Tony’s Fresh Market to finally open long-delayed Illinois store

After years of delays, Tony’s Fresh Market is opening a new store in suburban Schaumburg, Illinois, in a renovated building that once housed a Dominick’s supermarket, on March 29.

The opening has been in the works since 2015, according to local media reports, held up by a long-term lease on the 65,000-square-foot-building held by Albertsons, the parent company of the long-defunct Dominick’s grocery chain.

Albertsons could have renewed the lease at 200 S. Roselle Road in Schaumburg’s Town Square development until 2036, but ultimately ended its stake on the property in May 2021.

Tony’s, which has 20 grocery stores in Illinois, was acquired by private-equity firm Apollo Global Management last April. The grocer had been run by Italian immigrants Tony Ingraffia and Domenico Gambino since its founding in 1979.

Tony’s will open the new location at the end of March at 7 a.m. with a grand opening celebration featuring demo stations, giveaways and in-store specials, according to the grocer’s post on Facebook.

The Dominick’s that had been in the location shuttered in 2013, shortly after the chain said it would close all 72 of its stores in the Chicago area.

The fight to secure Tony’s Fresh Market in the vacant Schaumburg location was a contentious one: The city’s mayor, Tom Dailly, vowed to make it a priority for the city when he was elected in 2019, according to the Daily Herald newspaper.

Leaders in Schaumburg voted 5-1 in September to provide $3 million in funding towards the $13 million renovation of the store, while also recommending a county tax break for the grocer.

In June, Tony’s opened a new store in Joliet, Illinois. The 70,000-square-foot location had previously been a Kmart.