Swann’s Pantry Promises Affordable Groceries

Swann’s Pantry, a new grocery outlet, in Falls Township had its grand opening on Thursday.

Swann’s Pantry is a family owned discount grocery store located on New Falls Road. Although the store is a grocery outlet, the store is not attempting to compete with the likes of Giant and ShopRite, said business manager Doug Bohr.

The process to finally open the store has been a long one, according to Bohr. The process with the specific location began during the beginning of 2013. Optimism led the leadership of the store to aim for a late 2013 opening. However, setbacks including troubles with the contractor who was renovating the location and disagreements with health regulations set by the county forced the store to delay their opening.

The location was chosen based on the relative readiness of the building, according to Bohr. “We didn’t have to buy refrigerators or anything, it happened to all come together.”

“People care about prices, brand names, and the fact that we’re family owned,” explained the business manager.

“You won’t have limitations, membership fees, no gimmicks,” explained Bohr. “It’s simple, every product is individually priced. It is almost like every item is individually inspected.”

Although everything seems simple in Swann’s Pantry, the one hangup that may concern patrons is Swann’s policy on coupons. The policy does not honor coupons due to their regular prices being so low, according to Bohr.

“This store is all about close outs. We’re not trying to compete with Giant or ShopRite,” Bohr said.

According to Bohr, Swann’s Pantry gets it’s inventory by bidding on items that are close dated. The inventory is acquired for much less, and as a result, the prices of the products for sale are also much cheaper.

“This is, in many cases, 30 to 50 percent less,” said Bohr in reference to prices of items at Swann, as opposed to items at other grocery stores in the area.

“A lot of the product is close dated, and a lot of people use that as a reason to not shop here,” said Bohr.

Close dated is a situation that occurs when items begin to approach their expiration date, however, this is a non issue for the vast majority of the product at the store, Bohr assured. “One of my main goals as the business manager is to object to the close date stigma.”

“I’m giddy, many of our vendors are here supporting us,” said Bohr, while looking at the patrons milling through the aisles of the recently opened store.

“Customers can expect a well-run store,” noted Bohr.

Chris Smith, the manager of the store, explained the position of the leadership on a Levittown location, “The reason we came to Levittown is the community. I really want this to be a community store.” Staying true to the idea of a local store, the majority of the employees at Swann’s Pantry live in Levittown, many within walking distance.

“I think the store is going to be tremendous, even better than we expected,” explained Smith.

State Representative John Galloway also commented on the new business, which has its home right next to the representative’s office. “We’re always happy to see new businesses start up in our district. We appreciate the owners making the commitment and making new jobs and giving this opportunity to the community.”

Swann’s Pantry is open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday and is closed on Sunday.