop At Trader Joe's, First Check This Hidden Gem

You never want to miss out on seasonal goodies at Trader Joe's. Aside from all the amazing goods sourced from around the world, high-quality wines with a low price tag, and go-to snacks for any craving, the new and seasonal products are one of the grocer's top features. To prevent FOMO, social media accounts and the Trader Joe's podcast keep us up to speed on what seasonal fruits are in and what tasty, temporary ice cream flavors are stocked, and of course, anything pumpkin-spiced when October rolls around! There's one other way to always be in the know — you just need to make sure to get your hands on the latest copy of the Fearless Flyer.

Trader Joe's loyalist have likely already made their acquaintance with this newsletter that is released several times a year. It is written by Trader Joe's itself, and can be found at the end of the registers where the groceries are bagged, or at the customer service counter. Like everything else in the store, the Fearless Flyer is perfectly curated to match the brand identity (it's, however, not Hawaiian themed). The flyer-newsletter-food catalog hybrid is a few pages of clever, witty banter, oddball stories, product features, and recipes.

It's somewhat of a work of art, too. You know how the Trader Joe's paper bags are quietly kind of cute, with black and red line drawings of food and beverage items? The Fearless Flyer features Victorian-style drawings and designs that are playfully distributed throughout genuinely interesting information. It's nothing like the generic flyers that conventional grocery stores send out that simply feature weekly deals and product photos.

The Fearless Flyer is a good way to get to know new products — if you're a food nerd that loves to know ingredients, the history of food, and how Trader Joe's sourced a particular product, then this creative pamphlet will give you all the details with a quirky story. Social media channels can also help with new product awareness, but getting it straight from Joe's mouth can sometimes be more accurate and less overwhelming. Plus, we're on our phones too much anyway –– you can unwind while sipping on a Diamond Reserve wine and flipping through the Fearless Flyer.

Some complain that Trader Joe's is not a "real grocery store" because there are far too many snacks and frozen items compared to the amount of fresh foods and ingredients. Well, it is a real grocery store if you know how to navigate it — there are eggs, dairy, bread (although not freshly baked), meat, and produce, after all. The Fearless Flyer includes recipes using only ingredients found in the store, so it helps with navigating your shopping experience and sticking to buying only what you need for certain meals.

What this flyer is not: A booklet of discounts or a loyalty program, which Trader Joe's has never offered. Many flyers from other grocery stores are distributed for this purpose, but the Fearless Flyer is simply to inform and entertain. And if you forgot to get your hands on a physical copy at the store, the Fearless Flyer can be sent to your email by signing up on the company's website.