Mariano’s opening Greektown store with luxury atmosphere, high-end goods
BY SANDRA GUY Business Reporter sguy@suntimes.com October 25, 2012 10:48PM
Bob Mariano, CEO of the new Mariano's grocery store, 40 S. Halsted Street in Greektown, Thursday, October 25, 2012. I John H. White~Sun-Times
Updated: October 26, 2012 4:19PM
Shoppers at Mariano’s grocery store opening Tuesday in Greektown will get to design their own craft-beer six-pack, slurp down oysters at an oyster bar and take cooking lessons from visiting chefs in the Milwaukee company’s most creative efforts yet to serve the Chicago market.
“We continue to refine the concept because customers talk to us about what they want,” said Bob Mariano, owner of parent company Roundy’s Supermarkets, based in Milwaukee.
Mariano, a Chicago native who spent 27 years working his way to the top job at Dominick’s, first told the Sun-Times in February 2008 that he wanted to build as many as 25 full-service grocery stores in the Chicago area within the next several years.
The Greektown store is the eighth, and five more are in the works.
This week, he said Mariano’s could have 30 stores here in the next five years, including a potential site on Chicago’s South Side.
“Chicago customers are very sharp, and they want value, choices and high-quality food,” Mariano said. “Time is critical to them, so they want an all-in-one shopping experience.”
The Greektown store at 40 S. Halsted will employ 450 and attract a diverse array of shoppers in age and demographics, making it a perfect place to try new ideas, he said. The store anchors the new Gateway retail mall and is across the street from a Dominick’s.
Among the 71,132-square-foot Mariano’s store features are:
♦ A walk-in beer cooler, stocked primarily with craft beers, where shoppers can pick their own six-pack variety.
♦ The Vero cafe at the main entrance at Halsted and Monroe with gelato, coffee and wine bar, lounge seating and a fireplace.
♦ Classroom kitchen that will offer special events and cooking classes by chefs.
♦ A wine nook where people can enjoy a glass of wine.
♦ A large floral department and European-style produce displays.
♦ An energy-efficient water and electric system.
♦ 150 parking spots.
Jon Hauptman, partner with Willard Bishop retail-food consultancy in Barrington, said Mariano’s is filling an unmet need for a neighborhood store with a high-quality deli and bakery; a greater variety of unique items, including ethnic foods; a customized business in making birthday and special-occasion cakes, and an expansive offering of salads and prepared foods.
“They provide an appealing shopping experience for perishables, and their prices in their store brands are lower than many in the Chicago market,” Hauptman said.
That gives shoppers the choice of picking low-price staples alongside higher-end offerings, he said.
The extra store touches show how competitive the Chicago supermarket arena has become now that Wal-mart, Costco, Target, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Save-A-Lot and others are operating here, Hauptman said.
“The competition has raised the bar. Grocery stores now have to figure out where they stand apart,” he said.
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