by Dennis Dalman
editor@thenewsleaders.com
A major remodeling of the Coborn’s Superstore in south Sartell is now finished.
For the past few months, the store underwent the extensive remodeling, although it remained open to customers, some of whom were confused and/or baffled by all the changes going on.
The remodeling is dubbed the Coborn’s “Next Generation” format, the first of its kind in the company’s many stores. The remodeled purpose puts a new emphasis on fresh products within a modern design. Another major part of the overall project is the new, huge Coborn’s Liquor Store, located in a separate building to the west of the grocery store.
One of the unique features of the grocery store is its Chop Shoppe. Shoppers can select their fruits and vegetables from the produce department, then take them to the Chop Shoppe where they are chopped, sliced, diced or julienned per the customer’s instructions or their intended recipes for the ingredients.
The new Bake Shoppe features a wide selection of sweet treats, artisan breads and gourmet-style pastries, among many other baked products.
Other features include Sushi Kabar for sushi-style meals; a fresh-baked pizza area that bakes pizzas in a brick oven over an open flame; a “Flavors of the World: cheese case; a Caribou Coffee Shop; a smoked-meats operation right in the store; and Click-and-Collect shopping, which allows customers to select the items they want online, and the items will be waiting for them, ready to go, when they arrive at the store.
There are also many ready-to-go meals prepared in the store that can be microwaved back home in a matter of minutes.
The new store features a vast selection of “natural” meats free of antibiotics and hormones.
For those concerned about healthy eating, there is a registered dietitian at the store who can advise people in search of the healthiest food choices and give tips to those with specialized dietary needs.
St. Cloud-based Coborn’s is an employee-owned grocery retailer, now 95 years old, with 55 stores and 8,000 employees in Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. Coborn’s also owns stores under the banners of Cash Wise Foods, Marketplace Foods and Save-A-Lot.
In June, Coborn’s was named one of the Top 150 Workplaces in Minnesota by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
The Coborn’s Superstore in Sartell has just completed a major remodeling project that was months in the making.
