Thriftway updates to Troutville Grocery & Goods
Troutville, Virginia - Long-time Troutville grocery store centerpiece, Thriftway Foods, is kicking off a year-long process to transform its business into Troutville Grocery & Goods. "TG&G" will be your hometown marketplace for grocery essentials and local goods and is one of several ongoing efforts to revitalize the Town of Troutville.
The story of the Thriftway revitalization is one that demonstrates the strong community support within Botetourt County and in small rural towns throughout America. Many members of the Botetourt community have rallied together to freely offer their time, support, labor and financial donations to save this Troutville centerpiece and improve the downtown Troutville landscape.
"The outpouring of community love has been overwhelming," comments Belinda Edwards, the volunteer project manager for the Thriftway Revitalization Project. "People who love Thriftway and the town of Troutville have come out of the woodwork to support us in this transformation. Handymen and women, painters, local artists, craftsmen, an IT specialist, a graphics designer, a business strategy consultant, an interior designer, and even local churches and businesses have donated their time and resources to help us through this process. We have been humbled by the love we've received and are continually reminded how beautiful this community is."
Thriftway originally opened in the town of Troutville in 1935 by Bland A. Painter as Painter's Market and was Troutville's very own grocery and general store. The name of this and several other family-owned stores were later changed to Thriftway Foods and the Troutville store was run for over half a century by Bland. A. Painter, Jr. Page Painter Weddle began working full-time in the store alongside her father in 1978, and began to manage the store on her own after her father passed away. Page’s daughter, Megan Weddle, helps her run the business and sells beautiful photography and handmade goods in the store. Megan makes the fourth generation to support this business and the Troutville community.
"Over the years, the business has been impacted by the influx of larger grocery and superstores that have moved into the area," explains business strategist, Lindy Whitlock. "When you are a small local business that works with other local and small-scale suppliers, it’s impossible to compete on price with places like Wal-mart and Kroger. Thriftway has worked hard to minimize its costs and keep low margins to ensure they can serve the Botetourt community with respect to cost. Yet, the differentiation that Thriftway brings to market is its desire to know its community and to support other local and small businesses. We hope to expand their focus on local and integrate other small businesses into their product line within the coming year. Increasingly, the market desires to shop local and Thriftway has the perfect location to make this possible and help customers support their neighbors and community."
This weekend on Small Business Saturday (November 26), Thiftway will host a Transformation Celebration Event to thank the community for its support and to celebrate the ongoing changes within the store. Free local coffee, free hot dogs, product giveaways, samples and sales will be provided. All are invited to join and "support small business" during their Transformation Celebration Event from 8AM - 3PM or during regular daily business hours from 8 AM to 8 PM, except for Sunday.
Thriftway, and soon to be Troutville Grocery & Goods can be followed on both Facebook @ThriftwayFoods and on Instagram @troutvillegroceryandgoods. The store has also released a new website and blog at www.troutvillegrocery.com. If you would like to support the Thriftway Revitalization project, please contact Belinda Edwards at bwelldt@gmail.com.
