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Meijer Gets Small Again With 2nd New Concept Store
Woodward Corner Market to debut early next year. As its first small-format Bridge Street Market celebrates its one-year anniversary, the Michigan retailer readies for a similar second format: Woodward Corner Market.
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As its first small-format Bridge Street Market celebrates its one-year anniversary, the Michigan retailer readies for a similar second format: Woodward Corner Market.Photograph courtesy of Meijer
Buoyed by the success of its first small format store, Bridge Street Market in its Grand Rapids, Mich., hometown, which celebrated its one-year anniversary last week, Meijer will debut a second new neighborhood market concept—Woodward Corner Market—early next year.
The forthcoming Woodward Corner Market in Royal Oak, Mich., is part of a plan Meijer revealed in 2017 to open six small-format neighborhood stores by 2021. Christina Fecher, public relations manager for Meijer, told WGB, that Woodward Corner “will be a similar concept to Bridge Street Market. The concepts of these [neighborhood store] formats are similar, but they will be tailored to the communities they’re in.”
Natalie Rubino, current store director of the Meijer Supercenter in Royal Oak, has been tapped to helm Woodward Corner Market as its manager when the store makes its debut in the Woodward Corners development. “I am excited to lead a great, independent team that will focus on helping our customers,” said Rubino, who is also responsible for the entire store’s merchandise mix. “We will be able to make quick decisions to accommodate in-the-moment customer requests.”
Meijer’s second compact specialty market will offer an assortment of fresh food, local and artisan products, and Meijer and national brand products at everyday low prices.
“After the success of Bridge Street Market, we are excited to continue providing new ways to serve our communities,” said Justin Stricklen, director of market format stores for Meijer.
Photograph courtesy of Meijer
Highlights of Meijer’s forthcoming Woodward Corner Market include:
About 2,000 local, artisan products, including products from Zingerman’s Bakehouse, Jessica’s Natural Foods and Steve’s Backroom.
An expansive international food aisle that will feature eight ethnic backgrounds, including Middle Eastern, kosher, Hispanic, European and Asian foods.
A Great Lakes Coffee shop that specializes in nitro brews.
Fresh and prepared foods, including bakery items, fresh meat and deli offerings.
An expansive beer, wine and liquor counter featuring a rolling ladder.
Basic cleaning items and health and beauty care products.
25-foot ceilings.
Open air elements and a pedestrian-friendly design near the Beaumont Hospital campus, including six garage-style doors with outdoor fresh produce and floral area.
The new Woodward Corner Market team will have a solid template to model and learn from courtesy of Bridge Street Market, which grew its local offerings by 33%, or 5,000 products, in its first year of business.
“Bridge Street Market was new territory for us but has proven to be a successful way to serve our community,” said Store Manager Ken Bair, who said that from the onset, “the team embraced the West Side’s heritage and listened to our customers to ensure we had the best products on our shelves. It's been a great year.”
Bridge Street Market opened Aug. 29, 2018, and focuses on fresh, convenient and on-trend local products. Key product successes for the year include:
130 feet of vegan products.
An average 220 organic produce items weekly.
Sold more sushi than any Meijer store across the Midwest.
Bridge Street Market also recently partnered with Grand Rapids-based Public Thread to manufacture vinyl tote bags made from recycled Meijer billboards, each of which makes about 90 bags.
“We couldn’t be more pleased with the success of Bridge Street Market this first year,” Stricklen said of the store.
