Well it has certainly been good to feel the warmth of the sun again and watch everyone come out a little bit more than they have been over this brutal Northeast winter/spring season. With all of the dinners and golf outings on the food industry agenda, I’m sure I’ll bump into most of you in the coming month or so and I can’t wait to catch up with all of you.
Kings Food Markets held a grand re-opening of its Ridgewood, NJ location which has been serving the upscale Bergen county community for 38 years. By all admissions, the renovation was long overdue and the Kings staff didn’t disappoint with the end results. According to store manager Vince Gramuglia, the new Ridgewood Kings removed two aisles of grocery to make room for an expanded perishables area and a new wine and liquor department. Amazingly, the wine and liquor prices are very competitive and should be a big hit, since there are ample nearby BYOB restaurant establishments in town. Paul Guarino, who was hired by Kings as wine and spirits manager, is a trained chef who also owned and operated a local beverage wholesaler in northern New Jersey, so he brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the position. Kings will be unveiling a renovation to its Garfield store at the end of May, and then will take a break during the summer before coming back with a vengeance in the fall with a full slate of re-openings.
Allegiance Retail Services added another unit to its portfolio with the opening of Farmtastic Market in Whippany, NJ. The site on Route 10 was a former Pathmark and owner Roberto Laracca was thrilled to finally be able to open the doors to the public. “We had to jump through many hoops and obstacles to get this location up and running,” said Laracca, “but now that it is here it is well worth the wait.” The store is 40,000 square feet and the entrance brings you right into a world of perishables. Produce, deli, prepared foods, bakery, meat and seafood take up a considerable portion of the store and the departments literally jump right into the customer’s lap upon entering. There is also a coffee bar with WiFi, a juice bar and a full service pharmacy. Roberto was joined at the opening by the entire Allegiance Retail Services team, his father Victor ( a long time operator) and his sister Danielle.
Congratulations to Richard Ball on his confirmation as New York State commissioner of the Department of Agriculture and Markets. Richard had been the interim commissioner after Darrel Aubertine stepped down in October 2013 and was officially confirmed by the New York State Senate and notified by Governor Andrew Cuomo. Richard has been a life long farmer and most recently was the owner and operator of Schohaire Valley Farms in Schohaire, NY.
And congrats also to Bill Lebron who has rejoined Goya Foods as a key account manager. Bill most recently was with Mission Foods and prior to that spent time with Coca-Cola.
Stop & Shop Supermarkets recently celebrated the grand opening of a new store in Pompton Plains, NJ located at 500 Route 23 at Jackson Avenue. The town had been without a supermarket for the past two years and now the new Stop & Shop will offer customers quality perishable and non-perishable departments, convenience options, technology tools to make shopping easy and thousands of low prices every day. The 65,000 square foot store will feature departments in full-service meat and seafood, produce, bakery, deli, cheese shop, sushi, natural and organics. There’s an expanded Nature’s Promise area dedicated to natural and organic products as well as a PNC Bank is located in the store for customer convenience. “We’re looking forward to provide approximately 150 new jobs in Pequannock Township and support the residents and organizations in the community,” said Don Sussman, Stop & Shop New York Metro Division president. “With the summer just around the corner we will continue to offer customers in the area the service, selection and value they expect from us.”
The property at Plaza 23 had been vacant due to several severe storms and flooding issues, and the new Stop & Shop will open its doors with a range of flood-prevention measures including four foot flood doors at every doorway; subterranean pumps to collect water from the soil below the building and any leakage through walls and floors; water-resistant paint on the outside that won’t let moisture through the exterior of the building and a new above-level mechanical room with a 4-foot raised flooring to house generators in case of power outage. The new and improved Pompton location also has numerous sustainable features to conserve energy and reduce impact on the environment. Local resident Bill Diffin will manage the store and most recently was the Sparta, NJ store manager. In celebration of the opening in Stop & Shop donated $1,000 each to the Boys & Girls Club of Pequannock and the Newbridge Services and to the First Reformed Church of Pompton Plains.
