By Adam Brazeau
CORNWALL, Ontario – Hundreds of shoppers lined up in frigid temperatures for Cornwall’s new Walmart Supercentre.
Shoppers turned up in droves to get a look at the new store at 420 Ninth Street West that opened Thursday (Jan. 29).
“Cornwall has been ready for a full-service supercentre for a while now and today we get to offer that to the public,” said store manager Erica Woodward, who began working at Walmart in 2009 as an assistant manager before being promoted to her current position in 2011.
Woodward described the new store as a ‘one-stop shop’ offering a complete line of groceries, including a full-service bakery, deli counter, dairy products, and fresh meat and produce.
Cornwall’s supercentre is more than 154,000 sq. ft. and is also 26,000 sq. ft. larger than the previous location.
Another improvement: the pharmacy is now front and centre instead of being packed in the corner, and changes have been made to help speed up wait times.
The garden centre has also been upgraded to include an enclosure to meet customers’ outdoor needs throughout the season.
And there’s more going on then what’s packed on the shelves.
“We hired temporary staff to help build the facility,” said Woodward. “I’m really proud how many temps are now with us full-time.”
The store employs close to 350 associates. More than 130 in-store jobs were created with the relocation. That’s in addition to 250 construction jobs created with the new build.
At the grand opening, SDSG MPP Jim McDonell said that the recent additions of Future Shop and the supercentre in Cornwall have created a better local shopping experience, which will also attract more visitors to the area.
Year to date, Walmart Cornwall has raised and donated over $66,000 to charities and organizations in need. On opening day, staff presented an additional $6,000 in cheques to a number of local organizations, including the Royal Canadian Legion, ALS, Carefor Hospice Cornwall, and the SD&G SPCA.
Lana Nixon-Grignon, has worked at Walmart in Cornwall for 26 years. With the move, she switched up from the shoe department to fresh produce.
“Being able to offer more to our customers is very exciting because that’s what we’re here for,” said Nixon-Grignon.
