I’m certain no other grocery store in the country had a gala opening like Food City last night in the Crown Point Shopping Center in Kingsport. The mayor was there, the Chamber of Commerce, a state delegate or two, movers and shakers and there was plenty of food too as ‘Bristol’s Own Dixieland Band’ opened the doors to Kingsport’s new Food City Tuesday night.
It may have been raining outside, but the bustle of the holiday season was never more obvious as people gathered in the cold rain for the much-anticipated opening of one of Kingsport’s most popular grocery stores. It’s been in business for about 20 years at this location and it was a surprise when they shut the store last Spring, tore it down, rearranged all of small stores around the complex and opened one of the most stunning retail re-creations in our city.
Read on, or check out the pictures from the special event…
Food City’s success and down-to-earth character is built on a community partnership that has no comparison in East Tennessee. I say this not because they’re a client, but because I see it all the time. Working closely with their talented staff, we marvel at their involvement with NASCAR, Apples for Students, The Santa Train, Local Produce, the local Sheep Association, (the list goes on and on). Food City is involved in almost every hometown initiative and that’s what makes them so special.
Working with them, we always experience a dedication to all the communities they serve and that’s directed to their business partners too. Earlier in the year, I attended a recognition of JA Street, the contractor who builds all the Food City stores and it’s clear to me that Food City surrounds themselves with the best our community has to offer. They rely predominantly on local vendors who meet their qualities of integrity and value and their successes are a shared experience with everyone they work with from their vendors to the city government, press and customers all across our region.
It’s easy to smile with a ‘wow’ inside the doors of this new super market. It’s bigger (55,000 sq. ft), it’s brighter, it has the most modern technology and service ideas of any retailer in the region. The new pharmacy has a medical professional to help with minor emergencies, the bakery-deli has a large sit down cafe dubbed ‘Cafe Kingsport’ and there are plenty of wide aisles and unique food offerings in every section of the store. Everyone’s been talking about that second floor too and when you take the trip upstairs or the elevator, there’s a new facility where they will offer cooking seminars, community meetings and other social events right inside the grocery store.
We’ve been watching the construction all year long on the Food City web cam. JA Street is their contractor and everyone on their team did a great job to get this store up and running when they said they would right before the Thanksgiving holidays. We saw them on nights, weekends and holidays working as hard as they could on everything from the brickwork to the shrubbery.
Another one of the interesting things about the shopping center is their new layout. First of all, you can see Food City from just about anywhere now along the Kingsport skyline near the mall. That second floor really makes a difference, but the out-parcels are laid out well too. Some of my favorite restaurants have great new stores and their traffic is better than ever. Ming Garden continues to serve up one of the best Chinese buffets and town and John Franklin’s Subway store never had it so good along the corner.
There were plenty of people standing in line to get in on the free food and drinks everywhere in the store tonight. I smelled the chicken, saw the shrimp, fruits, vegetables, cookies, cakes, soft drinks, breads, pastas, chips and more, but my favorite were the chocolate treats on the second floor – deep, dark tasty morsels of chocolate and walnuts.
Tom Segelhorst with the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce introduced the program around 6.00 and Miles Burdine presented long-time Food City Manager Ed Moore with a special plaque for his wall dubbing the new Crown Point store as the “Ed Majal.”
Miles also presented Steve Smith with a special gift and photograph of the new store. Steve also introduced several of the people on his team who helped to bring about this quick retail turnaround. He also presented Betty Devinney with a $15,000 check for Breast Awareness.
It wasn’t long before we were all gathered at the front of the store for the official ribbon-cutting. Mr. Smith was joined by his delightful daughter Chloe and I grabbed a couple of nice shots as they wrestled with the over-size scissors. Together with Segelhorst, Mayor Phillips, Nathan Vaughn, Ed Moore and other store managers, they cut the ribbon about 6.30 to the flash of several cameras. We taped video throughout the event this evening and should have some good media to pass along, but my favorite picks of the night were Steve with his daughter.
As the Dixieland Band started up another set dressed in their peppermint vests, it was hard to tell if this was a social event or if the doors were open for business. I myself needed cat food and when they announced we could go ahead and buy what we needed, I didn’t hesitate. Plenty of people saw the commotion from outside too and although the event was supposed to be over with at 7.30 (their official opening is Wednesday), many people were pushing buggies inside the new store. I imagine plenty of holiday dinners are being planned now and this store will be over the top for the next several weeks as holiday plans are made.
Congratulations Food City! Kingsport appreciates all that you do and thank you for the brand new store. It truly is a gem of the whole chain and we’re proud to call you one of our own.