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Alaskan and Proud grocery store closed Saturday and reopened Monday as Foodland IGA.
Seattle-based Myers Group announced its decision to take over the lease of the grocery space at Juneau’s Foodland Center at the end of August. A week or so later the grocer opened the doors to its new space and started stocking shelves with a shipment of inventory.
“We took what should have been a six week process and condensed it into three weeks,” Tyler Myers president of Myers Group said.
Myers said Juneau has given him a great welcome so far.
“We’ve come into many communities before and we’ve never had anything like we are experiencing here,” Myers said.
Alaskan and Proud owners, Williams Inc., announced the September closure of its Juneau grocery in April. For much of the time since then it was unknown if anyone would take over the space. After months of uncertainty, the grocery space was closed for only a day.
The grocer took Sunday to stock shelves and switch over some of the electronics.
Myers said all of the employees who wanted to stay remain in their positions. Few employees, if any, decided to leave, he said.
A group of 30 locals brought their instruments by the story to play the store employees a tune, Myers said.
Customers will notice the shelves fill over the next few days.
The Foodland deli fires up Tuesday morning for its first day under new ownership. Myers said he trusts the institutional knowledge of his deli and meat counter managers to make sure customers find the products and menu to which they’ve grown accustomed. However, customers can also expect new, unique items on the shelves, coolers and hot counter from day one.
Myers said customers who had shopped for the Western Family brand can find similar products in the Equaline and IGA brand lines. Customers will find familiar products on the shelves, he said. However, over the next three to four months the store’s new manager, Jeremy Schoonover, will adjust the inventory to meet the requests of the community.
“He will listen to what people say they prefer and you will see the store evolve,” Myers said. “Every single community will have a feeling of what they want.”
Schoonover has worked with Myers Group for 18 years and has helped open several stores already. Myers said Schoonover will get the store running smooth and then return to his family down south, opening up the potential for a current employee to fill the manager position. Myers often promotes from within, he said.
Myers said he was surprised to find that some of Foodland’s new products are less expensive than similar items under previous ownership. He said he expects prices for most goods to drop some thanks to Myers Group’s supplier.
Foodland IGA customers won’t notice major aesthetic changes right off the bat. Some signage will change due to new products, but a major remodel is not expected for another six months or so, Myers said.
How was the first day open for business?
“When people show up with a band, we’ve probably had 10 people send flowers,“ Myers said, “how could you not say that the first day was anything but maybe the best day of my career?”
• Contact reporter Russell Stigall at 523-2276 or at russell.stigall@juneauempire.com.
Comments (23)
Add commentWelcome to Juneau
We're happy you're here.
Price of milk was up 20%
Saturday as A&P, a gallon of Darigold 1% milk was $4.39, on Monday, the same gallon (expires 9/25) was $5.15.
I will be keeping an eye on your prices.....
Prices
I really hope IGA decreases their prices. A&P got away with gouging us for far to long.
BJ feel free to spend that
BJ feel free to spend that extra 20% driving out to the valley for milk. The rest of us are thrilled to have the shelves being restocked!
Welcome, IGA!! So excited to have you!
Love the ignorance above on pricing
So A & P was price gouging?
They went out of business! Could not make enough profit to make running the store worth their time. Maybe they should have charged more. The expectation of communism in this town is appalling.
Welcome Myers Group to Juneau. Hope you are successful at making money and running your business so we can enjoy your being here. Great having private capital investing in our town. Great job band members for demonstrating the goodness in our community.
Can't wait to buy some beef!
There are a lot of people who
There are a lot of people who work downtown but live north. I'm one. I pass all the grocery stores on the way home, so price does make a difference to me, As does selection and quality. If I can save several dollars on every trip by stopping at Walmart or Safeway (or the others), then I will. While a locally-owned store may garner some local loyalty, what's the difference between stores based in Arkansas, Washington, Oregon, or another outside location? Prices matter, and while I wouldn't classify the previous prices as "gouging," they were certainly high enough that I did not routinely shop there for staples.
Welcome
It is good to have the Meyers Group here.
Anything bjfluetsch says is going to be negative...
He is a pompous a**
gee fishy
Is the math too difficult so you resort to name calling fishy? You should fit in well with the rest of the anonymous illiterates that post here.
Profit?
It's not that A&P couldn't make it and yes they went out of business, due to Gary Rossinburger's greediness.
Just look at how Super Drug had to down size due to the increasing rent costs...
And then ultimately having to sell of their pharmacy to Walmart
Welcome IGA - thank you for opening a store in downtown Juneau
Welcome Meyers Group to Juneau and thank you for opening your store in our downtown. I for one will stop in many mornings after my work out at the downtown gym next door and you can count on my continued service. Also thank you for keeping the Foodland employees who chose to stay that really helps our community and working families.
Agree with most -
That people who work and live downtown welcome IGA. Some things are cheaper at other stores, but the quality was better at Foodland for some items. For example, Kale at Fred Meyer is always in the middle of the store, not cooled or watered, and always limp and icky.
