New Brigido’s Market owners plan upgrades, grand reopening to be held in April

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NORTH SMITHFIELD/BURRILLVILLE – Three grocery stores run by a local family for decades have been purchased by a couple that owns supermarkets in New York and Connecticut, and this week, the new owners said that shoppers can expect new products and upgrades to the stores, with a grand reopening to be held in April.

Brigido’s Fresh Market – a small grocery chain with stores in Slatersville, Pascoag and Scituate – has been purchased by Michael and  Melissa Fernandez of West Hempstead, NY.

While the news marks the end of an era for the longtime family of grocers, the Brigido’s name, it seems, will live on. First opened in Pawtucket in the 1940s by Portuguese immigrant Augusto Brigido, the three-store chain was operated by a third generation of the family prior to the recent acquisition.

The Pascoag store has been owned by the family since they first opened its doors in 1978, and the store at Slatersville Plaza opened in the former Eddie’s Market in 1999 .

“I will maintain the name,” Michael Fernandez told NRI NOW. “Brigido’s is a family-owned and operated company which will be celebrating their 80th year in April. I would never change that.”

NRI NOW was the exclusive source to report on the of sale of the Pascoag store to the New York-based businessman, who owns several supermarkets in New York and Connecticut known as Super Foodstores. A deed filed in the Burrillville Town Clerk’s office documented sale of that property for $1.2 million in December.

Sources noted that Fernandez had acquired the full Brigido’s chain, but property transfer deeds have not been filed for either the Slatersville and Scituate locations, an indication that the grocer will likely lease the space in those towns.

This week, the couple confirmed the three-store purchase, but declined to answer several questions about the grocery acquisition, including the total cost.

“Michael and  Melissa Fernandez are very excited to not only serve, but be an integral part of the community,” they said in a statement.

While the Brigido’s name will remain the same, changes in both brands and the general appearance of the stores have already been noted by local shoppers.

Foodtown has 67 locations in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, all independently owned and operated. Parent company, Allegiance Retail Services, also supplies Foodtown-branded items, with many products that could already be found on Brigido’s shelves this week.

More information about the upcoming changes is expected in the coming months.

“Upgrades and the introduction of new product lines are in the works, and all the details will be shared as they get closer to the planned grand re-opening this April,” the statement noted.

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6 COMMENTS

  1. Eddie`s Market, Woonsocket Institution for Savings, Gallant Liquors, Western Auto. That`s how I remember the plaza in the 70`s-80`s.

  2. I was in your store last week and a young man who has worked in Scituate for as long as I can remember was being loudly spoken to by a younger new man saying hurry up we have to get to the frozen foods . I was very tempted to tell him he was being rude we all know the employ who has some difficulty but he was outrageous and if I hear it again I will tell him he is abusive

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