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Saturday, February 29, 2020

Food Lion - Manassas, VA: Remodel Prep (Part 2)


Taken February 1, 2020, last glimpse of the old sign
Happy Leap Day from the Shoppes of Battery Mill! As a treat for this unique day of the year, we present to you the next chapter in this revolutionary Food Lion saga. This episode is where things actually take off and become noticeable. Without further ado, let us begin!

Photos taken January 22, 2020
We enter the Food Lion remodel saga with a look at their trailer collection to the left of the store. These sorts of trailers are often prominent surrounding retail renovation operations, holding equipment and decor pieces.
One of the most notable harbingers of such a move lies within a banner about the remodel - quite simply as shoppers head to a convenient entrance.

One of Food Lion's latest advertising campaigns creating a more humble look for their stores. In my book, it's definitely awesome to see the chain represent the cities they have stores in.
While this may be a hard hat area, most of it is still open to regular shopping. However, make sure to be patient as you peruse the store's aisles!
Have a taste of refreshment royalty at Food Lion! That's right - in addition to traditional (and slightly less extravagant offerings , the exquisite Royal Crown Cola and its less-striking diet companion are availablbe for purchase.
G'Day, Mate! Would you like to hear all about wines from across the world? Well then, take a stroll down Food Lion's first aisle... and you'll see what it's all about! Jokes aside, this display is a pretty clever collection of greetings from around the world. Wait, was my last sentence still a joke? Hehe...
The lunch meat section with random trays of baked goods in center. One of the most notable changes at this point stems from the lack of a bumper above the cases - in turn exposing the backlight that created the distinctive Bloom effect.
Here we see the effect again across the perimeter row of meat coolers.
This is the back left corner of the store, transitioning product from beer to frozen foods and dairy. Evident by the cube sign, the corridor in the center of the photo As of my following visit to the store (which will be up on this blog soon), Food Lion has completed remodeling the restrooms in advance of the rest of the store.
For our next portion of the tour we wrap back around to the health & beauty section, or moreso the aisle straddling this and the general grocery kind. Within this photo, you may see an assortment of general merchandise products, such as cleaning supplies, gift cards, and an additional selection of health & beauty goods. Also one thing I have to note... all those aisle marker names are shifted... could this have been some early remodel work?
All literature, all the time here in the magazine section. While I have seen this stand at other retailers like Shoppers, it still is unique given the magazines are from a given time, not that of today. Also note the DNI papers - I'm not exactly sure what this move means, however I assume this section will be more difficult to disperse throughout this remodel.

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This photoset would be the last anyone would see this Food Lion as highly reminiscent of Bloom. Next time within this remodel saga, change will certainly be in the air. Stay tuned!

Friday, February 14, 2020

Food Lion - Manassas, VA: Before the Remodel (Part 1)

Hello readers! Today on the Shoppes of Battery Mill, we will be delving into one of the East Coast's retail hallmarks - no, not the gift shop chain, rather one of their most signature grocery chains.

Food Lion - Manassas, VA (#1383)

Photo taken in 2018

Store info

  • Address: 9121 Centreville Rd, Manassas, VA 20110
  • Opening date: June 9, 1997 (original), April 29, 2012 (return to Food Lion)
  • Remodels: Bloom (early 2007), 2020
  • Features: Deli, Bakery, Beer, Wine, Food Lion to Go (new)
Opened during a time of rapid expansion for the chain in the Washington, D.C. metro area, this Food Lion stood as a characteristic example of their diverse location philosophy. This store serves the vicinity of Manassas' historic Old Town and other suburban areas within its radius, being a more densely populated yet convenient store to customers. As the city is competitive with additional grocery options, the store was converted to a Bloom in 2007 - something reflected across the D.C. area in general suburban areas. The concept faltered as it subtracted the classic Food Lion experience, prompting a return five years later in 2012. Interestingly however, the Bloom look remains - of which we shall explore today.

