Meet The Owners: Homestead Grocery & Deli

is a place where everybody who enters is a part of the family.

Ralph and Janet Melchionda purchased the business from the previous owners in August 2009, who had already been in business for around 30 years.

Ralph Melchionda had already managed a small supermarket chain for many years, and wanted to transform The Homestead into an affordable alternative to the large chain grocery store.

The store has a great menu of sandwiches, dinners and more on top of their grocery selection and other products. This neighborhood destination has seven employees and lies right next to both the town’s high school and middle school.

Amherst Patch sat down with Ralph and Janet Melchionda to talk about their business.

Patch: Why did you purchase The Homestead?

Ralph: We were looking for a business to buy, and we thought the homestead was perfect. It has a great location near a major high school in a very nice town. It is a great neighborhood. I wanted to start my own business that would be competitive with supermarkets. Plus, this is a lot more fun than working at one of those stores. When I was in a management position, I had to work with 180 employees and it was like doing battle every day. Now, I come to work and see my friends each day and can help each one personally.

Patch: What sort of culture do you want to maintain at The Homestead?

Janet: We want everybody to be a part of the family. We have so many friends come in and we look forward to them every day. When we don’t see them, we worry about them. I especially like seeing former Souhegan students come back from college and order the same thing after so many years. It is like have thousands of children, and everybody has their favorite customers here. We have some great kids who come in here and have even worked here.

Patch: What is it like owning a business with your wife?

Ralph: We will have been married thirty years come September, and still going strong. It is fun working together because we each have our own responsibilities that rarely overlap. Janet handles the kitchen on top of her mom duties, while I handle other parts of the business. We help each other out and constantly communicate. We are here together pretty much all day and having our own areas of responsibility is a big help.

Patch: What are some of the challenges of owning a convenience store?

Ralph: There are always daily challenges to deal with. As economic conditions continue to worsen, it is my challenge to provide what my customers need at a cost they can afford. We try and lower prices instead of increasing them that is the thing to do in an economy such as this. For example, we want to make sure that staple items such as milk stay at a reasonable price.

Patch: How do you make the day fun?

Janet: Every day is different. People come in and tell us what is going on in their lives, and there are different stories every day. I love the regular customers and it is so funny what people’s usual food choices are. We have one customer who gets his meatball sandwiches with pickles and mayonnaise. Our kids also work here every day, which makes for nice family time. Plus, they have to listen to me here (laughs), but it is a blast.

Patch: What are the plans for the future?

Ralph: We offer a great selection here, but we definitely have plans to do a small renovation of the store. I want to offer a meat and seafood counter that would feature marinated meats, steaks, hamburger and fresh seafood products. We really want to make it happen, but the economy makes things tough. In light of our country’s economic troubles, I am happy with the progress we have made with this store. I cannot wait for the economy to bounce back so we can go forward.

Visit their website here.