GRAND HAVEN, Mich. — The local Meijer store is undergoing some major renovations.
According to information that Meijer officials recently presented to Grand Haven Township leaders, the remodeling will cost $3.3 million and take about 18 months to complete.
The changes will include an expanded pet section with larger fish tanks, a new Skechers tower in the shoe department, longer grocery aisles, an expanded alcohol section including more wine and whiskey offerings (similar to Meijer’s Hudsonville store), a larger pharmacy consultation area, and additional self-checkout lanes.
Robin Owczarzak, the store director of the local Meijer location, said she's excited about the changes.
“It's really exciting,” she said.
Owczarzak said the Grand Haven area has a lot of residents who love their animals, so the expanded pet center should be a big hit.
“We know how important our furry friends are in our family,” she said. “Pets is really a growing business and we see the need to have more offerings.”
The store’s fashion area will also see a lot of changes.
“It looks really sharp,” Owczarzak said. “We will see different mannequins on display to help our customers. We will see more displays on how to coordinate tops with bottoms and accessories.”
The nearly 20-year-old store’s grocery aisles will be extended by 16 feet to make room for more product options.
“We're also getting an alcohol reinvention,” Owczarzak said. “We'll be able to offer a bigger selection of wines and we'll have what's called 'A World of Whiskey,' similar to the Hudsonville store.
“Right now, if you were to walk into my store, we have the wine islands and fixtures with pop, soda and liquor,” she continued. “We'll be taking those out. We'll have different kinds of wines and different kinds of liquors. We're really excited about the opportunity to offer more options for the customer to buy.”
The Home section will be more user-friendly and modern, giving a feeling of “home” instead of “store,” Owczarzak said.
The pharmacy area will also undergo a renovation, with a larger consultation room.
“Customers will be able to meet with a pharmacist in a quiet, confidential area to talk about their health needs,” Owczarzak said. “The south side of our pharmacy will extend out. We'll have a bigger pharmacy to focus on customer points.”
Meijer is also putting a strong focus on the Synch Script Program, which will mean fewer trips to the store for pharmacy customers.
“Say you have multiple prescriptions to pick up, but you pick them up at different times of the month,” Owczarzak said. “We would synch it to make sure you're getting the right quantity of pills you're allowed within the prescription.”
The service area will also see upgrades, including a doubling of self-checkout lanes from six to 12.
“I think what the community will be excited about is on the north side we will have 12 of our fast lanes, self-checkouts,” the store director said. “I know the customers love them.”
Shop and Scan options, which were launched last summer, will also be emphasized.
“It's super cool,” Owczarzak said. “You have to have Meijer Mperks. You log into the Meijer app from your smart device. You scan your items as you go through the store and put them in a bag. When you go to one of our checkouts, your phone will have a QR code that will pull up the whole order. You pay, use your coupons and Mperks rewards, and you don't have to wait in line and it's already bagged in your cart.”
The next stop for customers will be their car.
“That's a time savings right there,” Owczarzak said. “It's been working very effectively. Customers seem to love it.”
Other upgrades include new flooring; paint; shelving units and signage; renovated restrooms; and reconfigured deli, bakery and meat/seafood departments.
Joe Hirschmugl, public relations manager for the Meijer Corp., said the Grand Haven remodeling project is one of many store upgrades corporate-wide. He did not know how many Meijer stores are slated for remodeling.
“We've been steadily remodeling stores throughout the years for better customer experience,” he said. “A lot of our customers have shopped our stores for many years. Our goals are to bring our customers a better experience.”
(This story originally appeared in the Grand Haven Tribune.)
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