Market of Choice, Inc.
TypePrivate
IndustryRetail (grocery)
Founded1979 (1979) in Cottage Grove, Oregon
FounderRichard Wright Sr.
Headquarters
Eugene, Oregon, U.S.
Number of locations
11
Area served
Oregon
Key people
Richard Wright Sr. (Founder, Chairman & CEO)
ProductsBakery, delicatessen, dairy, grocery, frozen foods, organic foods, bulk foods, meat, produce, seafood, wine, beer, spirits, floral products, pet supplies, general merchandise, natural food, organic food, coffee
RevenueIncreaseUS$235 million (FY 2021)
OwnerRichard Wright
Number of employees
1,000 (FY 2021)
Websitemarketofchoice.com

Market of Choice is a supermarket chain[1] based in Eugene, Oregon, United States. The store carries traditional grocery products, as well as those that are specifically natural and organic.[2]

History

The Market of Choice stores are owned by Market of Choice, Inc. The company began in 1979 with a single store owned by Richard Wright, Sr. in Cottage Grove, Oregon.[2]

The company is now run by the founder's son, Rick Wright. Rick reorganized his father's company, which included Price Chopper and Thriftway stores, and created Market of Choice. As part of its rebranding, Price Chopper stores transitioned to the name PC Market and finally to Market of Choice.[3][4]

By 2011, Market of Choice had seven stores, with four in Eugene and one in each of Ashland, Portland, West Linn and Corvallis.[1] In June 2016, with the opening of a store in Bend, the total had risen to ten.[5] In 2017, Market of Choice opened a store at SE 10th and Belmont in southeast Portland.[3] The Belmont store is a retail anchor for the four-building Goat Blocks mixed-use development, which includes 347 residential units and approximately 97,000 square feet of retail space.[6][7] The most recent addition was in 2020, with a store opening in Medford.[8]

In Portland, near SW Terwilliger Boulevard and Taylor's Ferry Boulevard, the first Market of Choice location outside the Eugene region was established in 2002 and later closed down in April 2019. Company leadership cited limited parking, increased traffic congestion, and space constraints as reasons for the closure.[9][10]

The company's 50,000 square foot commercial production kitchen and food distribution facility in Eugene opened in 2012.[11] Market of Choice, Inc. also operates Venue 252, a 20,000 square foot events facility opened in 2015 in Eugene.[12]

Local recognition

Market of Choice stores were voted the best grocery store, natural food store, and salad bar in Lane County, in The Register-Guard's Readers' Choice awards in 2016. The Eugene stores were also a winner in the dessert category.[13] The Bend Market of Choice store was voted one of the Best Grocery Stores in Central Oregon in 2016 by the readers of Source Weekly.[14]

Environment and Sustainability

A Market of Choice store in Eugene

In September 2008, Market of Choice removed the use of plastic shopping bags from their stores.[15]

References

  1. 1 2 Nine locations listed at "Locations". Market of Choice. Retrieved January 4, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Market of Choice: About Us Archived 2008-09-25 at the Wayback Machine
  3. 1 2 Ed Russo (June 15, 2016). "Bend adds Choice". registerguard.com. p. B4. Retrieved April 23, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Market of Choice Manages Their Energy Right". Betterbricks. Archived from the original on September 18, 2010. Retrieved April 24, 2018.
  5. ↑ Vance, Miles (January 22, 2015). "New Market of Choice grocery store now open in Bend. Blake Carnese began working with Market of Choice in November of 2017". p. A3. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
  6. ↑ "Store Bought". Oregon Business. 2015-08-11. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  7. ↑ "Goat Blocks". Killian Pacific. 2020-02-26. Retrieved 2021-06-13.
  8. ↑ Pollock, Buffy (2021-01-27). "Market of Choice to Open Medford Store Thursday". Mail Tribune. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  9. ↑ Gallagher, Bill (2019-04-02). "CEO talks about why Portland's first Market of Choice will shut down on April 14". Southwest Connection. Retrieved 2021-06-12.
  10. ↑ "Leau Food". Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  11. ↑ "Market of Choice Kitchen & Distribution Center". Chambers Construction. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
  12. ↑ Burri McDonald, Sherri (2015-10-25). "Vision at Venue 252: Grocer Rick Wright's new events center in the Whiteaker has bookings into 2016". The Register-Guard. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  13. ↑ "2018 Readers' Choice - The Register-Guard". readerschoice.registerguard.com. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
  14. ↑ "2016 Best Of Central Oregon Winners". bendsource.com. Retrieved 17 April 2018.
  15. ↑ "Grocery chain cuts plastic bags". KVAL-TV. September 11, 2008. Retrieved November 1, 2008.
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