When our Canton, Mich. store opened its doors on Nov. 19, 1974, it was the first Meijer store in the Detroit market and the largest store in company history at 250,000 square feet. The new store was called Meijer Thrifty Acres, and it was a “hypermarket,” a format popular in Europe. Special features of this new format included an outer concourse with specialty stores, tall vertical wire shelving, and a complete range of home appliances and furnishings. Our introduction of the hypermarket to the United States generated extensive discussion and speculation in local news and retail industry publications.
Fifty years later, the Canton store celebrates its golden anniversary this week. The team marked 50 years of serving the Canton community with an in-store celebration for customers as well as a donation to the Plymouth/Canton Optimists Club, an organization supporting families in the community through scholarships, road cleanups and local events.
Nearly as long as the store has existed, Retail Administrative Assistant Lynn Wadsworth has been there too. She started in high school as an hourly team member and was offered a full-time position following graduation. She was glad to accept, as she saw excellent opportunities to move up in the company and make a career with a family-owned company.
Lynn started her first administrative position in 1986 at the Canton store. She found the store team “to have a family-friendly atmosphere and to be very caring of one another.” Lynn also met her husband through the job, and together they raised three children while both keeping their careers with Meijer.
As she reflected on her 47-year career with the company, Lynn reminisced about how many things have changed over the years. While there have been many innovations, what stands out the most is that everything from applying for a job and onboarding, to restocking and even shopping for some customers, is now computerized.
Her best Meijer memory? When Lynn was new to the RAA position in Canton, Fred Meijer came into the store for a visit. As he was known to do, he chatted with all the team members and specifically asked Lynn to sit down with him on a break to share stories with her.
“He made me feel like we’d know each other forever and as if I were part of the family,” she remembered. “It’s been an honor to have been with Meijer for 47 years. I’m glad to have been a part of it all.”