Grocery News In Brief…
The second group of four Hannaford stores being converted to Big Y will open Friday, Sept. 16. The stores are in Quincy, Norwell, Saugus and West Peabody, Massachusetts. Store teams are making minor renovations, cleaning, painting, rebranding and upgrading equipment. In addition, fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, seafood, dairy, deli, prepared foods and bakery items will be brought in for the openings. Big Y-branded items and Full Circle Market products also have been added. Following the conversions, Big Y will have 79 stores Massachusetts and Connecticut, including 72 supermarkets, 39 pharmacies, Fresh Acres Market, Table & Vine Fine Wines and Liquors and five Big Y Express gas and convenience locations…
Tom Stenzel, president and CEO of the United Fresh Produce Association, will be the keynote speaker at the New England Produce Council’s annual Produce, Floral and Foodservice Expo, which begins Sept. 21 at the Ocean Edge Resort and Golf Club in Brewster, Massachusetts. Stenzel will talk about ethnic marketing, organics, and the natural and specialty segments. The trade show will be held the following day from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. …
ShopRite recently cut the ribbon on its newest supermarket in Philadelphia. The 60,000-s.f. ShopRite of Whitman Plaza is operated by the Colligas family and its Colligas Family Markets. The new store features a large selection of freshly prepared foods, international and domestic cheeses, an in-store café, catering and an in-store dietitian. Customers also will find a variety of fresh produce and natural and organic products. The new space was extensively renovated and includes a fresh bake shop with store-made special occasion cakes; meat cut to order by trained butchers; seafood department stocked with same-day catches; prepared foods and catering departments; and grab-and-go meals such as sandwiches, heat-and-eat entrees, hot bar, salad bar, Asian cuisine and sushi.
