Brad_Bergum
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Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 200
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Reply with quote | #1 |
Our family (Dee and I, Julie and Brandon, Ben and Kirsten, and Duane) has agreed in principle to buy the Winifred Grocery from Dave and Tammy, and we will be finalizing the deal in mid-August.
We will be rolling out the message in a bigger way down the road, but I wanted to use this forum to pick the brains of people as soon as possible.
We have some ideas for some new things we'd like to do with the store, and we are in the process of determining how practical those ideas might be. In the meantime, though, we are best served by hearing from the customers of the store -- each of you.
So if you could make a wish list of new ideas for the store, what would they be? Would changes to the hours be helpful? Are there products you'd like to see the store carry that it doesn't currently? Are there additional services you think would benefit Winifred customers?
Anything at all that you can think of (no idea is too big or too small) that you would like to see, please just post it here or email me at bradbergum@yahoo.com.
We likely won't be able to get everything done at once, but we're hoping to make many changes, as requested by people in the community, over time. It will take some time to figure out if the changes are practical and if we can actually make them work, but none of that can happen until we hear the ideas.
And with that, we hope to see to it that the Winifred Grocery continues to serve Winifred well into the future, just as it has for as long as most of us can remember.
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Brad Bergum
Winifred High School 1990
Montana State University 1995 |
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clsyszy
Registered: 04/09/08
Posts: 44
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Reply with quote | #2 |
Well I spoke with my daughter about this and she said many of the high school kids (girls) have wanted a coffee bar in town so they can get lattes, smoothies, frappes, Big Trains and such. So there's an idea. The Roy grocery is popular because of their deli and smoothies, so might be worth considering a coffee shop.
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shepards
Registered: 07/10/09
Posts: 1
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Reply with quote | #3 |
Working in Lewistown I come through Winifred too early and too late for the hours that the store has currently. I know I am not the only one that works in Lewistown that has the same conflict. I don't know how effective it would be to keep the store open longer. I know it would cost more, however, I want to support the local grocery store, and would definitely buy a lot more if it were open when I come through.
Thanks,
Shirley Shepard
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Brad_Bergum
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Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 200
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Reply with quote | #4 |
Thanks so much for the feedback ... and keep it coming, everyone!
Coffee: We haven't figured out the details yet, but we have been hearing this as feedback from a lot of sources, so we definitely do plan to start offering some coffee selections to meet this demand. I'm not a coffee drinker myself, so it's all kind of foreign to me, but one of the more coffee-knowledgable people in the family will spearhead the effort to get some great coffee drinks available throughout store hours.
Hours: This was another area that we wanted to focus on, and we likely will be figuring it out by trial and error, for the most part. Shirley, if you had to choose, would you like to see the store opened earlier in the morning or kept open later in the evening? My gut is telling me that opening it earlier will be the most benefit to the most people, but I would love to hear from individuals who do the shopping. You're right, it will cost a little more, but if it makes it easier for people to shop at the store (and particularly those who are commuting), it will be well worth it.
And if we extend the store hours during any particular period, and nobody shows up, we can always adjust them again ... so experimenting with it should be pretty easy.
Great comments, and thanks to everyone who has commented via email as well. Please don't hesitate to send or post whatever ideas or suggestions you have, and we will do our best to put those suggestions into place.
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Brad Bergum
Winifred High School 1990
Montana State University 1995 |
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Bbenzing
Registered: 08/03/09
Posts: 3
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Reply with quote | #5 |
Hi! My name is Beka Benzing and I work at the Lewistown News Argus during the summers. I was wondering if you could help me with more information on the store. I would like to write a story about you taking over and what some of the new ideas are...if you would be willing, what would be the best way to contact you? If you just want to call me sometime and we could do an interview, I work from 8-5 Mon.-Fri. until August 13. The number is 535-3401. I would really appreciate your help. Thanks!
Beka |
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Brad_Bergum
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Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 200
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Reply with quote | #6 |
Hey Beka -- sorry for not replying to this post sooner. This is the first time I saw it. Once we hit the road, I lost track of most of my internet time. It was great talking with you once we met up!
On a side note, this board is painfully slow to load. I need to try to figure out a way to fix that.
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Brad Bergum
Winifred High School 1990
Montana State University 1995 |
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Bbenzing
Registered: 08/03/09
Posts: 3
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Reply with quote | #7 |
Hi, Brad
That's ok...I was able to get in touch with you so it worked out. Thanks for taking the time with me for the interview and I hope the story said what you hoped it would. Good luck with everything and I am excited to see the changes that will be made.
Beka
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Brad_Bergum
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Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 200
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Reply with quote | #8 |
I haven't had a chance to read it yet (it's not on the website), but I think somebody is scanning a copy of it for me. I heard it was a really nice article. Thanks again!
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Brad Bergum
Winifred High School 1990
Montana State University 1995 |
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clsyszy
Registered: 04/09/08
Posts: 44
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Reply with quote | #9 |
Brad, I just saw last night why having the store open later in the evening would be of great benefit. We were ordering food for homecoming so the store was open later, after the boys got done with football, usually it is closed by that time. You should have seen how happy they were to be able to buy their chocolate milk after practice! Staying open til 6:30 or 7 (probably better) would be a great thing for the kids who have later practices and need a snack for the way home or even once basketball starts and they have early and late practices there would be a place they could go to get something to eat or drink.
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Brad_Bergum
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Registered: 03/06/08
Posts: 200
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Reply with quote | #10 |
Thanks Suzy ... good insights to have. We will be analyzing the survey responses we received and making some announcements about new hours relatively soon.
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Brad Bergum
Winifred High School 1990
Montana State University 1995 |
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pierzina
Registered: 09/20/09
Posts: 1
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Reply with quote | #11 |
Brad, Congratulations on the purchase of the Winifred Grocery! I always though that much more could be done with that store. Hours: If you could be open after dark during hunting season. We own the Winifred Apartments and hunters come in and need to purchase grocery for that nights dinner. I do think it would pay off for you, at least during hunting season. The morning would be too early and the hunters are not thinking of dinner. There is no place to buy a "gift" for whatever occasion. I am not sure what you should carry but I'm thinking something people can buy for a quick gift. Maybe locally made items. If you are ever around and see the lights on in the apartment attached to the bank building, (Winifred Apartments) come over and say HI, I'd like to meet you as well as the rest of the owners. Ron & Laura Pierzina Winifred Apartments |
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