More Kings news to report. The retailer will launch an exclusive program this month called 24 Hour Just Picked Promise. The 24 Hour Just Picked Promise is Kings’ commitment to make locally grown, farm-fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs available to shoppers within 24 hours of being picked – giving shoppers the benefits of a local farm stand in the convenience of their neighborhood food markets. “At Kings, we are constantly pushing the boundaries on behalf of our customers, and through our 24 Hour Just Picked Promise, we are able to redefine freshness. All summer long, shoppers looking for the crispness, taste and nutrition that only comes from locally grown, fresh produce can come to Kings and look for our 24 Hour Just Picked Promise seal. They can know those fruits, vegetables and herbs were hand-picked on a local farm less than 24 hours ago. It’s a commitment to local farmers, quality and freshness you can’t get anywhere else,” said Judy Spires, president and CEO of Kings Food Markets.
Kings works with a network of more than 25 regional farmers throughout New Jersey and Connecticut to deliver all of its Just Picked produce fresh to Kings stores within 24 hours of being hand-picked. Local farmers supplying the program select only the freshest, seasonal products in the morning, and through an expedited distribution process, they are delivered to Kings’ stores and prepared for sale the next day. The program is unique to Kings and was developed in partnership with Massachusetts-based Red Tomato, a non-profit organization committed to better connecting farmers and consumers.
“We’re very proud to be able to deliver produce this fresh, from farms in our communities, to our stores and, ultimately, our shoppers,” said Paul Kneeland, vice president of produce, meat, seafood and floral for Kings. “It’s the only program of its kind, and now, when our shoppers are picking up their fresh seafood, favorite cut of meat or a new cheese to bring to a party, they can also get the same freshness that’s offered at a farm stand right in Kings’ produce department – making all those summer flavors really come alive.”
The program will run in all Kings stores Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day, with the exception of Kings Old Greenwich (CT) which will start in mid-June.
Food Fest Depot opened in the South Bronx this past month and offers the local independent supermarket operator a new Cash & Carry wholesale market for their shopping convenience. The warehouse is located at 500 East 132nd Street right off of Bruckner Boulevard near the Tri-Boro Bridge. It is owned by the Tyras brothers who also run a very successful foodservice distribution company, Victory Food Service. Owners Mike and Gus Tyras tell us that the 98,000 square foot facility offers a huge Hispanic and Latino mix of products and they look forward to the venture and serving the local retail food industry.
Key Food continued its growth into the New Jersey market with the opening of their newest location in Monmouth county New Jersey. The unit is located at 300 Gordons Corner Road in Manalapan, NJ and is owned and operated by Eddie Hamad. “We are very excited to welcome another store into our family with this new Key Fresh & Natural location,” says Key’s VP-business development John Durante. “Manalapan is such a vibrant, upscale community and we are looking forward to serving this community as Eddie brings his vision for this store to life.”
Although the store is listed at 5,300 square feet, this new Key Food “plays much larger” and offers customers a Grab & Go section and a full deli that offers hot and cold catering service, specializing in 3-foot heroes. The store also features a full meat department, bakery, dairy, frozen section and floral department, as well as a produce department with a variety of natural and organic products. “I am so excited to open our doors to the community while providing customers with personalized service,” says Eddie Hamad. “Utilizing my many years of experience in this industry, I look forward to offering freshness, quality, convenience, and savings; creating a superb shopping experience.”
And for those of you needing and wanting a little divine intervention on your behalf, you should put June 16 on your calendars and plan on attending the Tri-State Italian-American Congress’ Annual Dinner. It is the organization’s 25th anniversary and they will be honoring Rich and Lucille DeSimone as their “Couple of the Year.” Rich tells us that there will be not one, but two Cardinals in attendance at the dinner. His Eminence Timothy Cardinal Dolan and Edward Cardinal Egan will be at the event held at the Metropolitan Club in NYC. For more information contact Ralph Contini at 201.960.7131 or Dennis Hickey at 914.697.5338.
Well, that’s all for this go around. As previously stated, I can’t wait to see everyone out and about. And look forward to our next issue of Food Trade News which is our spectacular annual market study issue. If you’d like more information about it, you can reach me at 201.250.2217 or [email protected]