 Photos taken December 7, 2019
Today's store tour starts off at the left entrance. This window sticker, dating to the re-rebranding as Food Lion in 2012, lists a classic 7-11 operating time frame. Above we see an advertisement for Food Lion's new curbside pickup program (which we will discuss later).
We first visit the produce department.  The walls are accented with  Another variant of the Bloom package featured a green pattern with the Bloom "flower swirl" logo.
Just around the corner Out of place in a Food Lion? That might have been true when the store first opened, but it certainly hasn't since Bloom came to town. Said concept provided for a wide rollout of natural & organic foods, something that has been more uplifted in recent years.
A little treat for Valentine's, enjoy this floral cooler with a small array of colorful flowers!

Given the store's size, and Food Lion's general lack of service departments in exchange for convenience, their floral selections have never really expanded. Still something enough for whoever you may cherish, I bet.
Here's a side view of both the meat department's coolers and a variety of general grocery aisles. Fun fact - the aisle markers themselves were later additions to Bloom, the store originally featured such signage above endcaps.

The Bloom remodel positioned this department as a major perishable destination, adding an overhead lattice, wood tiles and fresh decor for the service counters themselves which were touted in commercials. Despite these additions, this store did not add counters for both, only adding a live lobster tank that was removed following Food Lion's return.

This edition of Aisle 12 is brought to you by pet products. Get a 13.2 oz can of Pedigree wet dog food for 68¢ when you shop at the Manassas Food Lion.
Chill out and grab a frozen meal within this aisle. While aisle markers are not featured here, various stands of products appear to go along with such freezing products. Coolers featuring beer (and beer accessories) greet customers at the edge of the salesfloor.
This photo serves as our introduction to the store's health and beauty department. Like many other Food Lions, this store does not have a pharmacy - such are only additions to select locations opened in the past 2 years. To compensate, FL offers several rows of HBC essentials, reflecting its convenient shopping motto. This new organizational method was introduced by Bloom featuring clear walkways and low shelves for easy access and view.
Featuring the rather infamous Papyrus font... we see an example of Bloom's health & beauty gooseneck signs. Not too shabby, eh?
Here we see an assortment of frozen products along with the famous Bloom symbol adorning the walls. The plastic liner above the coolers, helping to obscure the backlights, was removed early in the remodel process.
Next, we turn our attention to the prepared foods corner of the store. Service bakery and deli departmtents are surprisingly common within this somewhat barebones chain, and they are often filled with products from both departments at the counters. These functions are somewhat utilized amongst customers, however are not often high-volume. Food Lion has since added on to this function in newer stores with carryout pizza and chicken offerings.

This department also features a select amount of dairy products, evident by the coolers on the right side. The final portion prior to the bakery adds on frozen delicacies including ice cream cakes and the like.
The Bloom era brought more prepared food offerings to the table, adding coolers for to-go foods and a "TableTop" area featuring meals in the vein of rotiserrie chicken for quick shopping purposes. While the reintroduction of Food Lion at this site, a generic "quick & easy" wraparound has been placed, however the Bloom logo remains on the light underneath.
Rounding around the deli corner, we begin packing up our groceries and heading to checkout. As we stand in line, we can observe the various stands of discount product as well as deli assortments to go along with meals.
Adjacent to the store's right-hand entrance, a cartwell is at the ready for shoppers.

An interesting fact about this cartwell is that it actually opens up to the outdoors, leaving the right entrance without a vestibule. With that being said, I wonder if the carts are all nicely secured at night?


For me it's definitely an addition that confirmed Food Lion is here to stay in NoVA. I say this as I believe the chain has been in an odd place in this highly competititve region since around the mid-2000s. Expansion was eschewed for the Bloom and Bottom Dollar conversions, helping somewhat to boost the chain given the traditional concept did not sate the diverse shopping needs of area customers. The discontinuation of the Bloom brand several years later prompted closings, some of which were dispersed over the years, including the divestitures with the Ahold Delhaize merger.

With less of a margin to grow, there was thought that FL would be winding down their presence - that is, until Food Lion invested in this feature. I believe the stores will stay open as to my knowledge, the Haymarket, VA store, which closed in October 2019, did not feature such operations. This particular setup was installed over the previous summer and opened in September. Unlike several other curbside pickup options requiring the installation of mobile applications, Food Lion has simply chosen to provide customers a simple phone calling procedure in order to initiate the process.
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Surprisingly, since this photoset has been taken, Food Lion has finally initiated a remodel. This store has also been joined by a Woodbridge store and select Delmarva stores, some of the first new investments to these stores since the exit of Bloom and Bottom Dollar. We've yet to see if all of the region's stores (from Pennsylvania to Southern Maryland) will undergo such refurbishment - until then, I will have more photos coming up detailing this location's process. See ya then!

