CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Charlotte got its first Wegmans on Wednesday, and some shoppers were so eager that they spent the night outside the Ballantyne store to be among the first through the doors.
Doors swung open Oct. 14 at 9 a.m. at 11550 N. Community House Road. The line started forming around 5 p.m. the day before, about 16 hours ahead of the ribbon, and some fans cooked breakfast in the parking lot before dawn.
Once doors opened, hundreds of people poured in. The store has roughly 664 parking spaces, and nearly every one was taken within about 20 minutes. Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officers were on hand to keep cars moving around the site.
The building covers 110,000 square feet. Alongside the usual grocery departments, close to half the floor is given to the chain’s prepared foods. A section called Taste of Upstate New York nods to the company’s home state, and Buffalo-area products drew a crowd from transplants who grew up shopping at the chain. One pair near the front of the line held a handmade first-in-line sign done in Buffalo Bills colors, and jars of the store’s Boss Sauce and tubs of bison dip were early favorites, with some shoppers grabbing several containers at a time.
For south Charlotte, the opening also means work: the store brought about 450 jobs to the area. New York-based Wegmans runs at least 114 stores across nine states and Washington, D.C.
Shoppers heading to the Ballantyne location in the coming days should plan for busy lots, especially at midday and on weekends.
