“Where is... ?”

“Where is... ?”

~. Perhaps the most frequent question you'll hear while you're WORKING out in the AISLES.

NOTE: Here's a list of what I recall as the most-often-asked-for items in my particular STORE, sorted in alphabetical order, along with location information (BE=Back End, FE=Front End, MID=Middle), plus hints:

Item	Aisle	Shelf	Hints
ASSOCIATES' BREAK ROOM Supplies: Paper Towels, Soap, Toilet Paper	GROCERY BACK ROOM	RACK just inside double doors, on left	Liquid Hand Soap in rectangular inversion bottles, Paper Towels in large rolls, Toilet Paper in single, wrapped rolls
Barley, Pearled (1)	MID-6	Top	Quaker®, Boxed; among Near-East® Mixes
Barley, Pearled (2)	MID-3	Bottom	Bagged, Specialty
Bread Crumbs (1), Shake-n-Bake®, Stuffing Mix	BE-0	Section	Between Peanut Butter & Cooler
Bread Crumbs (2)	MID-3	Middle	Cora® BRAND, Specialty
Bulgur (Cracked Wheat)	UPDATE:   FE-6	-	Bagged, in Goya® section
Chocolate Syrup (1)	BE-6	Top	Left of Teas
Chocolate Syrup (2)	Dairy/Frozen	On Ledge Above Milk	Back Corner of Store
Chocolate Syrup (3)	Dairy/Frozen	Top	Display, Middle of Last Aisle
Clam Juice (1), BIG	MID-3	Bottom	Very Large Cans, Specialty
Clam Juice (2), small	FE-2	Top	Little Bottle; On Right, Above Tuna
Corn Syrup	BE-3	Top	Above Pancake Syrup
Cracker Jack®	Store LOBBY (!)	Clip Strips	On Sides of Soda Display
Food Coloring	BE-1	Below Top	Among Spices
Honey (1)	MID-0	Top	Above Peanut Butter
Honey (2), Organic, Pesticide-Free	MID-1	Upper	Among Organic Foods
Horseradish	Dairy/Frozen	Top	Above Eggs
Juice	MID-15
Kidney Beans	FE-6	Middle	Among Hispanic Foods
Lemon Juice (1)	MID-15	Top	Green Bottle, Yellow Cap
Lemon Juice (2)	Captain's Choice (Seafood)	Atop Rightmost Display Case (unless depleted)	Green Bottle, Yellow Cap
Marshmallows	BE-15	Bottom	Right of Chocolates
Molasses	BE-3	Top	Above Pancake Syrup
Nuts	BE-5	Section	Right of Popcorn
Pine Nuts (1)	MID-1	Top	Among Small Bags of Nuts
Pine Nuts (2)	BULK FOODS	"Island" with Scale	Small Bin among PLEXI Bin-Shelves
Pesto	FE-3	Top	Above Spaghetti Sauce
Pipe Cleaners	“Sorry, we don't carry them.”	-	Suggest they try the Drug Store further down the mall.
Raisins	FE-2	Top	Look Near Big Gray Box (Rear of Lottery TV) On Top
Rice	MID-6
Sauerkraut (1)	BE-3	Bottom	Cans, e.g., Silverfloss®
Sauerkraut (2)	Deli case, opp. FE-4		Bags
Sauerkraut (3)	Meat case, opp. BE-15		Bags
Tahini (1)	BE-2	Top	Left of Pickles
Tahini (2)	MID-1	Middle	Among Organic

TRUE STORY: I think my favorite has to be “Where is Cracker Jack®?” because—if the CUSTOMER looks like they have a sense of humor—I get to say, “I'm sorry, it's not in the STORE—(pause)—But we have it! It's in the STORE LOBBY, on plastic CLIP STRIPS hanging on the edges of the big soda display in the middle.”

The “Most Baffling” award goes as a three-way tie among Barley, Tahini, and Kidney Beans. People seem to expect Barley to be among Cereals—but, it's not. Likewise, they expect Tahini to be either in Ethnic/Middle Eastern or with Nut Butters—but, it's not. And, when they ask me why Kidney Beans aren't with the other canned veggies, like Green Beans, I just shrug my shoulders and say, “Well, I remember where it is by thinking ‘Mexican-style Chili,’ and that kind of thing.” In a similar vein, “Bread Crumbs ‘rhyme’ with Bread,” and so on. Try to think of and share a mnemonic trick to help them remember where it is the next time they come back.