I think we are lucky that we live in such a contained area that you can shop a couple of different stores on your way home for the items you like. Every store is not going to have the best quality and the lowest price or the 'right' brand on everything.
There are already a couple of new items at Foodland I think will be nice changes, and as long as Jeremy Schoonover is willing to keep in stock my favorite ice cream
(Ciao Bella - the Belgian Chocolate is devine, the Passionfruit sorbet and Blackberry Cabernet sorbet are both amazing - and they have other flavors I'd love to see - - -http://ciaobellagelato.com/) and some of the soft cheeses I like, (so far just hard cheeses in the case) I'll still shop there.
Also, Kudos for keeping the staff, who work hard and are always helpful. It sounds like the change will be beneficial for them.
It's great to see people are
It's great to see people are worried about price first and foremost. It's why Walmart rules, and the same people who shop at Walmart blame the politicians for "exporting our jobs overseas". We've made the choice that cheaper is better. We don't know why, it just is.
Keep buying on the cheap until Walmart is the only store in town, but keep paying your monthly bills for your cellphone, cable television, and everything else you use the money you save on the cheaper groceries at Walmart, because the same people are making those devices, too. Our standard of living now depends on overseas workers we love to complain about as many are idled here by unemployment.
Thanks to IGA for coming to downtown Juneau. I'll shop there, regardless of the price, if they have what I need, maintain their employees long term, and provide good service. The rest of you keep telling yourself it pays to drive from N. Douglas to Walmart to save $10 on groceries. BP loves you.
Walmart
It is , and has been Walmart's goal to run all the other local businesses out of business. That is what they have done in almost the cities and towns they opened stores in.
Price isn't everything.....
I'll buy Diet Coke at Walmart, because it's the same thing and it's cheaper. But overall, their produce is very limited, and the clothing items for sure are very poorly made - - - A $5 shirt is not a deal if it doesn't survive one washing.
At some point, there is a break between quality and cost, and most people are willing to pay more for something that is of better quality.
Glad to have a store
Glad that William's is gone and glad we have a store downtown. A&p was like a giant convenience store. It didn't have the feel as though ownership really knew how to run a store. Of course, William's has closed his stores in Haines, klawock and now Juneau so I guess you could say he doesnt know how to run a successful grocery chain. Rumor mill is that the Foodland owners cut the rent in half to make it reasonable for Myers. Hope that's true so they can make a go of it.
Welcome IGA
Very glad to have a grocer downtown. It was a close call and I will be a loyal shopper. Doesn't mean I don't shop at other stores but living downtown means I will shop at Foodland.
Welcome IGA
Very glad to have a grocer downtown. It was a close call and I will be a loyal shopper. Doesn't mean I don't shop at other stores but living downtown means I will shop at Foodland.
I thought they were overpriced BEFORE!!
But now they are astronomically expensive. Got sticker shock just walking in the door. Deli breakfast combo jumped from $6 a lb. to $8 a lb., a 33% increase. I previously limited shopping there due to their overpicing, and usually only went in for a quick breakfast or lunch item because they were convenient. Now I will be limiting myself even more, if I shop there at all. There's something wrong when even the convenience stores are cheaper, Myers group obviously saw a plum ripe for the picking, no wonder they moved so fast, they have a captive customer base and can charge whatever they want while they thumb their nose at all the Townies.
Crying over sour milk
Unfortunately my first experience was not positive. Went to grab a gallon of milk Sunday, closed for inventory. Went again on Monday, all they had was quarts for $1.89 each. So I bought one. Poured some in my coffee Tuesday morning, tasted funny, turns out the milk was sour!
Hope its all uphill from here... as a townie (with kids! didn't someone say we don't have kids???), I'm happy to have a grocery nearby.
mini Costco?
When I ran out of milk the other day, I stopped in and found...Kirkland Signature brand. For more than what Costco charges. After that experience, I remain skeptical. If they plan to stock shelves with Costco products, why wouldn't I just go to Costco?
Good grief, a little patience!
They aren't even unpacked yet! I figure I'll give them a month before I make a judgement - see what is new. See how the prices shake out (who knows if the first shipment might have glitches in pricing? Or they might have other brands coming?) and take a breath before I start jumping down their throats.
I did make myself a spreadsheet of items I normally buy, and figured some rainy October Sunday morning I'll go around and price check the stuff I buy for myself.
Lunch
I went there for my normal lunch from the deli, i bought the same things i almost always buy. Except this time i splurged and added a normal size candy bar to my purchase. i was pleasantly surprised to find that i had paid almost 3 bucks LESS than i normally paid for the same things i normally buy. I was surprised enough to do a double take on my receipt to make sure the attentend didnt forget something, but it was all there and cheaper.
As a Valley resident who commutes downtown everyday for work, I am very thankful that the store remained the same. Thanks IGA