Food Lion will invest $168 million to remodel 105 stores in the greater Norfolk, Va., market in 2018. The initiative includes lowering prices, expanding the product assortment, hiring and promoting associates and creating additional community partnerships.
All affected stores will operate during normal hours during the remodel process. The updated layouts will be designed for quicker navigation, and the new products will include local, natural, organic and gluten-free items. Associates will receive customer-centric training to improve the shopper experience at all stores.
Walk-in garden coolers for fresh produce will be installed at 12 of the locations, and all remodeled Food Lions will feature more organic and value-added fruit and vegetable selections. Six stores will have expanded deli departments with new prepared food and takeaway items such as artisan pizza, wing bars, premium coffee and soda stations.
Advertisement
The effort is part of a larger remodeling program that has refreshed 544 Food Lion stores over the past four years. The grocery chain also has been expanding its delivery partnership with Instacart and now offers the service in three North Carolina and two Virginia markets.
Parent company Ahold Delhaize has been investing in improvements across all of its banners, including the formation of a partnership with the Innovation Center for Artificial Intelligence. The partnership includes research on algorithms that can make consumer recommendations and more efficiently manage the flow of goods for the Albert Heijn and bol.com brands, though the results will be applicable across all of its chains.
