Last updated on August 26th, 2016 at 04:09 pm
by Terrie Ellerbee/editor-Southwest
They are discreet in Aspen. Sure, celebrities pass through Clark’s Market, and the staff recognizes some of them. Usually they send their chefs, but they do come in from time to time.
That’s according to Tom Clark Jr., who is president of the eight-store chain serving western Colorado and eastern Utah. He spoke to The Shelby Report about a top-to-bottom remodel on the company’s Aspen location and what it took to get the new look.
The first thing to understand about this particular Clark’s Market is that it was the first in the chain. Clark’s father opened that store in 1978. It was his baby. (Tom Clark Sr. is the company’s CEO and works part time.) The store had been remodeled in the 38 years that have passed since then, but it was time for a full-scale remodel, Clark said. Its doors closed for the work on March 26.
“It was starting to look a little dated, and the way people shop is different now,” Clark said. “It’s not about beige shelving and big, huge center stores anymore. It’s about really comfortable spaces and great lighting and interesting products and then hugely expanded produce, dairy and bakery areas.
“With this remodel, it becomes once again our flagship,” he added.
The store reopened July 1 and now employs approximately 30 more people than before.
The produce area is at least twice as large as it was previously, as are the deli and meat department. There’s something else new about those latter two departments.
“It’s about improving the transparency of what goes on,” Clark said. “We’re not hiding our meatcutters back in the back or hiding the kitchens. Everything’s out where all of our customers can see exactly what’s going on and how we’re making their food.”
Previously, there was a door between customers and the area where the meat cutting was done.
“Now there’s a full-service meat case where they can show off what they’re putting together and everything is cut in plain sight,” Clark said.
All inventory had to go as it readied for the closing, of course, but that was just the beginning. The interior was completely gutted. All of the cases, shelving and lights were taken out.
“We took the floor out. The concrete under the floor had issues. We took a lot of that out,” Clark said. “The metal frame underneath the concrete had issues. I mean, it was, ‘gosh, guys, you’re going to run out of things and hit dirt.’”
Every wire was replaced. The HVAC system and the refrigeration systems were replaced. The only thing that remained the same is one service elevator that rises from the storage area below the store.
Clark’s Market in Aspen is about 20,000 s.f., and the grocer took advantage with the remodel to make the most of the space. The assortment has been expanded. There are more SKUs in produce than before, and organics remain an important part of the mix.
Clark’s Market has what Clark called a welcome center at the front of the store. He describes it as a four-sided center with employees in the middle.
“We make it our goal to greet everybody that walks in,” he said. “We want to make it a really nice welcome into the grocery store to the point where we believe our customers really look forward to come grocery shopping because of the environment that we have in our store.”
There also is a coffee/espresso/smoothie program in place as part of the welcome center. But the showpiece of the welcome center is a gelato wheel that was brought in from Italy.
“The wheel really shows off the gelato,” Clark said. “We give out samples.”
Gelato is a new offering at Clark’s Market. He believes it will go over well in Aspen, even in the wintertime.
In the bakery, a new oven was brought in from Germany.
“We have a great bakery program going there,” Clark said. “We’re getting fresh, artisan bread out of this wonderful oven.”
A large stone pizza oven is the centerpiece of the deli area. Pizzas are made to order or available to grab and go.
Chefs in the foodservice/deli area put together varied menu items that customers can take home and finish preparing themselves, Clark said. Shoppers can order those at the service counter or pick their own from a self-serve case.
Clark’s Market remodeled its Snowmass location a couple of years ago, and it was a similar project to the Aspen renewal. Clark praised Rudd Construction, the contractor, for making the Aspen remodeling project go as smoothly and fast as possible.
“This could easily have been at least a six-month if not a yearlong project that they were able to squeeze into three months,” Clark said.
It was a team effort, he said, and it would be hard to name just one supplier or vendor that helped make it happen.
“Associated Food Stores is our main warehouse, and UNFI was an amazing partner, as well as Gourmet Foods International. Those are kind of our top three,” Clark said. “They all went out of their way to help.”
The ceiling is black to highlight offerings and keep the shopper’s gaze down at the product level.
“That wonderful Baro lighting creates a really nice lighting solution for us,” Clark said. “There are skis on aisle markers. We incorporated a lot of light into the décor this time. The aisle markers all have lights within them to give them a soft glow.”
Clark said it was a fun project, and the “new” Clark’s Market has been well-received by the community.
“We had great partners helping us put it together, and the community has been extremely positive about this project. They love it,” Clark said. “At times we’d have two or three people at a time at the front door with their cell phones out taking pictures of the new look. It really was a dramatic change from what it was to what it is now.”
*Editor’s note: This is part of the Colorado Market Profile, which appears in its entirety in the September 2016 print edition of The Shelby Report of the Southwest.
Nice looking store Tom! Congratulations.