GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Meijer celebrated the groundbreaking of its new Bridge Street Market this week, a new 37,000-square-foot, first-of-its-kind urban store format intended to deliver a convenient, fresh neighborhood grocery option. The new small format store will be "focused on fresh-food service," and feature fresh produce, full grocery offerings, a deli, fresh-cut meat, a bakery, along with basic cleaning items and paper products.
"We are eager to share Bridge Street Market with the Grand Rapids community and are excited about what our team will be able to accomplish through this location," President & CEO Rick Keyes said in a company press release. "We believe in the West Side’s heritage and authenticity, and are excited to have a core presence in the heart of such an inspiring part of our city. We think there’s no better place to launch this new neighborhood market than in our hometown and on the West Side."
Keyes also told local news source MLive that the new small format store, initially announced earlier this June, could become a prototype for future stores. At only a fifth the size of its traditional Meijer stores, the new format could signal a shift in company strategy toward convenience-focused shopping.
"Our customers are asking for this," Keyes told the news source. "We think there are a lot of communities that would benefit from a Bridge Street-type market."
According to the company’s press release, the new community grocery store will anchor a development spanning a city block located amidst the city’s current hub of collaboration and mixed-use development, and will reside alongside apartments, a parking deck, and an office and retail building. The mixed-use project commenced with the demolition of the site's original buildings in May, clearing the way for future development.
Will Meijer extend its new format to urban communities across the Midwest? AndNowUKnow will continue to report with updates as they develop.
