By PJ Tracy
Murfreesboro Diamond
MURFREESBORO – The wait is almost over.
As the clock counts down the time to Chimney Rock Grocery’s opening on January 14, workers are busy putting the final touches in places in preparation.
“This is exciting because it’s all new, and something special for Murfreesboro,” said owner Jack Bonds. “It’s an absolutely great project, new from the roof all the way down to the floor. It’s been a complete remodel utilizing a historic building [the former Piggly Wiggly grocery store]. We’ve been able to make something old as fresh as frost on a pumpkin.”
Bonds said the project was a labor of love that solves a great need for the community.
“It’s really special and will be like no other – we have gone out of our way to make it special. It’s not just four walls.”
While some work still had to be accomplished – such as installation of the new automatic sliding doors – Bonds definitively states that the store will be open on the fourteenth of this month.
He also states definitively the contents of the store will be worth the trip.
“Produce will be fresh, we will have a good variety, and if there is something we don’t have, all you have to do is ask. We will try to get it.”
Meat will also be a big selling focus for the store. Meat will be cut fresh daily, and specialty cuts will be done to specification.
“If someone calls and wants a two-inch thick t-bone steak, or fourty one-inch pork chops, we will get it done, even while you wait if you wish” said meat butcher Nathaneal Allen. “Much of the meat we will carry will be choice. Just getting meat cut these days is special, as everyone has gone to prepackaged meats.”
The meat and deli department will also feature rotisserie chicken and ribs, along with deli sliced meat and cheeses. There will also be ground turkey and turkey bacon/sausage for those who can’t eat beef or pork.
“We expect people to travel to come to our full-bore butcher shop,” said Bonds. “I expect people to drive from up to 50 miles away to buy their meat here.”
Allen said it’s not just quality, but also pricing that will bring the customers back for more.
“We will have the most competitive meat and produce prices around.”
The store is in the process of completing the process of being able to accept Women, Infants and Children (WIC) funds as well as insurance cards. SNAP and EBT cards will also be accepted after the paperwork filing is completed.
Perhaps the most unique piece of the store is the rock chimney fireplace in honor of the store’s name.
“It’s a warm and fuzzy spot, and it’s just something different. People will come in and see that it’s not just a generic store. If men want to come in and sit down by the fire while their wives shop, there will be a rocking chair available. There’s no pressure … you can just sit there and relax. It makes it feel very hometown. The whole point of this venture is to be a hometown grocery store with big city prices.”
Store manager and co-owner Tim Allen – former manager of Cash Saver – said it more simply.
“This is Murfreesboro’s grocery store.”
Bonds said the inclusion of Tim Allen, along with son Nathaneal, was crucial for the store’s future by bringing Allen’s 30 years of experience in the grocery store business. “Anybody can buy a bus, but if you don’t have a driver, what good was it? That’s the reality of it all. I’m most excited about Allen and the crew he has assembled – he knows the market business and that’s the key to making this whole thing work.”
Allen said the whole process was exciting to him on a personal level.
“We get to bring a great grocery store to Murfreesboro. I live here and saw the dire need. So, Jack and I got together and made it happen. This wasn’t just an overnight deal – this was a year and a half long process. There were stumbling blocks along the way … but it finally came together. Sometimes the stars just have to align.”
Bonds agreed about the arduous journey. “It has been a long term process.”
“Anyone who hasn’t been through this sort of process — starting a business from scratch – might not understand how much has to be put together to get it done. We wish it could have been quicker for the community, but we are finally here,” said Allen.
“It’s taken this long to put together all these quality people [employees],” said Bonds, proudly noting about the creation of approximately 15 new jobs in Murfreesboro. “That’s also a very important thing.”
Allen reiterated Bond’s point about keeping good and wanted content in the store.
“Let us know what we don’t have and we will do our very best to get it.”
One of the other big questions, according to Allen, is if the store will offer a delivery feature. The answer is yes, eventually.
“The warehouse is working on a program right now for delivery – it is in the early stages – as soon as it is developed, we will give it a shot and try it.”
Allen also said the other big question is the cost-plus addition at the counter upon checkout.
“We are not cost-plus – what you see on the tag is what you get, we will not add another fee on products at the register.”
The store will of course feature national brands, but their private label items – Best Choice and Always Save — will provide the greatest values in the store.
“We are also working on getting crazy good specials,” Bonds said. “The goal is to have them every week.”
The store will also offer special meat sales on the weekend – along with the weekly advertised specials. “Not everyone can get here on Tuesdays,” said Allen. “So, it’s an effort to benefit everyone.”
The trio also thanked everyone that has helped them along the way to getting the store open – acts for which they will always be thankful.
Bonds, however, for his part, wants no credit for the opening – opting simply with a joke.
“I’m just one guy in town – and I wanted a store open because I’m hungry.”
He does feel the store opening is a feather in the cap for the community in more ways than one.
“Outside of the convenience of having a grocery store locally, I truly believe that a quality grocery store can help extend the lives of the local residents by offering healthier options outside preprocessed fare that you can get everywhere else.”
Allen added that a few residents have stated they were well on their way out their way to greener pastures – or at least a town with a grocery store.
Down the road, perhaps a full grocery store will – at least in part — help attract another business in Murfreesboro. For now, however, local residents can at least take solace in the fact they can get the vast majority of the shopping done at home at their full-service market.
“There’s no self-checkout … most people don’t want that anyway,” Bonds said, with Allen stating that “we’ll take your bags to your car if you want.”
“We are committed to being Murfreesboro’s grocery store, and are service oriented people. The customer is everything to us,” Bonds said. “Tim has done a great job in making this something that the community can really be proud of.”
