Food Lion celebrates completed revamp of 142 Charlotte-area stores
SALISBURY, N.C. — Food Lion on Tuesday announced that it would be unveiling a new shopping experience for its customers at 142 stores in the greater Charlotte area on Oct. 12. The company said it has invested $215 million this year to remodel stores, lower prices, hire hundreds of new associates and give back to local communities.
“Food Lion has been a proud neighbor in the Charlotte community for 60 years," Food Lion president Meg Ham said. “As we near our 60th anniversary, we spent the year making significant investments in our stores, customers, associates and communities to create a new grocery shopping experience. Now, customers can easily find fresh, quality products at affordable prices, delivered with caring, friendly service every time they shop. We invite everyone to come out and experience the fresh, new changes we've made and let us know what they think.”
To celebrate the grand reopenings, Food Lion will be giving away $10 gift cards and thermal tote bags to the first 100 customers at the locations after the 7:45 a.m. ribbon cutting ceremony. Changes to the stores include full remodels with new signage and product grouping, lower prices, an expanded assortment across all departments. The company said it improved checkout technology and added associates to improve customer service. It is also testing a walk-in garden cooler in 20 area stores’ produce sections.
“With every change we make, we always have our customers at heart," added Ham. "That's why we not only invested in our stores, we also invested in promoting great associates and hiring promising new talent. It's also why, as part of our grand re-opening celebrations, we're partnering again with Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina to help end hunger in the towns and cities we serve. Giving back to our communities is something we're just as passionate about as serving our customers every day in our stores."
The company also announced Tuesday that it had donated a mobile food pantry, valued at $100,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina. The food pantry will bring food to people in need throughout the 19 counties that the food bank serves.
"Food Lion has been a tremendous partner for our food bank, and without their support, we would not be able to serve the thousands of clients we feed each year,” Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina CEO Kay Carter said. “We're very excited about this mobile pantry, which will enable our agency to expand our school feeding programs as well as deliver food to areas in Charlotte traditionally underserved by feeding agencies. We can always count on Food Lion to meet our needs to help fight hunger.”
The donation was part of Food Lion’s goal to provide 500 million meals to individuals and families in need by the end of 2020. This has included a $1.5 million commitment to build a new warehouse at Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina.