MADAWASKA, Maine – The Madawaska and Fort Kent Paradis Shop ‘n Save Supermarket stores will close for three days next month as they transition to Hannaford ownership.
Hannaford announced in January its plans to acquire both the Fort Kent and Madawaska Paradis Shop ‘n Save Supermarket stories. Paradis company President and store manager Denis Paradis said he was approached by Hannaford about selling the business, and felt it would be a great benefit to the St. John Valley community.
Hannaford already supplies and supports the Paradis’ Shop ‘n Save stores with store-brand products, which will ease the upcoming transition.
The two stores will close on Monday, April 8 at 2 p.m. and then reopen at 7 a.m. on Friday, April 12, according to a press release sent on Friday.
“We thank the Fort Kent and Madawaska communities for their patience while we transition the stores and look forward to welcoming them as Hannaford customers in the near future,” Todd Bullen, Hannaford Supermarkets Vice President of Retail Operations, said in the Friday release.
The Fort Kent store is on 62 West Main Street and the Madawaska store is on 58 Main Street.
The Paradis family store has had nearly 80 years of history in the area. Louis Paradis opened Paradis Supermarket in Fort Kent in 1948. Since then, the family has continued to own regional grocery stores for three generations.
Denis Paradis said earlier this year that the Paradis family will no longer be involved with the business after the transition. He added that he has been involved with Hannaford’s acquisition of other Paradis’ Shop ‘n Save stores in the region, and that the transition has always gone over well.
With the new stores in Fort Kent and Madawaska, Hannaford will now have a total of 189 locations, 68 of which are in Maine.
