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GOURMET NEWS MARCH 2016 www.gourmetnews.com RETAILER NEWS 1 3 A Complete Food Experience at Fruit Center Marketplace BY RICHARD THOMPSON The winters in Milton, Massachusetts bring brisk cold-snaps and 30 degree rains to its historic red-brick buildings and famous waterfront restaurants. Red- cheeked children skate on the frozen brook in nearby Cunningham Park and short horn blasts from incoming barges are carried over the sea air all the way to East Milton Square. It's here that residents put on their Red Sox embroidered scarves and head out into the cold, because they know that if they want some of Mike's Fresh Sushi or need to stop by Kin- nealey's Meat Shop for a whole chicken, they have to make it to the Fruit Center Marketplace. "This is a fam- ily run business that's been around for 42 years now," says Michael Dwyer, Marketing Director for the Fruit Center Marketplace Milton. Fo- cused on specialty and gourmet products, Dwyer says that residents come here be- cause its a place they can trust. "From bread and butter to paper goods and de- tergents, all the stuff you'd find at a regu- lar grocery store, you'll find here – with countless gourmet items as well." The Fruit Center Marketplace, named by "The Boston Globe" as one of the Top Places to Work in Massachusetts for four years running, began in 1973 with the simple idea of providing exceptional pro- duce to customers in the South Shore community. Its loyal base and reputation quickly saw business expand, so the orig- inal store was replaced with two locations to meet demand – one in Milton and a smaller location found down the road in Hingham. Says Dwyer, "Folks come to us because they're looking for the complete food experience." The Milton Marketplace, in which Fruit Center Marketplace resides, is a 10,000 square-foot two-story building that houses the Fruit Center Marketplace on the first floor, while upstairs, customers will find an assortment of stores and a gourmet eatery, The Plate, that makes for a complete shopping experience. Accord- ing to Dwyer, the layout is designed this way to entice customers to stay and shop: "We have a range of customers; some who shop here weekly for their groceries and leave, while others spend the entire day here, shopping upstairs before picking up some bananas and a few takeaway items to bring home for dinner. Different cus- tomers... differ- ent purposes." The grocery store itself is home to an as- sortment of gourmet and specialty depart- ments that are locally sourced, high-end and are highly regarded by both cus- tomers and up- scale restaurants. Dwyer says that an important factor in choosing their partners was that these companies have experience in working with hotels and restaurants and specialize in high-quality products. He said, "This is certainly not usual for any other grocery retailer." Inside, customers are offered a selection of locally sourced produce from the Boston area, a 40 foot salad bar that boasts over 100 fresh items everyday, a baked goods display, an olive bar and even a line of prepared meals and side dishes such as meatloaf, chicken Parme- san, scallops au gratin and butternut squash, for those busy shoppers looking for something to eat without dealing with the hassle of cooking. Mike's Fresh Sushi, which partnered in 2008, specializes in all things raw, making all of its products in-house, right on the floor. While there is no seating available, shoppers are able to pick up restaurant style sushi and take it home without a second thought. Everyday, the itamae – or sushi chef – behind the bar creates 10 to 12 varieties of sushi ranging from tradi- tional California rolls to more creative sushi offerings like eel with strawberries. Kinnealey's Meat Shop, which has worked alongside the Fruit Center for nearly 30 years, is its own business run inside the marketplace and is a high-end meat purveyor that caters to high-end restaurants and hotels in the Boston area. Aged sirloin steaks, veal cutlets, pork ribs, game, sausage and organic poultry op- tions are all offered by the specialty butcher. On the second floor of The Market- place, shoppers will encounter the newly opened restaurant, The Plate, offering customers a sit-down compliment to the food-center motif downstairs. "The new cafe will offer an inventive dining experi- ence with a partially open kitchen," says Suzanne Lombardi, Chef and Owner of The Plate. Says Dwyer, "Suzanne [Lombardi] has a long and impressive food background in Boston and we know from her two wildly successful past enterprises that she could bring homemade food and innovative dishes to Fruit Center." The 2,600 square-foot marketplace cafe serves handmade, gourmet breakfasts and lunches Tuesday through Sunday, allow- ing patrons to enjoy its reclaimed wood décor, natural sunlight and variety of seat- ing options. Everything from commuter breakfasts for on-the-go professionals to organic eggs and smoked bacon dishes are offered as eat-in or take out choices. Lom- bardi even makes her own English muffins and jams. After filling themselves up at The Plate, shoppers who meander upstairs will find a small assortment of retail merchants selling clothes, jewelry and toys. The Gift Garden carries a selection of upscale women's clothing and jewelry plus greet- ing cards, cookbooks, candles and ceram- ics, while The Nutshell focuses solely on children's clothing. Rounding out the sec- ond floor is The Toy Chest, a toy store that harkens back to a simpler time, where customers can treat their grand- kids, nieces and nephews with toys that don't require batteries or AC adapters. "It's a traditional toy store," says Dwyer. During certain times of the year, the Fruit Center works collaboratively with the retailers upstairs for social and shop- ping events such as a "stroll" night where shoppers can go to the second floor and take advantage of special deals, and then come downstairs to enjoy some wine tast- ing and cheese and chocolate sampling downstairs. Says Dwyer, "Having regular product samplings within the store, a busy restau- rant and a wide range of products that customers desire not only brings them back, but they tend to come back with greater frequency." GN and transfers to Grants Pass from Hills- boro, Oregon. The assistant managers are Cameran Jaskoviak and Daniel Horne, who are both experienced WinCo employ- ees. Dareck and his team are excited about the store opening and are particularly pleased with the quality and enthusiasm of the employees that were hired from the Grants Pass area. Eleven employees have transferred from other WinCo Foods stores and another 150 have been hired lo- cally. The management team feels confi- dent that the store will open with an excited and motivated crew of new em- ployees and veterans who are anxious to meet and to begin serving their customers in Grants Pass. The store features WinCo's "Wall of Val- ues" at the entry, which includes special low pricing on a wide variety of popular items. The main sales floor encompasses a large fresh produce and bulk foods depart- ments together with meat, seafood, deli and bakery service departments. The ex- tensive bulk foods department displays over 900 items, including many natural food products, some organics, snacks, candies, cereals, flours, pastas, spices and more. WinCo employees are ready for cus- tomers to come in to see the store and to benefit from the everyday low pricing and WinCo Foods, LLC announced that it will open its new discount supermarket in Grants Pass, Oregon. The store is some- what smaller than most traditionally sized WinCo Foods stores, measuring approxi- mately 72,000 square feet. As is traditional for WinCo Foods stores, the store has a simple décor package that creates a solid, clean feel and keeps the focus on the great variety of quality products and low prices. WinCo Foods is an employee owned discount grocery chain best known for being the supermarket low price leader in each market it serves. Store Manager, Dareck Shannon, comes to the store with 25 years of retail experience with WinCo WinCo Foods Announces the Opening of its 105th Store in Grants Pass, Oregon quality that WinCo Foods is known for. WinCo Foods is an employee owned company founded in 1967 in Boise, Idaho. WinCo operates as a regional discount su- permarket company employing over 15,000 individuals and operating 105 stores and five distribution centers in the states of Washington, Idaho, Nevada, Cal- ifornia, Oregon, Utah, Arizona and Texas. Customers wanting to learn more about the employee owned company are encour- aged to join the conversation at www. facebook.com/winco.official.page – an online community of hundreds of thou- sands of "Smart Shoppers" sharing tips, coupons, real reviews and more. GN

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