Meijer has tapped Natalie Rubino, store director of the Meijer Supercenter on Coolidge in Royal Oak, Michigan, to lead its new neighborhood grocery store called Woodward Corner Market. The store will open in the Woodward Corners by Beaumont development at Thirteen Mile Road and Woodward Avenue in Royal Oak.
“I live and breathe this community already, but I’m really enjoying the opportunity to connect with it even more,” says Rubino, who joined Meijer in 2015 as a store director. “I am honored to lead Woodward Corner Market and share its hyperlocal offerings and tremendous value in a community I call home.”
At 41,000 s.f., Woodward Corner Market will focus on offering customers a unique grocery shopping experience, much like the retailer’s first small-format store, Bridge Street Market, which opened in August 2018 in its headquarters city of Grand Rapids. It will be the largest tenant within the Woodward Corners by Beaumont commercial development and will feature a large assortment of fresh food; local, artisan products; and Meijer and national brand products at everyday low prices.
Woodward Corner Market also will feature:
- An estimated 2,000 local, artisan products, including Zingerman’s Bakery, Jessica’s Natural Foods and Steve’s Backroom;
- An expansive international food aisle that will feature eight ethnic backgrounds, including Middle Eastern, kosher, Hispanic, European and Asian foods;
- A Great Lakes Coffee coffee shop that specializes in nitro brews;
- Fresh and prepared foods, including bakery items, fresh meat and deli offerings;
- An expansive beer, wine and liquor counter featuring a rolling ladder;
- Basic cleaning items and health and beauty care products;
- 25-foot ceilings; and
- Open air elements and a pedestrian-friendly design near the Beaumont Hospital campus, including six garage-style doors with outdoor fresh produce and floral area.
“After the success of Bridge Street Market, we are excited to continue providing new ways to serve our communities,” says Justin Stricklen, director of market format stores for Meijer. “We are excited about the impact Woodward Corner Market will make on the community, this Royal Oak development and on Meijer.”
The beauty of Woodward Corner Market lies within its flexibility to focus on customer requests.
“I am excited to lead a great, independent team that will focus on helping our customers,” says Rubino, who also is responsible for the entire store’s merchandise. “We will be able to make quick decisions to accommodate in-the-moment customer requests.”
