I always pick out the best avocados because for the summer prior to my 4th year of university, I was the best Fruit Spy in all of Ontario.
Recently John Romaniello wrote a post about how a chance encounter in an NYC grocery store led to his hatred of both avocados and Denzel Washington. The crux of it being, John watched Denzel reject avocado after avocado that eventually created imposter syndrome about his own selection process, and John left without any.
I would’ve crushed Denzel in his selection.
I was hired by a wholesaler in Toronto to visit 5 grocery stores a week and submit a report of my findings. I examined avocados, pineapples, bananas, papaya, and mangoes. I was looking at store placement, the size of the display, the country of origin, variety, pricing, sizing, and quality.
I spied on everyone – no one store held my allegiance: large chain stores, independents, mom and pop shops, wholesalers. This was before Spotify so I was constantly discovering new radio stations as I traveled hundreds of km through rural Ontario in my parents’ borrowed minivan.
I wandered aisles with a clipboard and took notes. I borrowed my dad’s audio recorder and would dictate what I saw, transcribing it later. Smartphones hadn’t quite reached the notes or voice memo apps. I would walk around with a fake grocery list and take down notes, trying to fit in with the soccer moms shopping at 11 AM.
I submitted weekly reports for almost 2 months, but I never really knew what they did with the info. Were they checking on the competition to see what they were selling? Were they investigating their own customers to see if they ‘held up their end’ of a backroom deal?
I’ll never know the real reason, but it certainly taught me to constantly have my finger on the pulse of my industry; or at least have a few bananas in my bag at checkout. To not stay in the ivory tower of an executive office and to get down and dirty where customers are. To validate what I read or learn by just doing the damn thing.
Oh, and the best way to choose a ripe avocado?
A good rule of thumb is darker in colour, have a little bit of give to it without being mushy or feeling air pockets. And no mold on it, obviously.
Go forth and guac!
