Shoppers in Coram will have one less option as Stop & Shop has announced the closure of its store on Middle Country Road as part of a downsizing affecting three other Long Island locations and many more in the Northeast.
“I understand their decision to leave,” said shopper Susan Frost of Coram. “There’s a lot of shoplifting and a lot of riff-raff hanging out in the area, homeless sleeping on the street. I’m assuming people who would shop here go somewhere else because of that.”
“It’s a shame,” local shopper Jason George said of the closure. “There are no shopping centers close to here. I hope whoever takes it over does a better job.”
Town and county officials have targeted the adjacent community of Gordon Heights for renewal with a plan to create more retail options. The low-income area has been neglected and needs a commercial tax base.
Stop & Shop is owned by Ahold Delhaize USA, a division of the global food retailer Ahold Delhaize, headquartered in the Netherlands. They also own the GIANT Company, Giant Food, Food Lion, and Hannaford. The Ahold companies make up the largest grocery retail group on the East Coast and the fourth largest in the nation, generating $58 billion in sales annually.
“Stop & Shop has evaluated its overall store portfolio and made the difficult decision to close underperforming stores to create a healthy base for the future growth of our brand," said Gordon Reid, Stop & Shop president. The supermarket chain is under pressure from discount retailer such as Aldi and Lidl, which are opening numerous stores on Long Island.
Stop & Shop employs 58,000 people and operates approximately 400 outlets in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York and Rhode Island. Coram joins 31 other stores slated for closure, including three in Nassau County: East Meadow, Greenvale, and Hempstead. Stores in Medford, Patchogue, and Shirley weren’t on the hit list, and the company said employees of the closing stores will be offered positions at other locations.