CTown Supermarkets
Opened: 2025
The ongoing demise -- or at least contraction -- of Rite Aid and the other drugstore chains has been a major boon for independent supermarkets. The latest example (there's been too many to count, at this point) is here in Canarsie, Brooklyn, where an 11,000 square foot former Rite Aid has reopened as a CTown Supermarket.
CTown was a block east on Flatlands Avenue, and it appears the owners have held onto that store even as they open this one, but it's now branded Bravo. (The Bravo is only 5000 square feet, so it's quite small.) Here's a look at this store in progress back in October.
Produce is on the right side of the store in the first aisle, with meat on the back wall and dairy/frozen on the left side. A deli and a seafood counter -- not yet open when I visited during the soft opening -- are in the front-left corner.
Nice looking produce!
It looks like the flooring and lighting may be left over from Rite Aid, but obviously all the other fixtures are new.
Packaged meats and cold cuts on the back wall.
You can see that the grocery shelving they've installed is very tall, probably to maximize selection in the small space.
Dairy begins on the back wall and continues down the last aisle. Frozen foods are in the second-to-last aisle.
While I certainly couldn't be sure, it's possible these aisle markers are from a closed CTown in East Flatbush, which is just about a mile away. You can see aisle markers of exactly the same design in those pictures. I don't know if the same owners were involved in both stores, though, and it's of course possible the aisle markers are completely new. The rest of the decor and the majority of the fixtures appear to be new. That East Flatbush store is soon to become a Food World.
Deli and seafood -- again, not yet open because the store was still in the soft opening phase -- in the front-left corner. I'm not sure whether the seafood counter has opened yet.
And a look across the front-end. You can see what definitely appears to be Rite Aid flooring across the front here, but they've done an excellent job of freshening up the space and bringing in a lot of selection to the small store.
Opened: 2025
Owner: unknown
Previous Tenants: Rite Aid
Cooperative: Krasdale Foods
Location: 7808 Flatlands Ave, Canarsie, Brooklyn, NY
Photographed: February 11, 2025
A Key Food just a couple blocks away from here is undergoing a renovation, too, so check that out along with this weekend's other posts here!
Those lighted circular fixtures could be recycled from Rite Aid's décor! Here is a post showing that package: https://midsouthretail.blogspot.com/2019/12/rite-aid-union-avenue-memphis-tn.html
ReplyDeleteGood catch! Definitely looks possible. It's hard to say for sure, though, as this decor package (or a similar one) sometimes comes with similar circular hanging signs. I can't for the life of me find a picture right now, but I know I've seen it. I would bet you're right and the fixtures are left over from Rite Aid, now just affixed with new CTown graphics.
DeleteThe circular signs are for sure left over from Rite Aid. Really cool that this place repurposed them rather than tossing them out which would have been a lot easier and cheaper to do. The overall décor is pretty great for a small store minus the lame-o aisle makers. The produce is impressive!
DeleteAgreed! Nice to see independents like this getting creative with decor.
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