Wegmans readies hiring drive to support expansion

Wegmans Food Markets said it plans to hire hundreds of hourly associates for entry-level management positions as the company expands its regional footprint.

Rochester, N.Y.-based Wegmans announced a virtual hiring event for Wednesday to fill jobs in stores, warehouses and distribution centers across its eight-state East Coast market area. The grocer, which didn’t report the total number of job openings, also said it will be recruiting for a range of part- and full-time customer-service roles.

“As our company continues to expand, we’re looking for talented people to fill positions at all locations, and we are committed to providing development tools and training to help our employees grow their career,” Kevin Stickles, senior vice president of human resources at Wegmans, said in a statement on Wednesday.

Most of the job openings are for retail managers, but other positions include operations supervisor, security officer, overnight shift manager, shift supervisor, retail sales associate, warehouse team member, warehouse associate, warehouse order selector and warehouse product selector.

Hiring locations include the greater Buffalo, Rochester and Syracuse, New York, areas; New York’s southern tier; New York City and Westchester County; the greater Boston area; Delaware; Maryland; New Jersey; North Carolina; Pennsylvania; Virginia; and Washington, D.C. Wegmans said jobs also are available at its warehouses in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, and Rochester, New York, as well as in upcoming locations in 2023, including the new Ashland, Virginia, warehouse and new stores in Reston, Virgina, and Manhattan.

“We plan to fill these positions immediately, and we will continue to host interviews as long as needed after the event,” according to Stickles.

Plans call for Wegmans to open two new stores this year, and another five are in the pipeline.

The 85,000-square-foot Reston store, situated in a mixed-use development, is slated to open its doors on Feb. 1. Due to open in the second half of 2023 is Wegmans’ first Manhattan supermarket and second New York City location. The 82,000-square-foot store will occupy space on the street and lower levels of the historic Astor Place building (a former Kmart site) at 770 Broadway. Wegmans entered New York City in October 2019 with the opening of a 74,000-square-foot store at the Navy Yard development in the borough of Brooklyn.

Future store locations include Rockville, Maryland; Yardley, Pennsylvania.; Norwalk, Connecticut; Holly Springs, North Carolina; and Lake Grove, New York, according to Wegmans. The Holly Springs store would be the chain’s southernmost location, and the Norwalk location would be the retailer’s first in Connecticut. Likewise, the Lake Grove store would mark Wegmans’ first location in New York’s Long Island.

Currently, Wegmans operates 109 stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Delaware and the District of Columbia.