Ukrop's: Supermarket tourism and a parade of major proportions in Richmond

November 17, 2:03 PMDC Ireland & UK Travel ExaminerLaura Harrison McBride

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Ukrop's stores are great on the eyes as well as the taste buds

Third in a series of metro-DC holiday travel articles.

For at least 13 years, it has been inevitable: someday I would write in praise of Ukrop’s. Ukrop’s is, nominally, a central Virginia supermarket chain headquartered in Richmond. In fact, it is a fount of solace in an unfriendly world.  Whew!  Over the top?  I think not.

Here’s why Ukrop’s is worth a visit:  Thirteen years ago, I was the editor of a publication (now defunct) headquartered in Richmond. The publisher was, to say the least, problematical. Rumor had it that he had once pinned a photographer against the wall with his hands around the man’s neck in a disagreement.  I personally saw him and the art director almost come to blows over photo placement. He once took an unflattering photo of me when I was bent over to take a picture of a farm dog for a layout. He tortured the staff with capricious decisions about holidays and bonuses…you name it. So, needless to say, at least one day a week, when I left work, I was a basket case ready for the trash heap.

Ah, but if I stopped at Ukrop’s, I KNEW someone would be kind to me. I bought a lot of food, that year, one item at a time, depending on how many bad days at the office there were.  But it was worth it. The entire staff—I’m not kidding, the entire staff—totally expressed the company’s Golden Rule. Here’s how they express it, in company materials:

“We’re not just here; we’re here to help. Just come into any of our stores. You’ll find friendly faces and caring attitudes. Make a special request. We’ll do everything possible to fulfill it. Shop away. We'll take all those groceries out to the car for you, and carefully pack them in your trunk (and a small “thank you” is tip enough).”

One evening, I asked the teenager carrying my two little bags to my car if she liked her job. “Oh, yes,” she said.  “I love it.”  Why?  “Well, I play soccer, and sometimes I need an extra afternoon off when the coach calls an extra practice, and there is never a problem, like other places I’ve worked,” she said. Ukrop’s staffs their stores sufficiently not to cause problems in their employees’ lives.  Unique.  Especially in the mid-1990s.

I asked once if a checker knew where I could buy a couple of postage stamps.  “How many do you need?” she asked.  No traipsing to the Customer Service desk.  Curious, I asked her why she had stamps.  “We all have stamps.  People often need stamps, and who wants to go elsewhere to get them.”  Hmmm.

Good food to go

They also had, before anyone else that I know of, gourmet meals to go. We’re not talking about rotisserie chickens in a greasy spit oven and a container of slaw. We’re talking about spinach souffle for one, sweet potatoes with pecans and honey, chicken Kiev, French green beans almandine.  Or, Monday through Thursday, a bag dinner for two, including entrees, sides and dessert, for around ten bucks.  With the menu posted—and mailed to customers—a month ahead.  The chefs at Ukrop's wore chef clothes; toques and checked pants. 

Happy employees really do make a difference. Happy employees find it easy to pamper customers; customers who are pampered find it easy to return. It’s just good business.

So…on your next visit to Richmond, think about doing some shopping at Ukrop’s, as long as it’s not on a Sunday; they are all closed then, to give employees a day off without fail, as it was once explained to me. (Those who prefer Saturday are stuck with taking that as their second day, but still, the entire concept is unique in the industry.)

And yes, I do regard shopping as a tourist activity, and certainly eating is.  So find a Ukrop’s with a café—most have them—and plan on having a meal there. They offer the same wonderful foods as they do in little take-home boxes, and more. 

A Parade to Rival Macy's

If you don’t want to spend all day at the Lewis Ginter Botanical Gardens on December 6, you can go to the Ukrop’s Parade at 10 a.m., then to the greenery sale at Ginter, then back to Ukrop’s for lunch.

Ukrop’s/Supervalu Christmas parade is 25 years old and is “the largest single day event of the year in Virginia with floats, balloons, bands, performing groups and more fun for the whole family.”

The Grand Marshal this year is Leland Melvin, U. of Richmond grad and astronaut, recently back from the International Space Station.  View the parade anywhere between the Science Museum of Virginia at 2500 W. Broad Street, and 2/5 miles east of there.