The Market Report

LaBonne's Market Owner: Bob LaBonne Opened: unknown Cooperative:  IGA Location:  639 Straits Tpk, Watertown, CT Photographed:  July 9, 2021 We've seen some excellent independents around Connecticut so far, and today's tour is no exception. The four-store LaBonne's Market chain runs higher-end but complete supermarkets with lots of specialty items but not crazy high prices. Like so many other stores in this area, they are IGA-affiliated and supplied by Bozzuto's -- whose home base is in Cheshire, just about ten miles from this store. We enter the 30,000 square foot store on the left side to produce in the left part of the grand aisle. It opens up to prepared foods up next, with a sushi island in the middle of the grand aisle and the rest at the back. The salad bar we see here was closed not permanently, but due to the coronavirus when I visited. The deli is at the back of the grand aisle with meat and seafood taking up the rest of the back wall. Dairy and frozen ar...

Adams Hometown Market Owner: Bozzuto's Foods Opened:  1996 Previous Tenants:  Edwards Super Food Stores (ca. 1960-1996) Cooperative:  IGA Location:  1167 Main St, Watertown, CT Photographed:  July 9, 2021 I've mentioned that many independents in Connecticut are supplied by Bozzuto's, a food wholesaler based in a suburb between Waterbury and Hartford, including all of the IGA stores in this region. What I didn't know until relatively recently is that Bozzuto's has actually owned a group of IGA stores for several decades, and in 1996, acquired nine Edwards Super Food Stores from Ahold and renamed them Adams Super Food Stores after Bozzuto's founder Adam Bozzuto. They've also acquired various other IGAs and independents -- especially from their own customers who are looking to sell their stores for one reason or another -- over time, rolling them all into what's now called Adams Hometown Markets. The Adams chain now owns 17 stores under the Adams Hometown...