Grocery Outlet opens first store in Maryland

Grocery Outlet Holding Corp. has expanded its brick-and-mortar footprint to eight states with the debut of its first location in Maryland.

Emeryville, Calif.-based Grocery Outlet opened the doors to a store at 1713 Massey Blvd. in Hagerstown, Md., on June 16. The new outlet marked the chain’s 424th store, with locations in California, Washington, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Idaho, Nevada, New Jersey and now Maryland.

As part of the Hagerstown store’s grand opening celebration, through July 14 customers can enter for a chance to win $1,000 in groceries. Prizes also include over 20 $50 rewards certificates. The first 100 shoppers attending the store’s ribbon-cutting ceremony received Grocery Outlet Bliss Bucks gift cards in mystery amounts ranging from $5 to $250.

“We are overjoyed to open Grocery Outlet’s very first location in Maryland and to be a part of the Hagerstown community, providing big savings on quality groceries,” Gerald and Evelyn Eldred, independent owner-operators of the Hagerstown Grocery Outlet, said in a statement. “This partnership with Grocery Outlet gives us the ability to grow our business, create new jobs and more importantly, give back to our local community.”

Also with the grand opening, the Eldreds presented donations of $1,000 each to The Hope Center Hagerstown and the LifeHouse Church.

Related:Grocery Outlet stores pilot Uber Eats delivery

Describing itself as an “extreme value” retailer, Grocery Outlet touts big discounts on brand-name products and has said a typical shopper basket is priced about 40% lower than that of conventional grocers and 20% lower than leading discounters. Stores are run by independent owner-operators from the communities they serve, enabling locations to cater to changing customer preferences. Shopper savings is achieved through a sourcing model of procuring surplus inventory and product overruns directly from thousands of supplier partners. That includes a changing assortment of products with “WOW!” prices, creating a “treasure hunt” shopping experience.

Grocery Outlet opened 36 new stores in fiscal 2021, ending the year with 415 stores in California, Washington, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Idaho, Nevada and — a new state — New Jersey. In the fiscal 2022 first quarter ended April 2, the retailer Grocery Outlet opened four new stores and closed one location, ending the period with 418 stores.

“We remain on track to open 28 net new stores during the year, including approximately 10 stores in the Mid-Atlantic area as we expand our footprint in the East,” Grocery Outlet CEO Eric Lindberg said last month in a conference call on Q1 results.

Related:Grocery Outlet posts 10.5% net sales gain for Q1