Grocery store strives to keep up
By Lynsi Musselman
Brookshire’s Grocery Company is striving to make a challenging time easier on the Albany community.
Brookshire’s will be open on Easter Sunday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., an unprecedented change that has not happened in the corporation’s 92 year history.
This essential local business has also changed the regular store hours to 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. The first two hours are set aside for senior citizens and first responders.
Brookshire’s also announced that the company is offering a five percent daily discount to critical and emergency service providers. Discounts are applied to store brand products through May 5, 2020.
Albany store director Curt Manning has quickly adjusted to government restrictions and local needs.
Albany store employees sanitize throughout the day. The store is also thoroughly sanitized each night with an industrial strength cleaner. After business on Sundays, the whole building receives a deep cleaning.
During store hours, the staff is required to keep a six foot distance from each other as much as possible, and an employee is assigned to monitor customers. All employees are required to have their temperatures checked at the beginning of their shifts and a 40 percent occupancy cannot be exceeded.
“Albany’s response has been outstanding, and there is not a better community to be in during a time like this,” Manning said.
Another change the store is facing includes limited product inventories. Manning said demand for toilet paper has slowed down but there are still allocation limits on many items. Brookshires has added an extra truck from the warehouse each day but Saturday. The additional trucks, along with vendor deliveries, are keeping the store stocked with basic items.
Manning is following the company guidelines and will continue to follow Brookshire’s protocol for what comes next.
“Brookshire’s has done a lot of research,” Manning said.
Brookshire’s corporate office, based in Tyler, continues to show appreciation for the small communities they serve locally like Albany.
The company’s latest community outreach is donating $1 million to food banks across Texas, with plans to match $500,000 in customer contributions.
