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Innovative new neighborhood grocery store will open at Gateway next summer
Sunflower Markets, LLC, a division of Supervalu, announced Dec. 9, 2005, that it is launching a brand new grocery store format in Columbus at the new South Campus Gateway development adjacent to The Ohio State University.

“We were looking for a very special neighborhood to build our first store,” said John Sturm, director of Sunflower Markets. “We believe South Campus Gateway is a perfect fit. It is uniquely positioned to serve the university, Short North, and downtown.”

The Sunflower store will be located at 18 E. Ninth Ave., very close to the new Barnes & Noble-The Ohio State University Bookstore and will have convenient access to parking and public transportation.

Sunflower Market will emphasize low prices on natural and organic foods, especially produce, dairy, and meat. “Shoppers are asking for more wholesome and natural foods without sacrificing flavor or paying too much,” Sturm said. “Our goal is simply to offer great tasting and wholesome foods at prices that make them affordable to everyone.”

“We are extremely pleased to welcome Sunflower Market as one of the retail anchors for South Campus Gateway,” said Terry D. Foegler, president of Campus Partners, which has developed the Gateway project.

“From Gateway’s earliest planning, students and neighborhood residents in public meetings and surveys expressed a strong interest in a grocery,” Foegler said. “We believe the excellent organic products and competitive prices at Sunflower Market will appeal broadly to students, university employees and residents of the surrounding neighborhoods, as well as providing another important and unique destination anchor for Gateway.”

Among Sunflower Market’s features:
  • Produce departments that will offer the widest variety of organic produce available in the market. The department itself is being specially designed so that the produce remains at peak freshness. “We’ve got something really special planned for produce,” says Sturm. “There’s never been anything like it in Columbus.”
  • A meat department that features only natural, hormone free meat. “There is a big demand for higher quality, all-natural meat, but prices are just too high. We plan on offering natural meats at prices that are much closer to conventional meat.”
  • Sunflower will offer freshly baked organic breads, all-natural pastries, and an array of freshly prepared sandwiches, salads, and soups. “The baked goods are is mouth-watering. Plus, all the sandwiches and salads are made with organic greens and all the bread and pastries are made with organic flour.”

The store will create 36 new jobs for the community. “We are going to have a high energy team in this store that really knows the products and spends a lot of time helping customers,” Sturm said. “It’s going to be a fun place to work and a fun place to shop.”

“We worked hard to find the right operator for a grocery at Gateway,” Foegler said. “It’s very unusual in the Midwest to locate a grocery in a mixed-use building with structured parking. The leadership of Sunflower Market shares our vision of the market potential of these under-served urban neighborhoods.”
 

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