The aisles filled immediately at the newly opened Grocery Outlet Store in Los Osos, and as the Chamber of Commerce cut the welcoming ribbon, the cash registers were already singing.
Duane and Malia Cross are the new owners of the local chain store. “We own the business,” Duane Cross said during the hectic Nov. 10 official opening. “It’s a partnership with the corporation, more unique than a franchise.”
Grocery Outlet has been around since 1946, he explained. They practice, “opportunistic buying” of their wares, which they get at a discount and pass along to customers “at a discounted price.”
They also respect and support military personnel and their families, giving them a $3 coupon good for every time they shop at the store, he added. And for the grand opening, they donated a pallet of food stuffs and a check for $1,000 to the SLO County Food Bank.
They both come from the Central Coast. He went to elementary school in Los Osos and Morro Bay and graduated from Templeton High. Malia too graduated from Templeton, Duane said. She was a military kid and moved around a lot growing up. They also both graduated from Cal Poly and he from Cuesta, too.
The store occupies a space that started out as a Williams Bros., Market. It turned into a Vons in the 1990s and was sold to Haggen’s in a massive 146-store deal that ultimately led to Haggen’s bankruptcy and a mass closure of stores. Los Osos was one of six Haggen’s stores in SLO County but was the only one to be shuttered.
The layout is different from the usual market in that produce and meat displays greet you at the door. The store seems bigger, too because of the high ceiling. Duane said the building was completely remodeled after Haggen’s sudden departure in September 2015.
“The layout is unique,” said Duane. “We have produce up front and outside, too. “
The interior is much changed from the old Vons days, with the ceiling opened up and exposed ducting for the HVAC giving it the feel of a warehouse store. The project started last February and with all the licensing and work the remodel took 10 months, he said. “They gutted the whole building. It was a total re-do.”
Based in Emeryville, Calif., Grocery Outlet started in 1946 and is now in the third generation family ownership. It has some 250 stores in Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Washington and California. The company is an “extreme-value” grocer and the fastest growing in the nation, according to a news release.
The new market continues a remarkable rebirth for that shopping center in the middle of town. Starbucks relocated to a bank building that had sat empty for more than a decade. A new hobby shop, dress shop, and a couple of antique-type thrift stores are also now open. And of course there are also stalwarts — Miner’s Hardware, Los Osos Fitness, Rite Aid, Roundtable Pizza, Carlock’s Bakery — with a pet store, Coast Electronics and Volumes of Pleasure Book Store, among others.
