By Kelly Burgess, Bruce Peninsula Press
**Editor’s Note: Due to unforeseen circumstances the scheduled November 24 Grand Opening has been delayed.**
The Peacock family have shown great patience and understanding for many years since the initial planning of their new store located at 7357 Hwy 6 in Tobermory. Although there have been delays with construction mainly due to supply issues, the owners, staff and customers of Peacock’s Foodland will be able to celebrate the completion of the new and improved store. The grand opening will take place on Thursday, November 24 with a ceremony starting at 8:30 am and official Grand Opening ribbon cutting at 9 am.
History at Bay Street
Back in 1974, Ron, Barb and their son Rick Peacock purchased what was known then as “Haythorne’s Grocery” from Ethel and Bill Haythorne. The original store had been operating at 9 Bay Street since the 1960’s and officially became a Foodland store in the year 2000. The Peacock family has expanded the store over the years to 6,500 square feet, providing local shoppers and tourists with an impressive variety of products. After working in the store as a teenager, Rick Peacock Jr., joined his father, Owner Rick Peacock Sr. around 2004 to become an integral part of the family business.
Although the harbour is a beautiful location, further expansion required more land for a larger store and more room for parking. Rick Peacock and Manager Carrie Bennett have enjoyed their time at the Bay Street location. “We will miss the family history, and the many memories that were made over the years,” they stated. The Bay Street location will officially close its doors on Saturday, November 19th, an end to over 20 years as the original Peacock’s Foodland.
New and Improved Space
The new store with a square footage of over 25,000 square feet has some wonderful new features and additions to serve the community. It will offer a new hot deli with designated parking for easy access to the store for those specific items. According to Bennett, “The store will have a new floral section and produce department that has a new wet wall cooler, which will allow produce to stay fresh longer.” All fresh departments are larger with the capability to carry more items. With wider aisles and an extensive variety of products, customers will be treated to a premium shopping experience. There is an abundance of customer parking and traffic flow is expected to be very efficient.
All are invited and welcome to attend the Grand Opening on Thursday, November 24 to check out all the incredible features the store has to offer. Peacock’s Foodland owners and managers say “We would like to give a special thanks to all of our staff for their extra work and dedication throughout this process. Also a special thanks to Jack Schenk, Darryl Robins, Laura Swanson, and Sobeys/Foodland who have been with them on this project since day one.”