In a nutshell
Upmarket grocery-focused supermarket with a reputation for quality, taste and good ingredients. This store brings their produce to life as well as showcasing their fishmonger, butchery and food preparation experiences. This is their first Manhattan store (there is a larger one in Brooklyn's Navy Yards.
In their words
"Helping people live healthier, better lives through exceptional food
Customers tell us they choose Wegmans for the helpful people in our stores, the delicious meals from our chefs, and the freshest ingredients possible. By offering choice, quality, and value in every aisle, we hope to make your shopping experience a genuine pleasure. Building relationships and helping people are at the core of what we do."
Brand Background
Wegmans, a family-owned supermarket chain established in 1916, has built a reputation for customer service, product quality, and employee satisfaction. The company is known for its large-format stores offering a wide range of products, including an extensive selection of prepared foods. Wegmans has consistently ranked among the top companies to work for in the United States. The brand's approach to grocery retail focuses on creating a food destination, featuring in-store dining options, cooking classes, and knowledgeable staff. Wegmans' expansion into urban markets, including its first Manhattan location, represents an adaptation of its traditionally suburban-focused strategy to changing consumer preferences and urban demographics.
Visit Field notes
Newly opened, the ground floor is styled as a high-end food market, with stalls and stores for different cuisines. More Eataly than Whole Foods. The basement is a joy of beautifully-arranged fresh produce, with a Japanese/US fishmonger and artisanal butcher as highlights. Restaurants are opening in late 2024/early 2025 on the ground floor to take advantage of the corner location and windows.
Commentators have enthusiastically compared the food hall to that of Harrods or Fortnum & Mason in London, and while that may be overly enthusiastic it is certainly novel to have expert and high-quality food at this scale. For example, in the basement fishmongers, you not only have the fresh fish to choose, but can then choose the method of preparation including sushi cuts. See the Gallery for images of the instructions and options. Allied to the on-site gourmet food preparation for eat at home, and the on-site dining, this is an accessible foodie destination. Of final note is the focus on staff - the Wegman 'family'. Throughout there is an emphasis on skills, employment experience and the benefits of teamwork. The positioning is at the opposite end to the vac-packed, portioned efficiency of a Wholefoods, for example.
Checkout
- The expertise on show in the basement butchers and fishmongers (in particular how the fishmonger can process your fish the American or Japanese ways)
- The main floor food stations with their bulk preparation and vac-pac production. This is either for take-home or to each on-premises at the bar
- the self-checkouts are modern and slick
- integration of a corner-spot restaurant
- signage for staff recruitment and careers all-round
Other Reading
The store page - https://www.wegmans.com/stores/astor-place-ny/
"Fresh produce storytelling" - the takeaway phrase from this review in The Packer - https://www.thepacker.com/news/retail/inside-wegmans-world-class-astor-place-market
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