TOUR: Weis Markets - Westgate Mall, Bethlehem, PA

Weis Markets
Opened: 2021

Previous Tenants: Bon-Ton

Location: 2425 Schoenersville Rd, Bethlehem, PA

Photographed: January 13, 2022

Welcome to the Westgate Mall! Once anchored by a Hess's department store and a King's supermarket (no relation to the New Jersey-based chain), the mall has changed very much over the years. Neither anchor remains, as Hess's became Bon-Ton and King's was bought out by Weis, and in 2021, Weis moved from the roughly 35,000 square foot former King's space into the nearly 100,000 square foot former Bon-Ton.

It doesn't appear that the former anchor department store was demolished; instead, this space appears to have been remodeled into the Weis that exists today.

I believe this is the largest Weis I've been to, and certainly one of the nicest. We've seen the newest decor package looking just fine in stores like Pennsburg, but it's stores like this where the decor looks best.

We enter to the grand aisle on the right side of the store, with produce on the left side of the grand aisle and beer & wine/cafe, prepared foods, and deli/cheese on the right side of the store. Bakery is at the back of the grand aisle with meat and seafood up next on the back wall, natural foods are in the first aisle, and dairy/frozen and pharmacy are all at the far left side of the store.

This is what the decor should look like. I find Weis stores very attractive and very pleasant to shop in, and I think they've done some very good things with decor in the last several years.

Opposite produce is the spacious Eatery, with beer and wine on one side, and the prepared foods departments opposite.

As we see, deli and prepared foods take up the entire right wall of the store. And the produce department opposite that is quite beautiful...

I think this store does a good job of both merchandising and decor, although I wish the fixtures looked a little more modern. The beige that Weis prefers looks outdated to me despite the fact that it's all brand new.

Cheese and bakery departments in the back right corner of the store.

And the service bakery counter is to the left of that.

As we move into the first grocery aisle, we encounter natural foods, which have their own dairy/frozen department within the natural foods department.

I've noticed that name-brand natural and organic items tend to be in this section for Weis, while storebrand natural and organic items are mixed in with the rest of the grocery selection.

Even though the store is massive, it doesn't feel overwhelming. The aisles and each department are well designed.

Service meat and seafood counter at the back of the first aisles.

But we can see that the store is in fact quite large, and is roughly a square because of the shape of the former department store building.

Cold cuts give way to dairy on the back wall, with the frozen aisles opposite.

There seems to be plenty of space to navigate around the store, but not too much empty space.

And the dairy department continues down the last aisle of the store. I love the backlit decor here.

And that in turn leads into the spacious pharmacy/HABA department in the front corner. I generally seem to find that Weis has excellent prices in general, but especially on HABA and nonfoods.

And a look across the front-end. I commented on the thank you signage in Pennsburg; the newer signage, seen here, says Thank You, Be Well instead of the older Thank you for shopping with us.

And outside the store is some signage outlining Weis' latest sustainability efforts...

This is a very impressive store, but it's also a huge change from the store they used to occupy here in the Westgate Mall! We're going to visit that place tomorrow on Grocery Archaeology. Stay tuned!