An empty storefront on a busy stretch of Shaughnessy Street in Port Coquitlam will soon have a new grocery store after independent Donald's Market secured the location early this summer.
Operations manager and co-owner Eric Siu said if renovations to the 7,000 square-foot space go well, the store could be open by the end of the year or sooner.
The latest entry to the competitive grocery store market in the Tri-Cities will make the Shaughnessy Street neighbourhood more walkable and be a destination for PoCo residents looking for locally made food, produce and meats, Siu said.
At its Vancouver and New Westminster stores, Donald's is known for having unusual products as well as organic produce and non-medicated meats in addition to conventional products. Because the company is small, it can bring in products customers ask for, Siu said.
"When ever possible we bring in local products, depending on the price and the quality," Siu said, noting that Olivier's Bread in Port Coquitlam will likely be among the products sold.
The coming of Donald's Market to downtown PoCo where Pharmasave and Bargain Deals were previously located is also good news to the Port Coquitlam Business Improvement Association. President Brad Fenton is welcoming the new business to the empty storefronts and said the timing of the news couldn't be better as the city is still recovering from a fire that burned down six Shaughnessy Street businesses.
In fact, the new Donald's is directly across the street from the burned out store fronts.
Siu said the company settled on PoCo after looking around at other locations. The size of the store and the proximity to other amenities made it attractive, he added.
"We thought it would be a great place," Siu said. "It complemented the liquor store in the back and there's a flower store next door. We really thought we could be a big part of Port Coquitlam there."
He doesn't expect Donald's will be in direct competition with other grocery stores in the area, a few of which, such as SuperValu on Shaughnessy Street, and Safeway at Shaughnessy Station, are located nearby, because it will stock different products.
"We won't be competing directly with them," he said. "We'll be our own entity there."
Siu agreed Donald's will likely be a go-to place for local schools seeking donations for fundraisers, and he said the PoCo store opening will mark the launch of a new slogan and brand for the company.
Donald's Market opened on Hastings Street in 1986 and has since expanded to Commercial Drive and River Market in New Westminster. This would be the company's fourth store and hiring is expected to begin in October.
