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Zallie ShopRite Moving to K-Mart Blackwood Building CONFIRMED! Also, Gibbstown to Close For New Woolwich Store

Zallie ShopRite Moving to K-Mart Blackwood Building CONFIRMED!  Also, Gibbstown to Close For New Woolwich Store

Zallie-Somerset has confirmed that their Laurel Hill ShopRite on Blackwood-Clementon Road will be moving 3/4 of a mile West to an all new Supermarket to be developed at the K-Mart building in the Cherrywood Plaza.

Additionally, Zallie is developing a new ShopRite in Woolwich (which was known), but we have confirmation the current Gibbstown location will close… being replaced by Woolwich.

While we couldn’t find the square footage of the two older stores, it is expected that the new ones will be substantially larger in order to provide the best possible shopping experience.

They are targeting a 2023 opening for both new supermarket locations.

Zallie-Somerset has 11 supermarket locations in New Jersey and Philadelphia, and list their Corporate address as being in Gloucester Township! You can read about their history at their website.

K-Mart closed the Blackwood location in 2017 as part of a nationwide downsizing. Currently there are only 2 K-marts remaining in New Jersey (North)

Rumors and Reality

For the Blackwood-Clementon Road “Laurel Hill” ShopRite, we’ve heard the rumors for over 2 years, but we had been reluctant to post about it without 100% confirmation.

Back in August 2021 we caught up with Owner and President Dave Zallie who told us at the time “While it’s still premature to confirm anything, I will let you know when we have news to report”

So I was respectful and didn’t post on the plans despite basically having a confirmation then that something was in the works. Other outlets did post on the rumor this past fall.

But today we got our 100% confirmation.

Zallie-Somerset published their Employee “Company Connector” newsletter where Dave Zallie very clearly and succinctly laid out their plans for the two stores.

And 42Freeway has a copy of the newsletter

Future ShopRite locations for Gloucester Township and Woolwich

ShopRite of Cherrywood Plaza

As big and exciting as a new supermarket can be… this one really is a big deal for the Zallie family.

President David explains that their first supermarket opened 49 years ago… as a Shop ‘N Bag at the Laurel Hill Property. June 1973 to be exact.

it is that Laurel Hill location that is being relocated into a completely new supermarket… where K-Mart used to be.

The Shopping Center that the K-Mart was located in is called Cherrywood, and with the relocation they will change the name to ShopRite Cherrywood.

The new supermarket will be 75,000 square feet, and feature a full-sized “ShopRite From Home” Department… allowing customers to place orders online!

The larger space will give Zallie the room to develop a shopping experience for guests that they just can’t develop in the smaller building and property of the Laurel Hill location.

The new location at Cherrywood Shopping Center is a Benderson Development property. Their listing on Loopnet still shows the K-mart as being available for lease, but they are probably waiting for Zallie-Somerset to give them the word that its ok to tell the public.

I guess this 42Freeway article may be enough “word”. 🙂

For those keeping score at home, way back in September 2020 I was in contact with the Benderson sales team regarding the K-Mart… and back then I asked about the plans for ShopRite moving in. To their credit they offered no details at the time.

ShopRite of Laurel Hill will close once the new Cherrywood location is complete

ShopRite of Center Square Plaza

Zallie-Somerset is also developing a new supermarket in the booming area of Woolwich.

We haven’t reported on this new supermarket. We knew it was coming… but for a variety of factors we had to pass on it. (more on that in a few weeks).

A new supermarket has been in the plans in the Woolwich area for a few years, tied to the astronomical residential growth in the town and surrounding areas.

What was once a sleepy little farm town, has been transformed over recent decades into a full suburban town… filled with expensive new construction homes and family incomes to match.

A 2019 article at NJ.com lists Woolwich as the second fastest growing town in New Jersey.

And long before that Woolwich had caught the attention of folks at a much larger level. A 2005 New York Times article featured the change and growth in Woolwich.

In 1990, Woolwich was the most rural town in Gloucester County, with only 1,385 residents…
Today (2005), Woolwich, a 20-square-mile community about a half-hour south of Philadelphia, is the fastest-growing town in the Northeast, according to United States Census data

New York Times, December 25 2005

Today the number of residents is approaching 13,000. And more housing developments are coming.

There is a big and growing need for shopping options in that area. Several projects have been proposed and finally the ShopRite has reached the point of “under construction”

The specifications for the Center Square ShopRite read very similar to the Cherrywood location.

ShopRite of Center Square Plaza will also clock in around 75,000 square feet and also offer a full-sized ShopRite From Home department.

Laurel Hill and Gibbstown Closing

These two new stores are presented as replacements for two existing and smaller stores. While the dates of the closings have not been shared with us, we assume they will be timed with the completion and opening of the 2 new stores.

The Laurel Hill store closing… well no one is going to complain about that one.

The move for Laurel Hill is less than a mile away on the same roadway, Blackwood-Clementon.

I would expect that this new location will be able to retain it’s existing customer base while picking up new customers from other parts of Blackwood and even Deptford (Mark from 42Freeway lives in Deptford and would make this his “home” supermarket!)

ShopRite of Gibbstown to close as it will be replaced by a new supermarket in Woolwich

The Gibbstown store closing… well that’s gonna sting a little bit more for the residents of Gibbstown, Paulsboro, East Greenwich and surrounding.

Looking at Google Map directions right now on a Wednesday night, it shows the distance from Gibbstown Shoprite to the new Woolwich Shoprite as a 15 minute drive.

Paulsboro does have a Sav-A-Lot about a mile away from Gibbstown Shoprite. It is a lovely store, but it is not a full supermarket experience.

So honestly, that puts other “full sized” supermarkets in closer proximity to Gibbstown than the upcoming Woolwich, such as Acme in Swedesboro, Shoprite of West Deptford. But they are all still at least 10 miles away.

Hmmm….Even the Brooklawn Shoprite is a closer drive for Gibbstown, according to Google maps.

Just sharing the facts.

We’re very excited to see the new stores coming in 2023, and YES I am personally excited for the Cherrywood Location!

ShopRite of Cherrywood Plaza (Opening 2023)
1468 Blackwood Clementon Rd
Clementon, NJ 08021

ShopRite of Center Square Plaza (Opening 2023)
Auburn Road and Center Square Road
Woolwich NJ