Lorain Grocery Outlet opens doors

LORAIN — Lorain has a new discount grocery store. Grocery Outlet, 4415 Leavitt Road, opened its doors at 7 a.m. Thursday, with a grand opening celebration later that morning. The discount grocer, which staff quipped was the "TJ Maxx of grocery stores," sells fresh produce, pantry staples and a rotating list of name-brand products purchased as overstock from other companies. It is a West Coast-based chain that has expanded east in recent years, with Lorain marking its 75th store in the eastern part of the country, Eric DeFrancisco, Grocery Outlet's vice president of sales-merchandising and eastern general manager, said. Each store is independently owned and operated, he said — including the Lorain market, owned by Daniel and Jamie Hess. Daniel Hess thanked the company and the city for the opportunity to open the outlet. "This has been a dream come true in every possible way," Daniel Hess said. His wife agreed. "The outpouring of the community is so overwhelming," Jamie Hess said. "We feel so welcomed." As one of his last acts as Chamber of Commerce president and CEO, Tony Gallo reminisced on how the area near Leavitt Road and Tower Boulevard had exploded with growth over the past 22 years. When he started at the chamber, it was nothing but empty fields, he said. But year after year, the area saw the addition of Lighthouse Commons and its sprawling Walmart Supercenter, Kohl's and Home Depot, and other businesses added along the roadway. He compared the new grocery store to the long-shuttered Sparkle Market of the Lorain Plaza Shopping Center off Oberlin Avenue — a store his mother frequented for its easily walkable size and compact selection of items. "She would have gone (to Grocery Outlet) probably every two days because that's the way she used to shop for groceries," he said with a smile. "... We're excited to see this entire area continue to grow." He said many are excited not only for the grocer's grand opening, but the TJ Maxx planned for the storefront next door. As part of the opening, the Hesses donated $1,000 to Second Harvest Food Bank of North Central Ohio and $1,000 to Church on the North Coast. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.