TOUR: Brigido's Fresh Market - North Scituate, RI

Brigido's Fresh Market
Owner: Mike Fernandez

Opened: 2023 under current ownership; 1975 previously

Cooperative: Allegiance Retail Services
Location: 25 Village Plaza Way, North Scituate, RI

Photographed: November 19, 2023

It's time for the final Brigido's! We've seen their locations in North Smithfield and Pascoag (plus New Hartford, kind of), but this tour is unique because it's the only one I've been to after the ownership change and subsequent renovation and grand reopening.

The store is roughly 23,000 square feet, making it actually the second-largest Brigido's (New Hartford is slightly larger, and the other two are both under 20,000). We enter to the grand aisle on the right side of the store, with produce, deli/bakery, and prepared foods in what appears to be an expansion. Meat and dairy are on the back wall of the wide but shallow store, with frozen foods in the last two aisles on the left.

The store started out as a Brigido's IGA back in 1975, making it the oldest operating Brigido's, too. Brigido's appears to have been IGA through about 2017, then becoming independent and supplied by C&S with Best Yet and Full Circle items. When Mike Fernandez purchased the chain in early 2023, the three stores joined Allegiance Retail Services (the cooperative behind Foodtown, Pathmark, and others) and now sell Foodtown, Best Yet, Green Way, and Full Circle brands.

After a renovation, the store held its grand reopening along with the other Brigido's locations in the summer of 2023. One of the features added was a bulk coffee bar in the front, a very nice touch...

Notice that this store still has the hanging flags that were removed in North Smithfield.

Floral is to the left of the entrance, and some soda and similar items are on the front wall between floral and the registers.

I'm not sure how much was updated in the 2023 remodel, but the fixtures across the board look quite new here.

The grocery aisles are short because of how shallow the store is.

Here's a look across the front, with the registers way in the distance.

As we see, the store is immaculate and in excellent maintenance.

The decor is pleasant and old-school in style, but plenty modern in design. I think the small-town stores are looking great.

Aisle 12 is half nonfoods and half frozen.

13 aisles in total. As we see, the store is spotless and really beautiful.

There are only a few registers in the front, with customer service in this corner...

I really liked the Brigido's stores and it seems that they continue to be well-run under their new ownership. But enough for small-town Rhode Island, let's head into Providence tomorrow!