Inside the (Semi-) Mysterious World of Trader Joes

If your family is at all like ours, you spend a lot of time shopping at one of the three Trader Joes stores in Marin. Their combination of good value, great service, offbeat atmosphere, and an eclectic selection of gourmet products keeps us going back. And, let's not forget the family-friendly aspects of the store—mini-shopper carts, free stickers, and rewards for finding Jojo the pony (in the Novato store) help keep children occupied and busy during those grocery shopping trips.

But what's the story behind Trader Joes? Did you know it's owned by a secretive German company? Where do all those private-label products they stock come from? How come many of their products—cheese, for example—are much less expensive than at other grocery stores?

Fortune Magazine recently took a look "Inside the Secret World of Trader Joes", and examines the history of the store, how it's run, and how it finagles those great deals.

Read the whole article online at money.cnn.com.

Make sure you watch the bonus video about Fred Franzia and Bronco Wine Company (of Charles Shaw "Two-Buck Chuck" fame) and how they supply a startlingly large amount of the California wine that Trader Joes stocks.