Stop & Shop
Open: 1996 - 2024
It's time to return to one of the Stop & Shop stores that closed in late 2024 -- this one in central Massachusetts, just outside Worcester. The Shrewsbury store opened in the early 1990s as an Edwards, not a Shaw's as I had originally theorized (thank you to everyone who explained the Edwards history to me!). Around 1996 or the late 90s, it was converted to Stop & Shop, which closed in 2024. The store is still vacant with no apparent indications of what's to come, but it's possible there's a new tenant lined up.
For one, the store isn't advertised as available for lease anywhere that I can find online nor was there any space available signage on the building itself. The Citizens Bank, which originally was inside the supermarket, is now operating from a small van parked along the front walkway of the store -- which you can see in the first picture. I would imagine that that's an arrangement better suited to a short-term transition while another tenant moves into the supermarket space than a long-term one, but I can't find anything that says that for certain. It does seem strange, though, that months after the store closed, the space wouldn't be advertised for lease if a new tenant hadn't been found.
The last remaining remnant of Stop & Shop I could find outside was the thank you for your business poster from the store's closure in one of the front windows. The windows are very thoroughly papered over, but I managed to get just one shot of the store's interior which gives us yet another clue that some other tenant might be already preparing to move in...
Open: 1996 - 2024
Owner: Ahold Delhaize
Previous Tenants: Edwards (closed 1996)
Cooperative: none
Location: 539-571 Boston Tpk, Shrewsbury, MA
Photographed: February 7, 2025
Notice that the department signage and aisle markers have actually been removed inside. (At least two department signs should be visible on the back wall.) It's certainly possible these signs were removed by Stop & Shop to send to an older location for a cheap, quick update, but those signs were covered in fruit-slice logos -- which are now outdated since Stop & Shop uses the traffic light logo now. It seems like more than a bit of a stretch to say that they'd be reusing the department signs elsewhere when they have the wrong logo on them. So if those signs point to a new tenant moving in -- and that's a big if -- what operator might want this supermarket? The fact that the fixtures all appear to remain inside makes me think it'll stay a supermarket if there is a new tenant, but there are already a lot of supermarkets within a very short distance -- Shaw's, Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Market Basket, Price Chopper, Wegmans, and even another Stop & Shop. A Big Y is set to move into a former Stop & Shop just east of here. That doesn't exactly leave many options as to who might be interested in moving in here. This has left me with more questions than answers, so we'll just have to wait and see. (The Stop & Shop that closed in Worcester remains vacant and up for lease.) Meanwhile, check out this weekend's other posts!
I think seeing a bank van in a parking lot like that is a new one for me!
ReplyDeleteMe too -- at least seeing it in person; I've heard about it. I'm familiar with stores that, when they've closed temporarily for renovation or something, have moved the pharmacy to a trailer or van in the parking lot too.
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