DALLAS TWP. — The new Weis Market in the Country Club Shopping Center will be “clean, well-organized and very friendly,” store manager Carmine Lupio said Thursday.

Lupio will be pleased, then, to hear what one Weis shopper had to say when the Times Leader asked what she thought of the new store.

“I find this store to be very clean, very well-organized and very friendly,” said Ann Kay of Dallas.

Weis Markets opened its newest location Thursday in the former Thomas Foodtown, which it purchased in September. Weis also acquired Thomas’ Food Basics store in Shavertown, which was then closed.

Lupio said the new store occupies 45,000 square feet and employs 45 full- and part-time associates. Half of the employees at the new store came to Weis from the former Thomas’ locations, corporate spokesman Dennis Curtain said.

It also includes a “dollar zone,” the first such discount section at a Weis store.

The supermarket on Tunkhannock Highway marks the seventh Luzerne County location for the Sunbury-based chain — and Weis’ second store in the Dallas area, albeit less than two miles from an existing Weis store on the Memorial Highway.

Both stores will remain open, Curtin said, noting that the company saw an opportunity to expand its business in the Back Mountain by opening the new market.

“We are confident we will do even better thanks to our loyal customer base,” Curtin said.

The chain’s other Luzerne County locations are in Plains Township, Nanticoke, Mountain Top, Duryea, and West Hazleton.

What started as a neighborhood market in Sunbury in 1912 is now a seven-state chain with 198 stores, 126 of them in Pennsylvania.

Weis has undergone substantial growth and expansion in recent years in the Mid-Atlantic region, as the Central Penn Business Journal pointed out in a 2017 report, opening a new flagship superstore in suburban Harrisburg following a year in which Weis spent $65 million on buying stores from rival companies.

The company also makes a point of supporting community organizations, a policy continued Thursday as the Dallas ceremony included donations to two Back Mountain charities — Blue Chip Farm Animal Refuge and the Back Mountain Food Pantry, each receiving a check for $500.

“This donation is very much appreciated,” said Marge Bart, owner of Blue Chip Farms. “It really helps us survive. We recently received two dogs that were pregnant and needed C-sections. That’s a big and unexpected expense.”

Blue Chip Farm Animal Refuge has provided thousands of animals a sanctuary where older, stray, abandoned, sick or abused animals can wait to be adopted, or simply live out their lives in safety and peace.

Joseph Hardisky, associate manager of the Back Mountain Food Pantry — located in the Trucksville United Methodist Church — said the food pantry serves about 185 people and he said the number of people in need is always growing.

“We see people who have recently lost jobs or found out they have a serious illness,” Hardisky said. “They suddenly find themselves in a tough position and they come to us for help.”

For Lupio, a 12-year Weis employee, those donations also meant a great deal.

“It’s a good feeling to work for a company that gives back to the community so much,” he said.

Carmine Lupio, store manager at the new Weis Market in the Country Club Shopping Plaza in Dallas Township, holds one of two $500 checks that were presented to two Back Mountain charities Thursday during the store’s grand opening ceremony. Marge Bart, far left, owner of Blue Chip Farm Animal Refuge, accepted one check. Joseph Hardisky, associate manager of the Back Mountain Food Pantry, accepted the other check.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/web1_WEIS-OPENS-1-2.jpg.optimal.jpgCarmine Lupio, store manager at the new Weis Market in the Country Club Shopping Plaza in Dallas Township, holds one of two $500 checks that were presented to two Back Mountain charities Thursday during the store’s grand opening ceremony. Marge Bart, far left, owner of Blue Chip Farm Animal Refuge, accepted one check. Joseph Hardisky, associate manager of the Back Mountain Food Pantry, accepted the other check. Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader

With staff and shoppers looking on, Carmine Lupio, store manager, cuts the ribbon marking the opening of the newest Weis Market during a ceremony Thursday in the Country Club Shopping Center, Dallas Township.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/web1_WEIS-OPENS-2-2.jpg.optimal.jpgWith staff and shoppers looking on, Carmine Lupio, store manager, cuts the ribbon marking the opening of the newest Weis Market during a ceremony Thursday in the Country Club Shopping Center, Dallas Township. Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader

A ‘Dollar Zone’ is featured in the new store in the Weis Market chain that opened Thursday in the Country Club Shopping Center in Dallas Township. This is the first Weis Market to have a Dollar Zone section.
https://www.mydallaspost.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/web1_WEIS-OPENS-3-2.jpg.optimal.jpgA ‘Dollar Zone’ is featured in the new store in the Weis Market chain that opened Thursday in the Country Club Shopping Center in Dallas Township. This is the first Weis Market to have a Dollar Zone section. Bill O’Boyle | Times Leader
Weis debuts second Back Mountain store with ‘dollar zone,’ donations

By Bill O’Boyle

boboyle@timesleader.com

Reach Bill O’Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.