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Highlands Today

Winn-Dixie Refurbishes Sebring Store

Jasmina Meyer/Highlands Today

Winn-Dixie in Sebring has renovated parts of the store including the produce department which has a new floor and tier display cases which help keep the products fresh.

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By BILL ROGERS

Highlands Today

Published: November 2, 2008

SEBRING - The Sebring Winn-Dixie, with competition across the street (Wal-Mart) and just a short ride to the north (Publix), has undergone a major makeover - costing more than $2 million.

The store was built in the mid-1980s and had a minor remodeling in 2002, according to Frank Steele, district manager. It is the first time the store in Sebring Square had extensive work, which Steele said was "a long time coming."

In addition to new fixtures, new coolers, new freezers and new decor, the store has expanded the produce department, installed a wood floor in that area and has added about 80 more items including organic and gourmet, according to Steele.

The floral department has also been expanded with additional refrigerated cases.

"We have a great florist here (Betty Jones) with a lot of experience that can do arrangements for any occasion," Steele said. "She has her work displayed in the showcase."

A new display case has been added to seafood as well as five doors of frozen seafood.

The meat case has an additional 12 feet and three large display cases have been put in front of meat and seafood.

In the bakery, a frozen case has been installed for frozen cakes and frozen dessert. There is a new doughnut case and a muffin cart. The doughnuts and muffins are made fresh daily.

Some more gourmet dessert items, decorated cupcakes and single dessert items are there as well.

Also new is a wing bar. Ten different kinds of chicken wings - boneless and regular - will be available.

"Those are cooked several times a day and displayed in there so customers can come in and pick what they like, package those and take them to the front and have weighed there," Steele said.

On the exterior, there is new signage. The entry and exit doors have been relocated to the middle of the store.

"The grocery business is certainly more competitive now than ever before," Steele said. "Price is extremely important. We have a great strategy with pricing where we stay extremely competitive in our prices."

There are 521 Winn-Dixie stores in the country, with about 400 in Florida, Steele said.

Steele said the company is planning to refurbish 75 stores a year during the next five to seven years. The Lake Placid store will likely be remodeled next year and the Avon Park store in 2010.

"The remodels are about being fresh and being local," said Cory Weissman, district customer service specialist. "We offer fresh products to cater to particular neighborhoods. We're catering to the people of Sebring. We've done market studies and know what the consumer is buying out here. Most of all, we're doing what our customers are telling us."

Work on the 45,000-square-foot store took about eight weeks, which Steele noted was completed faster than other remodeling jobs.

Traci Ferris, the store director, said the "customers have been great" during the project.

An event to mark the completion will be held from 4 - 7 p. m. Dec. 12. There will be wine tasting and hors d'oeuvres, holiday sampling throughout the store, a chocolate fountain with fresh fruit for dipping and live holiday music

Bill Rogers may be reached at 386-5825 or wrogers@highlandstoday.com

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