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New Seasons

Posted on: Tuesday, 26 July 2005, 15:01 CDT

Jul. 26--The number of higher-end grocery stores clustering in the southwest suburbs grew Monday when locally owned New Seasons Market announced plans to open a store next year in the Mountain Park Shopping Center in Lake Oswego.

New Seasons' owners said they have been in discussions for about two years with owners of the property at 3 Monroe Parkway, which now houses the Mountain Park Thriftway.

The approximately 40 employees of the store were notified of the pending closure when they arrived at work Monday morning, said Michael Brown, a store manager.

"We've received literally hundreds and hundreds of requests from people in the Lake Oswego and Lake Grove communities asking us to open a store there," said Brian Rohter, chief executive of New Seasons Market. "It's a fantastic location, and we think we will do a great job serving that community."

The announcement follows the May opening of a Wild Oats Natural Marketplace store at Bridgeport Village, between Tigard and Tualatin, and the more recent word that a Texas-based specialty foods giant, Whole Foods Market, plans to open a 55,000-square-foot store across the street from Wild Oats.

Despite the rush of activity, particularly among stores associated with natural foods and specialty items, Rohter said he's confident there's enough business to go around.

The New Seasons store will create about 140 jobs, he said. The company's recruiting specialist plans to meet with Thriftway workers to determine whether they want to work at the revamped Mountain Park New Seasons.

The physical dimensions of the 24,000-square-foot Mountain Park Thriftway are not expected to change, Rohter said. What customers will notice are dramatic enhancements of ready-to-eat foods, seafood, wines and cheeses.

The store also will feature a large nutritional supplement and vitamin department. For customers with special nutritional needs, a staff nutritionist will be available for free consultations and store tours by appointment.

Although some place New Seasons Market at the higher end of the spectrum in food-store pricing, Rohter takes mild issue with that label.

"People sometimes characterize us as such because of the level of service we offer to customers and the focus we have," he said. "But to me, high end means expensive."

The company's regular surveys show that prices are comparable to large national chains operating in the Portland market, he said.

New Seasons Market was founded five years ago by three Portland families, some of whose members had been associated with Nature's before it was purchased by Wild Oats. Since opening its first store in Raleigh Hills, New Seasons has opened Portland-area stores in Concordia, Orenco Station, Sellwood and the Seven Corners neighborhood of Southeast Portland.

The company is building stores in the North Portland neighborhood of Arbor Lodge and at Cedar Hills Crossing in Beaverton.

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Copyright (c) 2005, The Oregonian, Portland, Ore.

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OATS, WFMI,

Source: The Oregonian

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