The retail giant is refreshing the store, which opened in 2011, because it wants to provide value to its customers, according to Kroger spokeswoman Jenifer Moore.
“We always listen to customer feedback, what they want in their store, what products they want, because that’s important to us to make sure that we are providing a great shopping experience,” Moore told this news outlet Wednesday. “Part of this remodel was to widen the opportunity to provide new amenities for the customers and also to bring them new products.”
An official ribbon-cutting for the store is scheduled for 8 a.m. Friday. Centerville Mayor Brooks Compton and other city, county and business officials will be on hand.
During the grand re-opening event, Kroger will celebrate the launch of Booker’s Soul Food Starters in Ohio stores. The female and minority-owned, Ohio-based company is one of five companies nationwide to win the grocer’s Go Fresh & Local Supplier Accelerator program, which launched in 2021 with a goal of highlighting small growers and retailers in the grocery space.
Soul Food Starters is a brand of all-natural seasoning mixes that allows customers to experience and prepare personalized portions of traditional Southern and African-American family dishes.
“Over the past two years, we’ve had to pivot and cook more at home,” Moore said. “If you were a family that did not traditionally cook at home all the time, it was completely new for you ... so (with) this particular product ... if you don’t know how to cook from scratch, you can use these seasoning mixes to start that process.”
Booker’s Soul Food Starters founder Claude Booker will be on hand at Friday’s event to greet customers and answer their questions about his products.
In collaboration with Efficient Collaborative Retail Marketing and RangeMe, Kroger reviewed more than 1,000 applications, choosing 15 finalists to participate in a pitch competition to earn a spot in Kroger’s new initiative, the company said.
Other stores are either in the midst of renovations or set for them to occur in the near future. Kroger should complete a “refresh” of its Cornerstone location in Centerville by early fall, Moore said. That store opened in 2017.
Renovations of Kroger’s Fairborn and Huber Heights location are planned but a start date is yet to be determined, she said.
IF YOU GO
Kroger will celebrate the store refresh Friday, July 29 through Sunday, July 31 with giveaways, fresh product samples and more. Numerous activities are scheduled.
Friday
- 8 a.m.: Official ribbon cutting ceremony
- 8 a.m. to 10 a.m.: Radio remote with promotional giveaways, including four $50 Kroger gift cards
- 9 a.m. to noon: Go Fresh and Local Launch and product sampling of Booker’s Soul Food Sides
- 10 a.m. to noon.: 700WLW retired morning show host and radio personality Jim Scott
- 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 1 to 3 p.m.: Cincinnati Circus performer
- 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.: Free Degree deodorant samples
- $10 Kroger gift card for the first 300 customers, grand re-opening enter to win giveaways for a chance to win tickets to the Newport Aquarium, Cincinnati Museum, Cincinnati Zoo, the Kroger Aquatic Center at The Heights passes and a Cincinnati Reds Basket.
Saturday:
- 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 1 to 3 p.m.: Cincinnati Circus performer
- Celsius Energy Drink for the first 300 customers and grand re-opening enter to win giveaways for a chance to win tickets to the aforementioned attractions.
Sunday:
- 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and again from 1 to 3 p.m.: Cincinnati Circus performer
- Texas Nuts for the first 300 customers and grand re-opening enter to win giveaways for a chance to win tickets to the aforementioned attractions.
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