Ludlow residents joined local officials to celebrate the reopening of Shaw’s Supermarket on Main Street Jan. 27. Marji Graf of the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce helpedcut the ribbon with Shaw's President Mike Stigers and local Store Director Darren Williams.
Ludlow — There was plenty of reason to celebrate the grand reopening of the Shaw’s Supermarket on Main Street in Ludlow Jan. 26-27.
For local shoppers in a small retail market, the loss of the supermarket since the Aug. 28 tropical storm and flood created a real challenge. An emergency tent-covered store helped but it wasn’t the same. But now that the story reopened with a fresh new look, customers returned to fill up shopping carts.
Shaw’s officials hosts an invitation-only open house Jan. 26 which was followed by a ribbon-cutting ceremony Jan. 27.
The Ludlow store was severely damaged by flooding in the wake of Tropical Storm Irene in August and has been undergoing repairs since that time.
“Recognizing a need to serve the community surrounding Ludlow, Shaw’s opened a temporary store under a tent in the parking lot just a week after the main store closed,” said Marji Graf, CEO of the Okemo Valley Regional Chamber of Commerce. “The tent store provided local consumers a place to shop while the original grocery store was being restored. The tent successfully served the community until Jan. 16.”
Shaw’s president Mike Stigers joined Ludlow Store Director Darren Williams and Vermont District Manager Dennis Dodge as well as other Shaw’s executives at both events.
In addition, representatives from U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders attended the events.
Representatives from the Vermont Food Bank and American Red Cross also joined in to thank Shaw’s, which helped raise and donate more than $100,000 between the two groups for Irene relief.
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