The grand opening of the new Wegmans store in Brooklyn drew a crowd of more than 25,000 people, many waiting for hours in the rain. See what happened when the cult-favorite grocer came to town.
People flew and drove from near and far to be at the front of the line at the opening of the store at 7 a.m.
By 6:45 a.m., the line stretched around the block.
Despite the rain, Wegmans fanatics did not waver in their devotion.
The front of the line was filled with the most loyal customers. "We've been going to Wegmans for decades," said Jessica Gonzalez, 36, who got in line at 4:30 a.m.
Inside, the floor was filled with employees who were gearing up for the opening, which was just minutes away.
Many employees from other Wegmans locations came to help out the Brooklyn Wegmans during its first few weeks. Their locations of origin were indicated by a ribbon on their name tags.
Finally, the time came for the doors to open to the public. Hordes of devoted Wegmans fans flooded the store to applause from the employees at the front.
Almost everyone entering the store was grinning from ear to ear.
Susan Myers was the first person in line at Wegmans at midnight. She also made sure that she was the first person to make a purchase at this new location.
Myers is a member of Women of Wegmans, a group of fans that has attended more than 10 Wegmans store openings and seeks to make the first purchase at each store.
"Some people go to the Super Bowl, some people go to Tour de France," said Myers, holding her prized first receipt, which she got from her speedy purchase of a fruit bar. "I come to the Wegmans opening."
Throughout the rest of the store, Wegmans lovers were easy to spot.
Sisters Marie Palmer (left) and Kathryn Cortez (right) grew up going to Wegmans together. Cortez, now married, flew in from Wisconsin to be with her sister for opening day. Both sisters wore "Wegmaniacs" T shirts for the occasion.
"This is about five years in the making," said store manager Kevin Cuff, who is leading more than 500 employees at Wegmans Brooklyn.
"I always say our secret sauce is our people," Cuff said when asked why Wegmans has such a cult following. "People can copy our buildings, can copy our products that we sell, but they can't copy our people."
The superior customer service is constantly cited by shoppers as one of the best aspects of Wegmans. And, every employee we saw looked ecstatic to be there.
Source: Business Insider
As the sun rose, the store began to get more crowded with visitors.
The sections that sold hot food and coffee were among the most crowded when we were there.
The store was beautifully stocked for the opening. We found a massive display of fresh fruit and vegetables.
And the classic $0.49 Wegmans bananas were prominently displayed at the front of the store.
There were also tons of Wegmans-brand products on display, a customer favorite.
There were so many employees on hand for the opening that the lines didn't seem to get too long when we were there.
By the end of the day, more than 25,000 people had stopped by the 101st Wegmans store. The store also broke company records for opening-day sales.
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