Bashas’ celebrated the new year as it unveiled a fully-remodeled and remerchandised supermarket at Highway 73 and Main Street in Whiteriver, Arizona on Jan. 23.
Representatives of the Fort Apache Indian Reservation and several members of the Basha family were on hand for a grand reopening ceremony and ribbon cutting. Tribal Chairwoman Gwendena Lee-Gatewood, along with District Council Tribe representatives, were honored as special guests at the event.
In addition, Alchesay High School’s Apache Crown-dancing group provided a cultural performance and sang traditional Apache songs. The celebration continued throughout the day with raffles for items like a bicycle and an ice chest, along with food sampling and product demonstrations throughout the store.
The remodeled store features the masterwork of award-winning Apache artists Michael Lacapa (1955-2005) and Douglas Miles (1963); both artists spent a significant amount of time in the Whiteriver community, sharing the joy of their artistry in and out of the classroom.
The store has several updated and expanded features, including:
- New exterior elements, including an updated storefront and street signage, a new roof, freshly-poured sidewalks, a newly-paved parking lot, as well as a new delivery dock and enhanced security doors at the rear of the building;
- New interior elements, including brand-new flooring, new shelving and wider aisles throughout the store, along with a dedicated aisle featuring pallets of low-price items;
- A larger produce area with a new wet rack, dry tables and expanded shelving to accommodate a greater variety of produce and better display featured items;
- Enhancements to the deli area, including new packaged-meat cases that offer a bigger selection of items; new deli steam tables; a new self-serve deli cold case; a new conveyor belt for freshly-made, piping hot pizzas; a new self-serve fountain-drink dispenser; a new fryer; and new ovens;
- Improvements throughout the bakery department, including a new self-serve donut case, an area where shoppers can watch cake decorators at work, and a new bakery freezer for ice cream cakes and other frozen bakery items;
- An upgraded dairy department with new doors and a cooler that allows for a wider selection and variety of products; and
- New freezer cases that carry a larger variety and volume of frozen foods.
