Ray's Apple Market Manhattan, Kn
Incorporate the image of apples by creating different ways of eating apples, i.e. the progression of an eaten apple at checkout stands, the peeling of apples, the slicing of apples.
It's quite fitting that for a store that caters to Kansas State University students, and likely their professors as well, ample apple imagery would be used to highlight the recently remodeled Ray's Apple Market in the heart of Manhattan, Kan.
At the core of the vibrant, welcoming, 53,000-square-foot concept store — the cozy design for which was orchestrated by Kansas City, Kan.-based AWG/Design and Décor Source Group - is a neighborhood grocery store that reflects the pride of its home state and the family history of its owner, Mike Floersch, who also owns six other stores within the city limits of Manhattan.
The site of a former ALCO discount store, the interior facility was gutted first, followed by the exterior, along with an addition to accommodate for a larger variety of foods and new features such as a sit-down café area that invites students to meet, study, eat and enjoy quality coffee.
Custom hand-painted graphics are a highlight of the “appealing” interior decor treatment, which features departmental locators painted inside apple peels that run along the walls of the store. Serpentine floor design in the frozen foods section further enhances floor plan symmetry, while a 3-foot-tall-by-7-inch-wide 3-D polyurethane foam coffee cup painted on the café wall replicates a china white coffee cup.
Circular hanging fixtures and wood structures at checkout stands further reinforce the serpentine design element throughout the space, which again employs apples to communicate the brand and achieve high-volume grocery sales.
Among the food department upgrades is a larger deli, which offers made-to-order sandwiches and about 18 kinds of fresh cold salads, produce and dairy/ refrigerated items, whose key constituents — milk and cheese — are now kept behind glass doors.
LED lighting has also been added to most of the food cases, while other eco-friendly lighting has also been added throughout the store, along with more energy efficient HVAC heating and air units.
Open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily, the award-winning Ray's Apple Market offers breakfast, lunch and dinner for customers.