Neighborhood Grocers

NEWS PHOTO • ROBERT CHASE

Food and Drug Mart Manager Pat O'Sullivan with a basket of peppers in the produce section of the store his grandfather opened in 1950.

Friendly, personal service keeps customers coming back to...

Neighborhood grocers

By PETER EPHROSS 

NEWS SPECIAL WRITER _ RETAIL REPORT

Kids grew up buying candy there. New parents have discovered its convenience and service. To all of them, Food and Drug Mart is more than just a store - it’s a part of the neighborhood.

Much has changed along Stadium Boulevard and Packard Street since the O’Sullivan family opened the store in 1950. But their business has remained a steady friend, creating a loyal following unfamiliar to large, impersonal supermarkets.

“If I move away, this is what I’ll miss most,” says Nancy Greenman, a regular Food and Drug Mart shopper who lives nearby.

At first glance, such a neighborhood grocery and pharmacy would seem to be an endangered species, caught between supermarkets and convenience stores.

But a closer look reveals that neighborhood grocers continue to succeed by occupying a niche between small and large: offering more product selection and lower prices than the convenience stores, and more personal service and shorter lines than the big supermarket chains.

General manager Jim O’Sullivan Jr. says Food and Drug Mart competes with stores such as Kroger, Meijer and Busch’s Valu Land by continuing to treat each customer as “a friend of the store.”

There’s also consistency. Even when a small change is made, customers complain about how they can’t find what they want, adds store manager Pat O’Sullivan, Jim O’Sullivan’s brother.

Avoiding generic and store-label products is another draw, says Pat O’Sullivan. “People still trust the brand names,” he says.

Some customers shop at Food and Drug Mart simply because of location. Molly Cleary, a Bums Park resident, shops for “little things” like bagels, newspapers, and prescriptions at Food and Drug Mart, because of its proximity to her Bums Park home.

Cleary adds however, that she does her regular shopping at one of the chains.

“I have four kids, so I couldn’t possibly do all my shopping here,” she says.

Other neighborhood grocers have had to change to survive. At Buster’s, located at 3050 Platt Road, the story is not one of consistency, but of change. Issa Issa bought Buster’s in July when business was down because of competition from chain stores and neglect from the previous owners.

Issa remodeled the store - adding freezers, coolers and shelving, and a new red awning. He also concentrated on keeping the store clean and rotating the products to keep them fresh.

The moves have paid off. Issa says Buster’s business has increased 20 to 25 percent in the few months since he took over.

Customers agree. Martha Wallace, who does most of her grocery shopping at Buster’s, says a combination of prices, quality, and the mom-and-pop environment are the main attractions for her. “It’s like the old home place. I see everyone in the neighborhood,” she says.