Big Y Opens Its Doors on Wallingford/Meriden Town Line

Standing near a bustling entrance inside the new Big Y market in Meriden on Thursday, Store Manager Bob Rainville said he was pleased by the crowds that had showed up for the store's first day.

"It's hard to gauge whether it's because of the grand opening, though, or the hurricane coming," he said laughing.

At 11 a.m., dozens of shoppers were trolling the new market, a 55,000 square foot grocery store at 533 South Broad St., near the city's border with Wallingford.

The shop is the newest of Big Y's 61 full-service markets throughout Connecticut and Massachusetts. The chain is headquartered in Springfield, Mass. The family owned corporation started in 1936 with a tiny shop in Chicopee, Mass, said family member and Chief Operating Officer Charles D'Amour.

Second and third generations of the D'Amour family related the market's history at a grand opening event held at 10:30 a.m. in front of the store.

The event had a flag-raising, a performance by Meriden's Antique Veterans, and several speakers, from the company and the city.

Trudy Magnolia of Meriden's Economic Development office told the crowd that when Shop Rite pulled out of the site in the summer of 2010 she was flooded with calls. 

"The first thing everybody wanted was another grocery store," she said, and thanked Big Y for taking over the space.

During the ceremony,  the market's executives called up representatives from each school in town, public and private, and donated $500.00 and a sheet cake to each.

Gina Pellegrino accepted the donation on behalf of Lincoln Middle School, where she is PTSA president and has two children enrolled. She said the donation will be spread over a number of areas the PTSA funds, including fuel for field trip buses.

Donations to the parent-teacher organizations of local schools have decreased dramatically, she said, with the economic decline, so she was grateful for these dollars. 

Following the ceremony Store Manager Rainville said he was happy to employ so many local workers in the midst of a difficult economy.

The shop hired 158 employees from the area, predominantly from Meriden, but also from nearby towns like Wallingford and Cheshire, said Rainville, who lives in Meriden. The store held a  from July 26 to Aug. 6 at the city's Four Points Sheraton.

"It was a different atmosphere," he said of the fair. "People were coming to support their families, not supplement their income."

Some of the shoppers who came in to the Big Y on Thursday were already familiar with the chain, having visited the location in North Haven.

"I love Big Y. I like their meat and seafood – they have seafood other places don’t have," said Jon Petrocelli of Meriden, who was deciding between two different brands of sopressatta salamis inside the store. "They've got good products – A lot of brands with no preservatives, no gluten, no MSG."

Jeannett Hernandez lives about 5 minutes away from the store and decided to check it out.

"Everything looks well organized," Hernandez said, which is good for her because, "Most of the time I come running in to find everything I need."

Big Y Meriden is open from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m, seven days a week. Its phone number is 203-237-5244.