TOUR: ShopRite - Southington, CT

ShopRite of Southington
Owner: Don Drust

Opened: 2010

Previous Tenants: GE Madison (department store - 1960-early 1980s) > Edwards Super Food Store (mid 1980s-1996) > Shaw's (1996-before 2007)

Cooperative: Wakefern Food Corp.

Location: 750 Queen St, Southington, CT

Photographed: November 20, 2020

We've talked about the exit of Shaw's from the Connecticut market, and their stores were mostly sold to Stop & Shop or Wakefern, which reopened them as Price Rite and ShopRite stores. Several of the Wakefern stores haven't made it, with Price Rite in Willimantic and ShopRite in West Hartford, for example, both closing in 2019. Others seem to be doing quite well, such as this ShopRite here in Southington. It was constructed in 1960 as a department store, then became an Edwards by the mid-1980s and Shaw's in 1996. But this one didn't make it all the way until Shaw's left CT in 2010 -- Shaw's closed before 2007 and ShopRite opened in 2010.

The exterior of the 60,000 square foot store was renovated before ShopRite opened, and they extensively remodeled the inside also. I don't see any obvious Shaw's traces inside at all, and it's a great-looking store.

We enter to floral next to the entrance. The grand aisle is on the right side, with a cafe and prepared foods in the front right corner and deli/bakery along the rest of the right side of the store. Seafood is at the back of the first aisle, with meats along the rest of the back wall. Dairy is in the back left corner and in the last aisle, along with frozen on the left side, and beer is in the front left corner.

The store's renovation must have been very extensive, as it doesn't feel like a Shaw's at all to me. I'm betting the flooring and ceiling were redone along with the decor, so it takes away most of the Shaw's feeling. My bet is that Shaw's had a drop ceiling here.

The service departments line the right side of the store.

There's a large section of prepared foods, although most of it was closed when I visited. Don't forget, I was here in November 2020 -- most places hadn't reopened their prepared foods departments or were keeping them limited.

Bakery is up next in the back right corner. From every indication I could see, this is a high-volume and well-run store.

Looking back up towards the front wall of the store...

Seafood is at the back of the grand aisle, and I really like the decor in this area (and throughout the store). The ceiling is fairly low, so the decor being big and bright is a nice touch to make the store look exciting.

Butcher is on the back wall next to seafood, and my guess is that the basic layout of the store is left over from Shaw's, but I doubt many if any of the fixtures are from the Shaw's days.

Again, the decor on the back wall is not overwhelming but really nice. I liked this store a lot.

HABA in the first few aisles. I don't believe this store has a pharmacy.

The grocery aisles have absolutely no remnants of Shaw's that I could see.

Paper goods out of stock, of course. 2020 was a crazy time.

And at the back, we move into the dairy department. I really like the blue walls and the lighting here.

And frozen foods are in the aisles opposite this area...

The freezer aisle setup is a little bit like a Shaw's, but not 100%.

I'm not sure whether this store has been renovated since it opened. I can't find any evidence that it has, but this decor is looking very good for going on 15 years old.

Maintenance, obviously, has also been excellent at this store. The owners only own two stores, this one and Wallingford, another beautifully renovated former Shaw's with the same decor package. That one is about 5,000 square feet larger than this one.

Dairy and beer are in the last aisle.

If this store previously had a pharmacy -- I'm not sure -- it probably would've been here, a somewhat awkward alcove in the front corner for bread and some overflow beer.

And now taking a look at the front end...

This is a very nice store, and again, from my observations very well-run.

Tomorrow we're headed up around two and a half miles north to the next town for an independent!