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The family run (and rapidly growing) Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut supermarket chain Best Market is moving its headquarters to Bay Shore.
Governor Andrew Cuomo’s office issued a formal announcement Tuesday, indicating the move to the former Entenmann’s factory on Fifth Avenue will create 125 jobs over the next five years and retain nearly 2,100 jobs in the region.
“Best Market is a great Long Island success story, and it is only fitting that they will be creating jobs and growing their business in a location that had been a major part of the Bay Shore community,” Cuomo said. “This expansion underscores the state’s commitment to improving our business climate, helping New York businesses flourish and regional economies thrive.”
For those who might be wondering, the family-run Best Market is the same company that runs the Best Yet Markets, which have undergone a re-branding.
According to its website, Best Market, which is based in Bethpage, boasts affordable prices that don’t require anyone joining a club or carrying a card. The company Best Yet Market Inc. started in 1994 with a produce stand in Ronkonkoma, at a place called Produce Warehouse, according to Newsday.
It’s run by the Raitses family, and a location recently opened in Islip. (See story below)
The new, 200,000-square-foot headquarters will also serve as a food incubator and distribution center, state officials said.
The new facility will anchor a proposed regional food hub at the former Entenmann’s site and allow Best Market to further expand its overall operations across Long Island, according to the announcement.
The Entenmann’s factory has been closed since 2014, when the Long Island company, after nearly a century in Bay Shore, shifted its productions to other locations, including Pennsylvania.
Best Market will be help return the 520,000-square-foot building to productive use and be its first anchor tenant, officials said.
To help the move along, the state is providing the company with up to $1 million in Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits. As part of the agreement, Best Market will invest more than $6 million to upgrade and outfit the facility.
“Best Market is excited to resurrect the former Entenmann’s facility which has been an important staple in the Long Island economy for many years, ” said President and CEO of Best Market, Rebecca Philbert.
“The best part is,” added state Senator Phil Boyle, “this comes from a local, family owned company growing, creating more local jobs and providing consumers with a high quality product.”
According to Newsday, the company recently bought 10 former Pathmark and Waldbaum’s locations after their parent company, A&P, went bankrupt.
Photo source: Wikimedia Commons
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https://greaterbayshore.com/2016/07/30/1529-islip-celebrates-the-arrival-of-best-market/
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