Wegmans newest store prepares to open in Central Virginia
MIDLOTHIAN, VA (WWBT) - The finishing touches are going in at the new Wegmans at the Stonehenge Village Shopping Center on Midlothian Turnpike, located at 12501 Stone Village Way.
Doors will open in just days.
"We are ahead of where we should be, even though it may not look that way right now, it's all hands on deck," explains Wegmans' VP of Media Relations, Jo Natale.
This is Wegmans 89th store, and the company says while it prides itself on its products, the most important part of the equation is the employees.
Employees will be working 24 hours a day to make sure Central Virginia's first Wegmans is ready when the doors open Sunday morning.
"Our employees are in the final stages of training, building displays, construction folks are here putting the finishing touches on the store," says Natale.
Like other grocery stores, there will be traditional items with both conventional and organic products, but Wegmans takes pride in its specialty items, premade foods and made-to-order meals.
At this Chesterfield location, there will also be a sit-down restaurant called "The Pub."
And if you can't take the time to take a breather, there's a beer cooler with more than 700 different brews and an extensive wine selection.
While the company is proud of these things, it says its number-one emphasis is on employees, and that's something that has consistently paid off.
"We have been on Fortune Magazine's list of the 100 best companies to work for 19 years," said Natale. "This year, we were ranked number 4 on that list, we've been in the top 10 for many years and we were number 1 in 2005. So, we're very proud of that."
Wegmans received 12,000 applications for this store alone. Of the 550 employees hired, nearly 500 of them are from the area.
"The philosophy has always been to first meet the needs of the employees, so they will, in turn, take care of customers, and it works," she said.
The store's grand opening is at 7 a.m. Sunday. Another Wegmans in Short Pump is set to open in the summer.
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