Quality Foods has officially opened its new flagship store in Parksville.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Wednesday morning (March 24) with Parksville Mayor Ed Mayne, Quality Foods president Noel Hayward and store manager Darcy Ginter doing the honours.
The new store, located at the corner of Molliet Street and Despard Avenue, is 40,000 square feet, plus a 10,000-square-foot mezzanine, with ample parking space of more than 200 stalls. It is more than double the size of the former store in the city. It’s been dubbed the gateway store of Parksville.
“It’s in a super location,” Mayne said. “The city is obviously growing out this way so it’s going to be a big help to all the residents.”
Some of the major features include a huge kitchen, a full service in-store butcher shop, an expanded produce section that includes a smoothie bar, more food services such a sushi bar and Perk Avenue Cafe, a cheese counter and bakery.
The second floor ‘Upstairs’ features a lounge restaurant, community meeting room, outdoor patio, library and kitchen. It’s a place where people can congregate and enjoy a tasty pizza, appetizer or tapas.
“It’s really beautiful,” said Mike Regan, a longtime customer. “It’s a lot larger than any of the other QF store I have been in. It’s well laid out, which impressed me the most. And being brand new, it’s beautifully clean.”
Other features that customers are bound to appreciate include the Clean Cart machine that sanitizes grocery store carts using far-ultraviolet technology, which has been proven to kill COVID and any viruses on the surface. QF is the first store on Vancouver Island to introduce this latest technology.
Another health safety measure the store has applied is the Aegis Microbe Shield, the world’s leading antimicrobial surface protectant. They are applied to high-touch surfaces in the store.
Hours are 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day. For more information, visit https://www.qualityfoods.com/.
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The new layout. (Michael Briones photo)
An in-store sushi bar is one of the new added features of the store. (Michael Briones photo)
The kitchen has been expanded to provide freshly cooked food and delights. (Michael Briones photo)
The Upstairs will be a place where customers can congregate while enjoying a nice meal or libation. (Michael Briones photo)
The new Clean Cart technology makes sure carts are well-sanitized for customer use. (Michael Briones photo)