Thursday, February 13, 2020

Retail Mix, Volume 1

Welcome back to the Shoppes of BatteryMill! Today's post will be a quickie, though not necessarily with content! I present to you the first Retail Mix photo compilation series, focusing on a wide array of individual pictures I felt couldn't really fit with their own categories.

This inaugural edition of the Retail Mix will focus on various photos I took over the summer from various retail destinations around Northern Virginia. These range from rather common retail sights to some oddities, of which we have several in both categories. Without further ado, enjoy!

Photos taken from June 10, 2019 to August 14, 2019
We start this photoset with a (somewhat) retro retail gem - CRT TVs at the Potomac Mills Rainbow store (a former 5-7-9). Playing a variety of music videos, these TVs match the somewhat classic store look - and still sport the chain's old brand logo through their programming. On a related note, Rainbow also has a location in the Smoketown Stations center outside the mall.
We tab over to the Nike store, where we see a rather interesting AC system. How tubular!
Jumping on over to PWC's other enclosed mall, Manassas has a rather peculiar old storefront near Sears. While this has been uncovered after several years, it only briefly hosted a tenant.
A Project Impact era without text - what could this mean possibly? (spoiler: the opposite side marks "Dairy")
Just another perimeter grocery area at Walmart. The aisle markers were updated in 2018 to include the mobile identification system. I find it a little garish, but I guess they should advance to the mobile age.
Here are background signs in the Walmart grocery area. The yellow grocery walls were repainted in early 2018.
Something rather interesting in the retail sphere - a recently closed Five Guys restaurant (which relocated to a site near the Manassas Mall).  On top of that, it was once a CVS/Pharmacy that relocated across Sudley Road to a standalone spot in 1999. This is interesting considering a Walgreens currently operates on the other side of this shopping center.
A small, yet mighty store location marker at Bull Run Plaza. Its color scheme and design is reflective of local history.
The ingress/egress street from the Bull Run Plaza shopping center in Manassas, lined with dense shrubs and colorful trees. Also pictured is part of the shopping center with a California Tortilla restaurant and a tower listing three tenants (Michaels, Petsmart, and the now closed Shoppers location.
Changes are afoot at Walmart. The majority of overhead signage, from the windows to the walls, has been taken down for what has become a remodel with a long rollout. Through the next few months, new LED lighting would be installed and a new pickup center would be constructed outside the store. Into 2020, the store would begin an official, wide-scale remodel. Photos of the remodel will be uploaded soon to this blog, so stay tuned!
Seeing double at Ross? This unusual retail find occured last year as the chain swapped locations after only three years in business. Ross replaced a former CWPrice/Fallas location in its new spot while the old Ross became a DD's Discounts soon after. The former Ross location was part of a long-closed Shoppers Food store.
 The golden entrance to Ikea... walk this way for DIY furniture and visionary showrooms!
What's a blog post without something out of the ordinary? This Costco price tag made its way to no other place than an Ikea parking garage. Talk about that...
West Elm is one of Mosaic District's trendy clothing tenants, selling higher-fashion products emblematic to the center.
Barnes & Noble is still opening new stores such as this one, which opened this past April. It is rather smaller and dedicated more towards younger shoppers, however it still happens to feature lots of items with a regular lineup of products.
A now-former Z Gallerie stands at the Mosaic Center across from the Target parking garage entrance. This store, among 17 other locations of this luxury home decor store closed after a bankruptcy filing and acquisition by DirectBuy.
Closing out today's photoset, we observe how the old low-rise Merrifield meets the new medium-rise development - a sign of the times in this edge city. The first photo features a shopping center anchored by HMart and Office Depot, and a standalone TitleMax auto loans shop appears surrounded by the Mosaic District.

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More editions are to come, featuring more of what I've taken for y'all. 'Till then, have fun!