Customers lament closing of Lidl grocery store
This sign in the produce section of Lidl directs customers to go to its other Davidson County location on Randolph Street in Thomasville. {Vikki Broughton Hodges/Davidson Local}
Lidl grocery store to close Sunday
The parking lot of the Lidl grocery store was busier than usual Tuesday afternoon, Feb 1, as customers came to stock up on favorite items and look for bargains prior to the store permanently closing Sunday.
Located at 1265 Fairview Drive, the German-owned grocery discounter opened the approximately 20,000-square-foot store in October 2017.
“I hate to see it go,” said Maria Eller. “I’ve been coming here since it opened.”
Eller came to stock up on bottled water and toilet paper and happened to find some marked-down coffee cups celebrating Black History Month.
The Lexington resident said she was a regular customer because the prices were good and she loved the flower and plant section. “I still have several plants at home I got here. They always have very nice plants and flowers.”
“I’m disappointed,” admitted Jo Brown of Southmont, who has been a regular weekly shopper and planned to stock up on a few staples such as broth and look for salmon and bacon. “I love their bacon. They have a lot of things I can’t find at other places. And they have specialty products at the holidays such as bacon-wrapped scallops. I’m going to miss the variety.”
Brown said she even occasionally purchased non-food items that the store carried, such as snow suits and snow boots for her grandchildren.
“I think it’s horrible,” said Brook Price of Lexington, who, too, was a regular shopper. “I’m not a Walmart shopper and Aldi is more like a warehouse. Food Lion doesn’t have much variety.
“This is a nice environment,” Price opined. “It’s clean, the aisles are wide and you can get in and out easily. They have great seafood and a lot of ethnic foods, from Italian to Polish.”
Price sometimes drives to the Publix in High Point and Harris-Teeter in Salisbury to get what she wants. “I hope something good comes in here. There’s no reason not to have a little more upscale grocery store.”
But whether another grocery store or something else opens on the 2.5-acre property remains in question. The property is located near the Parkway Plaza shopping center, which just announced a couple of new tenants, and the busy interchange of I-85 and Cotton Grove Road.
Customers came out to stock up on groceries Tuesday afternoon in advance of the store closing Sunday. {Vikki Broughton Hodges/Davidson Local}
Chandler Ebeier, spokeswoman for Lidl US, which is based in Alexandria, Va., said the decision to close the store was tough.
“We conduct store performance evaluations in all our markets to make sure we are prioritizing the right locations,” she explained. “This decision is part of that process and will allow us to strengthen our expansion and focus on highly convenient locations that align with our real estate strategy today.
“We will explore a variety of options for the building, including evaluations of offers to sell the property.”
Ebeier said the Lexington closing was not part of a larger cutback and that all the local employees will have an opportunity to relocate to a different store within the Lidl chain. The closest stores are in Thomasville, Winston-Salem and Greensboro.
“Lidl US appreciates the hard work of every member of the team, the loyalty of our customers and the support of the city of Lexington,” she continued. “We hope to see our Lexington shoppers at one of our nearby stores in the future.”
