As anchor tenants go, adding a 7-Eleven on Bay Street across from City Hall doesn’t exactly have the cachet of, say, a Nordstrom.
Then again, this isn’t your father’s 7-Eleven.
At the store’s grand opening celebration on Tuesday, its managers claim that it’s not just new to the location — it’s also a new type of 7-Eleven.
And Port Orchard should prepare for more of these “new” 7-Elevens to move into the region.
The company plans to open stores on Mile Hill Drive, Bay Street and Lund by the end of the year.
The stores will have a clean, friendly atmosphere, and they will feature fresh food and coffee said Tracy Weston-Ladnow, a 7-Eleven field representative.
“Up until now, the industry has pretty much lived and died by beer and cigarettes,” said Jeff Brown, a senior real estate representative for 7-Eleven’s North Pacific Division. “We’re trying to move away from that image and provide people with healthier options.”
The new 7-Elevens plan to emphasize fresh foods and coffee, and will give away free breakfasts and lunches for several days “so people can get our fresh foods in their mouth and see how wonderful they really are,” said Weston-Ladnow.
For breakfast, they’re offering muffins, fruit and coffee.
Ordinarily, the muffins come in five different flavors and cost $1.49 each. The fruit typically costs $1.99 to $2.99 depending on the type and container size.
And the coffee normally costs $1.35 to $1.65, and is available in eight different flavors with six “gourmet” syrups, nine creamers, and four toppings.
For lunch, 7-Eleven plans to give away partial sandwiches, fruit and chips.
The sandwiches come in two styles, Italian Baguette and Turkey Havarti on Cracked Wheat, and they cost $3.99 each.
“We normally do quarter sandwiches, but my boss said ‘This time, we’re doing half sandwiches. We’re doing this thing right,’” said Weston-Ladnow.
The store also plans to give away gift baskets of 7-Eleven products to surrounding stores, as a way of introducing themselves to the neighborhood.
Before the 7-Eleven moved in, its building housed the Geiger Port Orchard Pharmacy, which closed at the end of July in 2009.
The business stood on the corner since 1888, two years before the the incorporation of Sidney, as Port Orchard was originally named.
The shop’s owner, Bob Geiger, spent 45 years with Port Orchard’s City Council, making him the city’s longest-tenured councilman, and he ran the pharmacy since 1957.
In contrast, no one person owns the 7-Eleven store on Bay Street. It’s corporately owned, and is available for franchising.
