Wegmans to Enter Yet Another New Market Area
Months after revealing its plans to expand to Delaware and Washington D.C., Wegmans Food Markets Inc. is now making a play for Connecticut. The first Wegmans in the state will be located in Norwalk.
The approximately 95,000-square-foot Wegmans Norwalk store will be located on nearly 11 acres of land off Connecticut Avenue, adjacent to the highly traveled Route I-95. The property is currently occupied by an office complex owned by MBI Inc., which plans to move to new office space before construction of the new Wegmans store begins. A timeline for construction and opening has not yet been determined, as the company is currently seeking municipal approvals for the project.
Wegmans stores are well known for having a European open-air market look and feel, offering thousands of organic options and restaurant-quality prepared food. The two-level Norwalk store will also include a multilevel parking garage.
“Each year, we receive hundreds of requests from residents for a store in Connecticut, so we’re excited to bring Wegmans to Norwalk and to get to know our new neighbors,” said Colleen Wegman, president and CEO of Wegmans. “Even before we open the doors to our new store, we’re committed to making a difference in every community we serve.”
This commitment is supported by Wegmans’ recent No. 1 ranking on People’s 2021 list of “Companies That Care.” The list identifies the top 100 U.S. companies that have demonstrated respect, care and concern for their employees, their communities and the environment. Each year, Wegmans gives back to the local community through food donations, community event sponsorships and competitive-paying jobs.
Great Place to Work and Fortune magazine actually ranked Wegmans No. 1 on its list of the 2021 Best Workplaces in Retail in the Large Company category. This is the sixth consecutive year that the grocer has received the recognition. Some of Wegmans’ more than 50,000 employees chain-wide cited benefits like premium pay on Sundays and holidays, and flexible scheduling. The company also offers tuition assistance through an employee scholarship program. Since the program began in 1984, more than 42,500 Wegmans employees have been awarded scholarships totaling $130 million-plus. In 2021, a record number of 2,502 new recipients received employee scholarships, totaling approximately $5.6 million in tuition assistance for the 2021-22 academic year.
Meanwhile, Wegmans revealed its plans to celebrate the grand opening of its Carlyle-Alexandria store in Virginia at 9 a.m. on May 11. Wegmans Carlyle-Alexandria is an 81,300-square-foot supermarket located at 150 Stovall Street in Carlyle Crossings off Eisenhower Avenue. The new store will employ 450 people in full- and part-time jobs. Job seekers may apply online at jobs.wegmans.com/Carlyle-alexandria or call 571-473-5090 for more information.
Family-owned Wegmans operates 106 stores in New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia, Maryland, Massachusetts and North Carolina. The Rochester, N.Y.-based company is No. 35 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer’s 2021 list of the top retailers of food and consumables in North America.
