Summer Fresh buys Marshfield grocery

Cunningham Fresh Foods, at 759 W. Washington in Marshfield, will Jan. 3 become a Summer Fresh Supermarket, according to Cunningham Fresh Foods owner Mike Cunningham.

Cunningham, who owns the store with his wife, Neena, opened the Marshfield grocery in 1979.

He said it seemed like a good time to get out of the business when Summer Fresh owners David and Leslie Trottier approached him about purchasing the store. Cunningham said he's lost interest in the grocery business, but not in the customers he's served for more than two decades.

"It's just a different way of doing business than it used to be. I still love my customers and my people, but it's so much paperwork now, it's just different," Cunningham said.

"(Summer Fresh) will take good care of my customers and employees, and the community. They'll be very community-oriented," he added.

The Marshfield location will be the Trottiers' sixth Summer Fresh to open in less than two years. Other Summer Fresh stores are located in Fair Grove, Mount Vernon, Lamar, El Dorado Springs and Kimberling City.

The Trottiers are the former owners of Smitty's Supermarkets, which were purchased by Albertson's Inc. a few years ago. Trottier said becoming a Summer Fresh store is a good fit for Cunningham Fresh Foods, because the management styles and the setup of the two operations are similar.

"When we sold our Smitty's stores, we were basically 70,000-square-foot stores. My plan for the smaller communities (with Summer Fresh) was in the 35,000-square-foot range of stores. (Cunningham's) ... worked right into our program," Trottier said.

Cunningham said a lack of vendor support combined with independent grocery stores becoming less and less common led to his decision to sell his grocery store.

"... I just saw the future didn't look real good for it," Cunningham said.

Trottier said the competition won't be any different for Summer Fresh than it was for Cunningham Fresh Foods, except that Summer Fresh has strength in numbers.

He said businesses have to be aware of the competition, but they can't run from it.

"We can't predict what the big guy is going to do, or what a small operator like us is going to do. We're there to do businesswe know the business. It's something that we're good at ... I've been in this business all my life, and the people who work for me are very dedicated to making Summer Fresh the best stores possible," Trottier said.

Cunningham Fresh Foods has 138 employees. Cunningham said Summer Fresh plans to keep all of his employees and that the store's new owners also will continue Cunningham's tradition as a community partner in several projects, including Project Graduation.

Trottier agreed, and said he will continue and perhaps expand the role that the grocery store has played in the community.

Cunningham declined to disclose the selling price of the store.

A former Marshfield city manager, Cunningham said he's considering politics in his future plans.

"Our local state Rep. Charlie Ballard has to retire at the end of the term that he's starting in January, due to term limits, and I'd like to run for his office, I think, in about a year, and that would keep me involved with the public and the people ... I think I could represent the people after working with them for 22 years," Cunningham said.

Trottier said for the next few years, the Summer Fresh expansion focus will remain in small towns with populations of 5,000 to 6,000 people.

Trottier said the Albertson's sale included a five-year noncompete clause preventing he and his wife from doing business within a 15-mile radius of any Albertson's store. He said that agreement ends in 2003, which will open up the Springfield market for Summer Fresh.

"After the five-year covenant that we have with Albertson's (is finished), things definitely could change big-time ... it's something that will be in the back of our minds for the future, that Springfield is not off-limits in two more years," Trottier said. "Definitely, our eyes are on Springfield two years from now.