I was in a Petco recently for cat supplies. In the line up for the cash register, I was swayed by those ‘last minute’ items. In the grocery store, it’s magazines, gum and chocolate. Those little enticers are small, and you may not have been in the store looking for them, but while you’re waiting in line, you start thinking “hmmm… maybe I could use a mini pack of tissues, or a pocket pen light or a travel sewing kit…” and pop them in with your purchases. Usually, I am able to resist the siren call of the ‘last minute’ items, although I ALWAYS picked up a Weekly World News back when it was still being printed.
So, back to the point. While in the Petco line, I succumbed to cat nip toys for the cats. Not that unusual, right? However, one of the other products in the ‘last minute’ section blew my mind. Small bags of live crickets. Yeah. I’m thinking that anyone who has a pet that requires live crickets, already has those on their shopping list. I can’t imagine standing around in line, thinking “I got the replacement bulb for the heat lamp, a new rock for the lizard…” and then suddenly seeing the bag of crickets. “Right! I could really use some crickets!” How often do you suppose people purchase last minute crickets?