Now that the grocery store has been sold, Andersons are ready to retire
LAUREL — There was a changing of the guard in Laurel this week.
Gary and Charlotte Anderson have owned Gary’s Food Town for over three decades. They have grown their business to become a staple for not only Laurel residents, but neighboring communities as well.
The Andersons moved to Laurel from Norfolk to raise their children, run a great business, and eventually retire. The store has employed many teens and adults, both part-time and full-time over the years.
Helping young people get experience for the real world has been a part of the business plan from the beginning. Counting change has been part of that.
The Andersons have done everything but retire, until now. March 1 the store transitioned to new owners, Brenda Whalen and her husband James Roberts. The new name will be Laurel’s Hometown Market.
The Andersons retirement plans include spending time with children and grandchildren, tending to their vineyard, and relaxing.
“We love our customers. We will miss serving them alongside our employees,” Charlotte said.
Gary adds, “We’ve only been as successful as the help we’ve had, and we’ve had really good help.”
When Whalen, a Laurel native, and Roberts visited Laurel in 2018, Roberts fell in love with the community.
“He told me he would like to move back to Laurel one day. Deep down I always knew it was a possibility with my mom living here and my boys in Columbus. At one point I threw the idea out about purchasing the grocery store,” Whalen said.
Never in her wildest dreams did Whalen actually believe it would happen. Then the unimaginable happened.
“Last fall a friend of mine asked me why we wouldn’t just move back to Nebraska. Jokingly I said the only way I would is if we owned Gary’s Food Town. The next day my son, Tyrel, texted me ‘Mom, why don’t you and James buy the grocery store?’ Between the text and the conversation with my friend, James and I began talking.”
Whalen and Roberts have spent the last few months learning underneath Gary and Charlotte.
“They are wonderful teachers and have been able to share their many years of experience with us. We have a lot of work and learning ahead of us. We realize we cannot do this without the employees at Gary’s. With their continued efforts and hard work, the store will be able to run as the community is use to.” The duo has also used the last month to reconnect with people Brenda hasn’t seen in years.
“It feels like I never left. We’ve been thanked several times for keeping the store open. I can see how important our grocery store is to the community and am thrilled that we can be a part of Laurel’s future success.”
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