Food Lion unveils first stores under new format

Food Lion on Wednesday said it had completed remodels of 31 stores in greater Wilmington, N.C., in the first phase of a planned chainwide “Easy, Fresh and Affordable” format.

Food Lion, a division of Belgium’s Delhaize Group, said the effort would be followed by 45 stores in the Greenville, N.C., market, expected to be completed in November.

Debuted at a single store near Food Lion’s headquarters in Salisbury, N.C., late last year, the new format incorporates revamped product selections, layouts and features designed to enhance convenience for Food Lion shoppers, and better communicate relevance to its shoppers. In the below video Antoine Grant, Food Lion’s Concord, N.C., store manager, discusses the new features at that store:

The new assortment of products in the Wilmington stores include a dedicated gluten-free section, and Food Lion meat in new sealed packaging that the retailer said keeps fresh longer and is easy to open, leak-proof and freezer-ready. New meal offerings, including a rotation of $10 Daily Dinner Deals serving four, and grab-and-go items have also been added.

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New signage makes deals easier to find throughout the store, including pointing out weekly specials, extended discounts and everyday prices.

New aspects to improve convenience include color-coded bags helping customers identifiy cold and frozen items, and new checkouts.

"Our customers told us that they want a grocery experience where it's easy to shop, easy to save and easy to figure out what is for dinner tonight,” Beth Newlands Campbell, president of Food Lion, said in a statement. “In these enhanced stores, we've worked to deliver just that."