Two more major grocery retailers in our region are giving over some early set aside time for elderly and vulnerable customers to shop, away from the chaotic masses. Roger’s Foodland on Hollywood Road in St. Joseph, and Martin’s Super Markets in St. Joe and Stevensville are joining the likes of Dollar General and others in offering up some time to the senior population.
Roger’s issued the alert this afternoon on their Facebook page with this message:
Beginning Thursday March 19, 2020 we will be changing our hours to 7am – 7pm to allow us to be able to increase our cleaning and restocking times. We will dedicate the first hour of business every day to allow our vulnerable customers to shop; which would include seniors, those with disabilities and those with underlying health issues. This policy will be strictly enforced and in effect until further notice.
We would also like to thank our amazing customers for their patience and understanding that we will be out of items. This is a new situation for all of us and we are all working hard to make sure we can get groceries available to you.
Please share this notice and communicate with those in your life that may not have access to social media.
Thank you again,
The Roger’s Foodland Family
Meanwhile, Martin’s Super Markets, a part of the SpartanNash retail chain is reserving time for older adults, pregnant women, and immunocompromised store guests.
SpartanNash and its family of retail stores will set aside time twice per week for such store guests who are most at risk of contracting coronavirus (COVID-19).
Reserved hours will be every Tuesday and Thursday from 7 to 9 am.
Including the Martin’s Super Markets in St. Joseph and Stevensville, SpartanNash operates more than 150 stores in nine states. SpartanNash stores include:
- Family Fare
- Martin’s Super Markets
- D&W Fresh Market
- VG’s Grocery
- Dan’s Supermarket
- SunMart
- Family Fresh Market
- ValuLand
- Supermercado Nuestra Familia
- No Frills
- Forest Hills Foods
- Ada Fresh Market
- Econofoods
- Pick’n Save
- Dillonvale IGA
Executive Vice President and General Manager, Corporate Retail Tom Swanson says, “SpartanNash and our family of retail stores are committed to the well-being and safety of our family of associates, customers and communities, as well as supporting health officials and government leaders to contain the virus,” adding, “We are enacting these reserved hours to help protect our most vulnerable store guests, and we are asking our other customers to observe these hours for those most at risk in our local communities.”
Swanson says, “We know that many want to keep their neighbors safe and healthy at the same time, and we know that they also are anxious about the availability of many high-demand products. I am extremely proud of our associates, who continue to work diligently to ensure our neighbors have access to the food, medicine and household supplies they need. We are also grateful to our many store guests who have taken the time to thank them personally or share positive experiences on social media. We are honored to have been the trusted food provider our communities have counted on for over 100 years.”
In addition to the reserved store hours, SpartanNash retail stores have also implemented several other changes to store operations, including adjusting operating hours for most stores previously open 24 hours. Effective March 17th, operating hours at those locations will be 6 am to midnight daily (check your stores’ website for current store hours).
Stores suspended service at self-serve areas, including salad bars, soup bars and donut cases. Those items can be purchased in prepackaged containers, made fresh every day by SpartanNash retail associates with the highest cleanliness and food safety standards. Café areas have also been closed and all sampling has been stopped.
SpartanNash retail locations have instituted even greater cleaning and sanitation measures. In addition to daily cleaning procedures, high-touch surfaces – such as food service counters, checkout lanes, conveyor belts, fuel pump handles, pin pads and touch screens – are being cleaned and sanitized at least every 30 minutes.
