TOUR: ShopRite - Montague, NJ

ShopRite of Montague
Owner: ShopRite Supermarkets, Inc. (SRS)

Opened: 1990s (?) - 2021

Previous Tenants: Big V Supermarkets ShopRite (sold to SRS in 2001)

Cooperative: Wakefern Food Corp.

Location: 10A NJ-23, Montague, NJ

Photographed: February 2021

We arrive at the single ShopRite in Sussex County that isn't owned by the Romano family, which also happens to be the farthest-north supermarket in New Jersey! If you picture the shape of the state, you can see the triangle at the far top, and it's in this triangle point that the ShopRite of Montague is located all of 90 feet from the New York state border and roughly half a mile from the Delaware River which separates NJ from Pennsylvania. The existing 61,000 square foot supermarket was constructed probably in the 1990s by Big V Supermarkets, which through a long process attempted to leave Wakefern without paying the fee to withdraw; they basically attempted to convince Wakefern they were planning to go off on their own (which would've nullified the withdrawal fee) but were engaged at the same time in highly-publicized purchase negotiations with Stop & Shop. Wakefern rejected Big V's claims, Big V declared bankruptcy, and Wakefern purchased most of Big V's stores. This store closed in November 2021 when it was moved across the river to the Westfall Town Center, in Matamoras, PA. It's really not that far away -- just about two miles -- but in a different state. Does anyone else know of an example of a supermarket being replaced by a new one in the next state over? The Westfall ShopRite looks perfectly attractive and as bland as anything with what's apparently SRS's new decor that looks straight out of 2005.

Back to Montague. I wouldn't be surprised if the store replaced an older ShopRite next door, where the TJ Maxx is now. That space, at 36,000 square feet, resembles earlier Big V stores. Here we have the grand aisle, with deli and bakery on the right side and produce on the left; customer service and floral are on the front wall with pharmacy in an island facing. Seafood and then meat line the back wall. For some added intrigue, this layout is nearly identical to Price Chopper's late 90s/early 00s layout but not so similar to the Big V layout at the time. Is it possible that somewhere along the line this store was planned as a Price Chopper but never opened? I assume not, but could it be?

Speaking of Price Chopper, we're a mile and a half from the Matamoras Price Chopper over the border into PA, which is right up the street from the new ShopRite. We'll be seeing the Price Chopper, as well as a former Grand Union next to the new ShopRite, when we get to northeastern PA, but for now we're staying in New Jersey.

As we'll see, although the grand aisle is quite attractive, the rest of the store has not been renovated probably since the store opened. Dare I say... this decor is better than the new decor.

Bakery and seafood at the back. I do love this decor package, even though we're seeing a pretty simple version of it here, because of the big pictures and bright colors.

Here we see the transition from the remodeled grand aisle into the older meat department. Lighting and aisle markers have been updated; in fact, these aisle markers are from the second-newest decor package.

Pharmacy is in an island at the front of the first grocery aisle, again a layout feature of Price Chopper more than the SRS ShopRites. Of course, that's almost definitely just a coincidence or possibly the same design firm.

Pharmacy faces floral and customer service on the front end. Notice that the walls haven't even been painted in the older section.

Grocery aisles probably look a whole lot like opening day (again, presumably in the 1990s) but the lighting looks brand-new.

I'm very intrigued to know what the rest of the decor would've looked like with this older decor package. Notice that the ShopRite logo is the pre-2001 one.

We'll see this decor package, in a more deluxe version, when we go up through New York again.

I wonder why these aisle markers were put in here. Did they come from another store?

I'm very glad I got to take some good pictures of this decor since it can't be long before it disappears forever.

A mix of older (close right) and middle-aged (the rest) freezer cases.

Frozen takes up the second-to-last and one side of the last aisle, with dairy on the outside of the last. Now we have something really unusual on the front-end...

Check out those lane markers -- aren't those from the A&P Foodmarket decor package? I've seen them in other SRS ShopRites so I assume it's just a coincidence, but it would be funny if SRS bought large numbers of checkout lane markers from renovated or closed A&Ps. And the other thing? I'm not sure I've ever seen an A&P with 18 checkouts (although I guess they did exist somewhere). Well okay folks, that wraps up our journey up to the northern tip of the state through the middle, and now we begin our final descent... we're now going to circle south through the rest of the westernmost part of the state, first with the last few towns in Sussex County, then Hunterdon/Warren, then taking a look at the areas surrounding each of the major three cities in western central Jersey (Princeton, Trenton, and Camden). And then we're done with the state! So close and yet so far. For now, we're going to travel south along US-206 and up next we're seeing an independent store in Branchville over on The Independent Edition tomorrow!