Grocery stores adjust to changing times
ESCANABA — As coronavirus continues to sweep the nation, representatives of local grocery stores spoke about how their businesses have been affected by the pandemic.
At Elmer’s County Market in Escanaba, General Manager Rod Stende said things have been going well at his store for the most part.
“Food-wise, it’s been kind of on and off, but we’ve been in pretty good shape,” he said.
Business at Elmer’s has tended to spike when an announcement related to coronavirus is made — for example, the announcement of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” executive order last week. Sales have generally slowed down in the aftermath of these announcements.
Elmer’s has made changes to its checkout lanes in response to coronavirus.
“We’ve put sneezing guards between the customer and the cashier,” Stende said.
While it was previously open 24 hours a day, Elmer’s has temporarily changed its hours — it is currently open from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. each day, with the hours of 6 a.m. to 8 a.m. on Wednesdays being reserved for senior citizens to do their grocery shopping. The store is being thoroughly sanitized during the hours it is closed.
Shoppers at Elmer’s have had the pandemic on their minds, as well. Escanaba resident Ashley Rogers was at the store recently to buy frozen foods, meat and fresh vegetables.
“I am not hoarding — just getting what I need,” she said.
Though she felt the current situation has not had much of an impact on her grocery shopping habits, Rogers appreciated that Michigan’s government has taken steps to limit coronavirus’ spread.
“I’m glad that we are on lockdown right now to help slow the spread, and I think if everybody does their part, we’ll get over it sooner rather than later,” she said.
Mike Gardner of Gladstone said he was at Elmer’s shopping for milk and other essentials.
“I didn’t stock up — whenever I need it, I just go get it,” he said of his shopping routine.
However, Gardner said the coronavirus pandemic has been “pretty crazy.”
“I never thought it would ever happen,” he said.
Meijer has taken a number of steps to deal with the coronavirus pandemic, as well. In a press release issued last week, the retailer announced its plans to install Plexiglas shields at checkout lanes to provide additional protection for employees and customers.
Additionally, Meijer has suspended the use of reusable bags by customers (except for in its Shop & Scan program), stopped accepting beverage container returns at its Michigan stores, marked X’s six feet apart in areas such as lines for checkout, pharmacy and service desk counters, and temporarily removed “Sandy the Pony,” a mechanical horse children can ride, from the front of its stores. Meijer’s stores — which were open 24 hours a day — are now open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m., with dedicated shopping times for senior citizens and customers with chronic health conditions on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 to 8 a.m. and for essential service workers and Meijer employees on Mondays and Wednesdays from 7 to 8 a.m.
Smaller stores have also been impacted by coronavirus. At Sav-Mor IGA in Escanaba, sales were high during the early stages of the pandemic.
“Everyone (was) kind of panicking there and stocking up on the essentials,” co-owner Craig Carter said.
Over the last week or so, Carter said business at the store had gone “a tick down.” On the other hand, usage of delivery and curbside pickup services has increased.
Carter said his business’ relatively small size has served as an asset lately.
“It’s not as crowded in our store — we’re a neighborhood store,” he said.
In response to coronavirus, Sav-Mor has adjusted its hours. While the store had been open until 11 p.m. on weekends and 10 p.m. on weekdays, it is now open until 8 p.m. daily. The early closing has allowed for shelves to be restocked at the store and for the store to be fully sanitized.
Along with this, Sav-Mor employees have been instructed to clean the store whenever possible during the day.
“It’s in our heads to do it every chance we get,” Carter said.
Pat’s Foods IGA in Gladstone saw a pattern similar to that experienced by other area grocery stores over the past few weeks.
“It got crazy busy for a while. As soon as the governor shut things down, we had … close to record sales,” Evening Supervisor Scott Ettenhofer said, noting the store’s busiest period started around March 16 and continued for a week or so.
By the end of last week, things had slowed down at Pat’s Foods. According to Ettenhofer, sales at the store were steady during the day, but nights could be “pretty dead.”
Pat’s Foods’ most popular items have included toilet paper, meat, eggs and canned foods, among other items.
“We were out of bread for a while,” Ettenhofer said.
The store has shut down its bottle bins and adjusted its hours in response to coronavirus, as well. As of Sunday, it will be open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.