Inside Wegmans’ Splashy NYC Debut

Wegmans Food Markets’ 101st store—and its first in the five boroughs of New York City—made a splashy debut Oct. 27 in Brooklyn.

The 74,000-square-foot unit is an anchor in a high-profile redevelopment of the Brooklyn Navy Yard situated between the Williamsburg and Manhattan bridges and reachable—if not exactly walkable—to surrounding neighborhoods of Williamsburg, Fort Greene, Clinton Hill, Downtown Brooklyn and Brooklyn Heights.

On opening morning, visitors could be spied from well beyond Wegmans’ superregional neighborhood draw, as “superfans,” for whom the Wegmans brand is a destination, waited in steady rain and high winds for the 7 a.m. opening.

What follows are scenes from the debut.

It was barely daybreak when Wegmans opened its doors to shoppers, many of whom were waiting in the rain for hours.

Few grocery stores can create a sense of grand entrance like Wegmans, which greets shoppers with a powerful display of fresh food front and center, with sharp price messaging to accompany it.

A big display of organic clamshell salads and leafy greens with the Wegmans Organic branding, establishing an alignment between the store brand and healthy eating trends.

About 540 employees were hired for the new store, including a staff of 157 for prepared foods. Here, cheesemongers were handing out samples and advice.

A chef in the seafood department gave a demonstration of scallop searing.

A Wegmans seafood department associate restocks a salmon display.

While sharp pricing with an eye toward big baskets could be found in meat Family Packs, Wegmans also wants to establish itself as a destination for indulgences and special purchases. A meat department clark said she’d already sold one of these Kobe beef cuts—priced at $199.99 per pound—in the first 30 minutes of the store’s opening.

Wegmans’ legendary merchandising comes to life in a compact display combining olive oil, asparagus, beef and other fresh complements.

A look at a pizza kitchen and coffee shop as part of an extensive foodservice offering. The store also includes a burger restaurant, a tavern and lots of counters for prepared foods to go.

A look inside the bar, located on a mezzanine level alongside tables for eat-in shoppers. The bar wasn’t open at 7 a.m., but presumably was showing the Jets and Buffalo Bills games by 1 p.m.

A wellness merchandising table near the center store aisles.

Wegmans offers a variety of local and craft beer, arranging these by style in a make-your-own six-pack display.

Partners Coffee, based in nearby Williamsburg, on display.

In what could be a nod to the relatively small size of this Brooklyn unit, Wegmans’ entire selection of canned and bagged pet food and cat litter were its own brand. The section also carries some branded pet treats.

A view from the mezzanine dining area down the store floor. Wegmans is at work on another store north of the city in Westchester County.